House-Bound
My dad and his wife live in the Midwest, while my wife and I live in California. In September, my dad had asked my wife and me to consider moving to the same Midwest city as him and his wife. My dad said he’d help us with moving expenses, buying a house, or whatever else we needed. By the way, my dad and his wife are millionaires.
My wife and I, however, are not nearly as well off and are just starting our careers. We talked about it, and we liked the city, and the prospect of getting some help buying a house (which we all know is a futile millennial dream) was enough for us to say yes. My dad and his wife had just purchased a new home and told us that as soon as they sold their old home, they’d co-sign and/or help with a down payment on a house in their city.
They hooked us up with their realtor right away and informed their realtor of the game plan. We’re looking at homes online the entire time and making a list of houses to view when we return to the Midwest for Christmas. That’s when it all unraveled. After opening presents, in front of the ENTIRE family, my dad tells me that he’s decided he wants to put in a pool and doesn’t want to help us buy a house.
He then avoids me for the next three days, and the night before my wife and I are supposed to fly back out, I’ve had enough. I tell my wife to pack her bags and we’ll stay in a hotel the last night. My dad overhears us talking about it, interjects—after literally not seeing him for three days, despite being in the same house.
I calmly confront him about the entire situation. His wife flies off the handle and bum rushes me from across the room, completely unprovoked. My dad has to restrain her. She tells me to leave and never come back. My dad backs her up and says, “Yeah, if you don’t leave, I’m going to call the authorities.” I scoffed, pointed out that we were already leaving, and called an Uber.
I haven’t talked to him since—we blocked him and his wife. A year later, my wife and I are six months pregnant, I just got my dream job making great money, and my dad has no idea about either. Additionally, my brother and his girlfriend refused to visit my dad for Christmas and have more or less cut contact with my dad and his wife. ~ a30centsolution