My wife and I sold our home to her son at a $100,000 discount. He's now selling at a $250,000 profit. Do I ask for a cut?
My wife and I married later in life, at 48. It was the second marriage for both of us. We are both successful and doing well financially. Our combined net worth is about $3 million. When we got together, I sold my house and we refinanced her home, with me buying half of her house. Her house was way too big for the two of us, so after a few years, we sold it and downsized.
The kicker is we sold it to her son - I have no children - at a substantial $100,000 discount, based on what our neighbor's smaller, less up-to-date house sold for right after we sold ours. The house is a lot for a young couple. Since my stepson and his wife had a baby, his wife has not been working much and they've fallen behind on bills.
My wife has given them $15,000 in "loans" with no expectation of repayment, but it looks like they may have to sell the house. It has certainly appreciated in value over the last two and a half years on top of the steep discount he received, so I feel like we are entitled to some of the profit from the sale, perhaps $75,000 - recognizing the $100,000 discount he received, plus some loan repayment.
My wife is a very experienced and successful Realtor. She knows what the house is worth. I expect they will net about $250,000 from the sale. Am I being unreasonable, or is this fair?
The Stepfather
