Finances in a relationship is one of the stickiest things to navigate and, sadly, one of the top reasons couples break up. Agreeing on what to spend, or not to spend, can really take a toll on a partnership and when one partner receives more than the other, figuring out how to fairly manage money becomes even more fraught with tension.
The latter is exactly what u/throw_709236 encountered when she received over 4 million dollars from a deceased relative. Here’s her conundrum:
My grandpa passed away a few months ago and I inherited a little over $4 million from his estate. I had no idea he had that much money and was honestly not expecting to receive anything, as I assumed it would all go to my mom.
After I got over the initial shock, I took the opportunity to finally quit my job (which I really hated), as I don’t have any outstanding debts and can easily live off of $40,000 a year. I’m pretty introverted and am more than happy to stay at home working on art/music/other interests and gaming.
OP quit her job and was happy to stay home working on her own interests. However, her boyfriend started pressuring her right after she got the money.
Ever since I inherited the money, my boyfriend has been pressuring me to cover all of the rent and utilities (about $1200 a month) for our apartment and start putting money away into a joint savings fund. I would be happy to do this if we were married, but we’re not. We’ve only been dating for a year and a half, and I would prefer to keep our finances separate. Despite not working anymore, I still pay my half of the rent every month and have started paying for a housekeeper to come in and clean a few times a week, so our apartment is nearly always spotless and looks great.
OP explains that they’ve only been dating a year and a half and are not married; she wants to keep her cash separate from his. She does chip in for rent and a housekeeper, but feels the guy isn’t entitled to her money.
I told my boyfriend he isn’t entitled to my money and he said I was being selfish for expecting him to still contribute to the rent when I could easily afford to pay for the whole thing. AITA?