Inheriting a lot of money and property is the kind of thing that a lot of us daydream about. After all, there's security that comes with that kind of gift. Unfortunately, there's also a lot of risk.
One 25-year-old is learning all about the potential downfall of inheriting something massive, and he's sharing the entire story on Reddit.
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He explains that his grandparents left him with a lot, so he's already pretty solid in life: "When I was 13 my parents died and I was raised by my paternal grandparents. It was the easiest choice since they lived in the same area when my parents were alive and visited them frequently. I am my grandparents only grandchild as my aunt (43f) is child free so when they passed on they left me their house. The current total value of the house is around $500,000 and that's lowballing the estimate and it's fully paid off so I basically have a really good head start in life although I could never imagine selling it."
Recently, a man approached him with some surprising news.
Everything has been fine … or it was, until he was approached by a stranger:
"Recently, I was approached by a man (38m), 'John,' claiming to be my grandfather's son and would like a DNA test to verify it. I shocked and didn't believe him and told him to f off because that would mean that my grandfather cheated on my grandmother."
'John' also got in touch with his other family members.
The man didn't stop there:
"He also contacted my aunt and she recognized him as the neighbor's kid who moved away years ago. Apparently my grandparents were friends with his parents but then one day there was a huge fight and the couple moved away."
The alleged affair tore the man's family apart.
John then offered up the entire story:
"John stated that his mom had an affair with my grandfather and when the husband found out he divorced his mom and they were forced to sell the house. John said that his mom's husband wanted nothing to do with him since he wasn't sure if he was the father and abandoned him."
He also claims a test confirmed this story.
"Years later John tracked him down and after a DNA test was confirmed that he wasn't the father, John's mom confessed that the only other possible candidate was my grandfather. John's mom insisted her ex was the father for years."
He was almost going to do the test.
The man was considering saying OK, but then his girlfriend brought up a really good point:
"My aunt lives in another country so John has been asking me to do a DNA test so that he can finally know for sure who his father is. I was willing to do it until my girlfriend (26f) brought up the issue of ownership of the house."
And it sounds like she was right to be concerned.
"I did a quick check and if the DNA test proves that John is indeed my grandfather's son he might be able to sue for a share of the estate. If it came down to it I would be forced to sell my home because there's no way I could buy out even 1/3 of the share if John wanted it."
So he asked for a requirement.
The guy came up with a solution: yes to the test, but no to any property claim.
"I contacted John and said that I would be more than willing to do a DNA test but only under the condition that he sign away any rights or claims to the house if he's proven to be my grandfather's son via paperwork that my lawyer(s) will draw up. I didn't hear from John for days but then got an angry call from a woman claiming to be his wife who called me greedy and selfish."
He's got a lawyer now.
Things escalated pretty quickly:
"I hung up on her and contacted a lawyer so far unless John can present enough evidence to create doubt he doesn't have much of a case, especially since the possible father is already deceased.
"While I'm content with never giving John what he wants until he waives his rights, and my aunt won’t either, his wife has begun stalking me on social media and putting me on blast."
Who is in the wrong?
Lots of people wanted to dive in on this one, especially since the details are pretty juicy. One person immediately argued that there's no way paternity is all John is after:
"The wife and 'John' are definitely going to sue for the estate. The fact that he didn't agree to draw up papers to ensure that doesn't happen is suspicious. If he really just wanted to know who his biological father is, he would've agreed, you both would've taken the test, you guys would get the results, and that would've been the end of it."
Plus, John's mom never did anything to help him.
Another person pointed out that John's mom could have fixed this situation while the grandfather was still alive, but she didn't:
"The Granddad is dead, they never had a relationship and never will have one. John's mother made the call to not contact the granddad to tell him he's the likely father and ask for a DNA test or ask for child support. Plus, Granddad made a will and didn't want to leave John anything in it."
But DNA kits could make this tricky.
However, John might still have an avenue toward getting the house, especially if the man or his aunt has used a DNA kit:
"Unfortunately, with the rise of several DNA ancestry kits, it’s possible that OP [the original poster] or Aunt have already provided a DNA sample. While not usable to prove paternity, directly, a close match on one of these websites might be the evidence John needs to have the courts compel a verifiable test."
The man should probably cease all contact.
Finally, another person suggested what's pretty obvious: The original poster needs to break off all contact with John.
"Frankly, if I were you I wouldn’t even contact him any further. I have no idea if any contract he would sign that he wouldn’t go after your money would survive in court. Judges are notoriously weird in probate."
These stories are based on posts found on Reddit. Reddit is a user-generated social news aggregation, web content rating, and discussion website where registered members submit content to the site and can up- or down-vote the content. The accuracy and authenticity of each story cannot be confirmed by our staff.
