Her Parents Always Acted Rich, But They Only Have Around $100,000 Left In Their Pensions So They’re Asking Her For Money

Kostiantyn - stock.adobe.com - illustrative purposes only, not the actual people
Kostiantyn - stock.adobe.com - illustrative purposes only, not the actual people

This 38-year-old woman’s parents always acted like they were super rich, but looking back now, she knows she should have realized it was all a facade.

They’re not rich; they just buy a ton of things they don’t even need, and that has gotten them into some serious hot water.

She and her 41-year-old husband are so stressed out over her mom and dad’s abysmal financial situation, and she says they can’t bail her parents out.

Her parents began taking money out of their pensions back when they turned 55, so now they only have around $100,000 to $130,000 left in each one.

“Their house has some equity but not as much as you would think, as they have withdrawn from their equity line of credit several times,” she explained.

“My dad has a 100k truck and a vintage Porsche and my mom has a 7 seater when they are the only ones now. My dad is very prideful and refuses to take anyone’s advice, so it was a shock when they came to me and asked for money.”

“He has had a lot of health issues and told me he is going to be taking social security now (he is 68) and quitting his job. Which means they cannot afford their mortgage or car payments. They totally blindsided me; I had no idea how bad it was until now.”

She informed her parents she would not help them until they forked over access to all of their assets and accounts.

That resulted in an enormous argument between her and her parents, but they gave up and finally gave her all of the information she needed to begin determining how bad their financial status actually is.

Kostiantyn – stock.adobe.com – illustrative purposes only, not the actual people

She dug through everything and realized her parents should downsize like crazy ASAP, but they don’t need her to give them money.

Her husband works as a CPA, so it was easy for him to help take a look at everything and give her parents advice.

“They need to sell all the vehicles and get a reliable sedan,” she said. “They need to sell their 3,400 sqft home and buy into a single home with a basement suite or an apartment.”

“I think the apartment is better as my dad struggles to mow the lawn and hires someone now anyway. But my mom insists she needs land for a garden. After that, their SS payments would be enough, and they would still have a small nest egg.”

“This was met with them complaining that they would be living like prisoners. My parents were angry if they got a small single family, they would need to rent out the basement. My dad insists the basement, which he has as a man cave, is necessary for life, and my mom refuses to downsize as she has a whole room full of clothes at their current home that can’t fit in a smaller house.”

She couldn’t help but get angry with her parents, and during their latest phone call conversation, she informed them to start being more humble, as they’re the ones asking for handouts here.

This caused her parents to start screaming at her for being an ingrate before she hung up the phone to make them stop.

She has made it crystal clear to her parents that she’s not bailing them out since they still have way more assets than she and her husband do, and they’re trying to save for their son’s college education.

“My parents have been trying to guilt me by saying they gave me great Christmas presents and college funds, so I owe them,” she added.

“I feel like that was a tiny proportion of their spending, and it didn’t put them in this position, but am I obligated to help support them when they can support themselves if they downsize?”

You can read the original post on Reddit here.

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