Dad Calls His 23-Year-Old Daughter 'Selfish' And 'Money-Hungry' For Being Upset After He Gifted His Son A House
She doesn’t trust her dad or brother to be fair with their assets.
Shift Drive / Shutterstock Whether it be a cringe-worthy jacket a few sizes too small or a gift ordered straight from your Amazon wishlist, gifts from family members are often a surprise, whether that be for better or worse. For one family, the “surprise” wasn’t exactly marked with holiday cheer. Instead, this dad’s gift to his son split the family, causing turmoil that he’s now seeking advice to navigate.
A dad admitted he gifted his son an investment home, upsetting his daughter.
“She’s telling me I’m just like my father,” the dad wrote in his Reddit post.
The dad alluded to his own father as an unfair character saying that he crafted his will to ensure his brother would get all the assets after he passed away. Although it was unfortunate and a pain point for the family, the dad assured readers that his intentions were not the same.
Currently, renters were paying the mortgage on the gifted house, but the father assured his son that the property would be his after it was paid in full; an agreement that was hidden from his daughter. According to the dad, the son was responsible for collecting payments from the renters, paying the bills, and keeping an eye on the property. In exchange for his work, he said, his son would get the house after the mortgage was paid off.
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When his wife slipped up and accidentally shared this news with their daughter, she was outraged. Not only was the deal kept secret from her but, she felt that it was truly unfair. She argued that her brother would “ask for 50% of assets” after their parents were gone, leaving her with only a quarter of their investments.
Her father was quick to call her "money-hungry” and “selfish.”
While she felt her family was “setting her up for failure,” her father considered it a helpful act to help build their son’s credit for his future. Meanwhile, her father said she already had “great credit — over 800+,” was working a decent job, and moved out of their home, so they didn’t consider her “in need” of their help.
Although her brother made much more money than his sister (almost double), her father insisted he “only did it to help his credit score increase.” While paying a mortgage over time is an effective way to raise credit, readers were confused after the dad revealed his son’s credit score. “Everyone seems to be talking about my son’s credit,” the dad added in annoyance in an update on the post, “it’s over 750.” Commenters were rightfully confused as to why their son’s “very good” credit was worthy of an entire mortgage to “fix.”
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“Your son is not paying the mortgage,” one commenter argued, “the tenants are. You wrote that … he gets to pocket his salary, gets the entire second house, and 50% of the other house when you’re gone. You’re helping him and punishing your daughter for what? Being responsible?”
While the dad remained confused (and potentially out of touch) about the impact of his decisions, commenters reminded him of the power of investment in our current economy.
This father essentially gifted his son a retirement fund.
While there’s tons of deviation between different states and cities, the average annual salary an American needs to live comfortably is nearly $60,000. So, while the daughter is making around $30,000 more than that annually, the son is making exponentially more. While it’s clear neither child is “desperate” for parental support, it’s an interesting choice to give their son such a large gift.
Regardless, the second home was owned by their parents and they have the right to do whatever it is they want with it.
Where commenters were most angry with the dad was his disregard for his daughter’s emotions. Instead of understanding how massive the gift of a home was, he attacked his daughter for pushing back.
“I do not hate my daughter,” he wrote, “but I find it bothersome that she’s thinking about us dying and is trying to calculate what she’s going to get.” An interesting take from a parent who was thinking about the future of his son’s financial success enough to gift him a home, but that’s largely a personal opinion.
“He knew what they did was wrong,” one commenter wrote, “that’s why they hid it from the sister … you’re allowed to do what you want with your money — but when you show favoritism to a child, you’ll have to deal with the consequences.”
Understandably, the daughter was not talking to her dad after his deceitfulness.
There’s tons of discourse in the financial spheres on social media about the power of investments, passive income, and real estate in today’s world. As inflation rises, job security decreases, and the standard of living shifts each day.
Many people talk about the difficulty of acquiring and ultimately making money off of real estate or investment properties. Oftentimes purchasing the property and keeping up with the expenses overpowers the ability to make money.
For this son, though, who was gifted the property, the mortgage was the only thing standing in the way of his ability to make a passive income from the home. This father set his son up to receive a passive income from his renters long after the mortgage was paid. Essentially, it was a “retirement fund” that many people can only wish to achieve.
However, his daughter was stuck investing her own income (half of what her brother earned), hoping that eventually, her parents' wills could give her a glimpse at a more secure financial future and retirement.
During the season of joy, gifts, family, and cheer, this family is sadly divided. With this supposedly "money-hungry" daughter not talking to the rest of the family, they’re set for a three-person holiday plagued by awkwardness unless they take the time and effort to have an open dialogue and discussion that will certainly be uncomfortable but hopefully healing.
Zayda Slabbekoorn is a news and entertainment writer at YourTango focusing on pop culture analysis and human interest stories.