Man Buys Mom $5K Gift His Parents Can’t Afford, but Dad Claims He Is ‘Undermining Him’

A man is asking if he was wrong for buying his mom an expensive gift after his dad said they couldn’t afford it.

On Reddit, the 30-year-old explained that he and his father have had a strained relationship ever since he came out as gay. While they still talk sometimes, they are “very emotionally distant.”

Before that, he worked in “corporate finance” and even helped manage his dad’s money and retirement accounts.

But, as the poster shared, “after coming out, my dad told me he didn’t want me managing his accounts anymore so I backed off.”

He says his dad later made some poor financial decisions, losing money in the process. Then earlier this year, his parents bought a house worth nine times his dad’s salary, despite his warnings.

“I told him that I think it’s a bad idea,” he wrote.

Still, they bought the home with a 7% mortgage rate and had to sell their old house for just $75,000 because “they became desperate.”

The man added, “I told my dad that I’d be happy to help in any way, but he never took me up on it.” Fortunately, his dad still had some savings and investments from when the poster used to manage his accounts.

Even so, his dad has been very stressed about money. Because of this, his parents have avoided buying new furniture or making changes to the new home.

His mom, however, had her heart set on a $5,000 sofa that she had wanted for years. His dad said no.

Seeing how sad she was, the man decided to buy it for her himself. Even though he lives in another state, he rented a U-Haul, picked up the sofa, and set it up in their new house.

His mom was thrilled, but his dad was furious.

“My dad got super pissed and said that I was undermining him,” the man explained. “I just said, ‘well if you can’t afford something she wants, then I’ll step in to make her happy.'”

Now, he’s wondering if he went too far by buying such an expensive gift and making things worse with his dad.

Reddit users overwhelmingly supported him, saying he didn’t need his dad’s permission to buy his mom a gift.

“Do you need your dad’s permission to give a gift to your mom? NO! You’re just spending your own money to make her happy,” one commenter said.

Another wrote, “NTA – your dad is finally dealing with the consequences of his actions. At the very worst, you were petty with the last line, but your dad is deserving of it.”

Finally, the poster reassured people that his mom is financially secure, since her retirement and investment accounts are separate and still managed by him.