25-year-old purchases grandparent’s home and calls it “childhood home,” his parents take offense to his favoritism: “They said it was insensitive and a dig at them”

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Briana Viser • Writer and Editor
Apr 15, 2025 2:00 PM EDT

Welcome back ladies and gentlemen of the internet. Family is the one thing that gets to our core. Most of us have complicated relationships with our families, and no two families are the same. Families are like snowflakes, there's something different about each of them. Maybe you have a core family of four, two parents and two siblings. On the surface you get along, but deep down, things could be darker than you realize. Maybe your parents are divorced, and "family" to you implies a bunch of near strangers you never wanted to meet, who ultimately became your stepsiblings and stepparents. Maybe family means your distant relatives, bereft of mom and dad because they weren't in the picture, or didn't do most of the parenting. 

Regardless of how you define family, or your relationship with those individual people, we all have our own story, and that story dictates a lot about us. 

In the story below, the narrator is a 25-year-old man who feels much closer to his grandparents than his actual parents. They were young when they had him, and his grandparents were the ones to raise him. This comes as a shock to his parents, and they get offended at his closeness with them. Read the full story for all the juicy details. 

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  • 01

    AITA for calling my grandparents house my childhood home after I bought it?

    "Your parents are a couple of selfish people"
    via tab1962 / Canva

    This image is for illustration only, and the subjects are models; the image does not depict the actual subjects of the story.

  • 02
    My girlfriend (25f) and I (25m) bought my grandparents house at the start of the year. My grandparents wanted to downsize and when they told us this, we told them we'd love to buy it from them (started this process last year) and they agreed. They also gave us a really amazing bargain because
    via u/Ok_Dependent_6505

  • I was always jealous of kids who were close with their grandparents. It's like having another set of built in parents. When I was growing up, I saw my mother's parents often enough, but something felt odd and distant. They didn't talk much, and I never developed anything close with them. 

  • 03
    they wanted to help us with our forever home. I was so happy because it's the house I really considered home as a kid and it still felt that way to me.
    via u/Ok_Dependent_6505
  • 04
    For some background to explain it. My parents had me younger since they were 19 and 21 and it meant my grandparents really had to step up to help with me. Even though my parents technically raised me and I technically lived with them, I spent FAR more time with my
    via u/Ok_Dependent_6505
  • 05
    grandparents. I was at their house Monday through Friday before and after school and from 6am to 8pm every summer. There were times I spent a week or two at their house while my parents were especially busy or if they wanted to vacation without me.
    via u/Ok_Dependent_6505
  • 06
    My parents settled more and started having more kids when I was 11 and I was pressured to spend more time with them and at home so I'd bond with my siblings. This meant I didn't spend as much time with my grandparents at their house. But it never stopped being the place I felt was home. I'd even say my grandparents were more parents than my actual parents were when I was a kid.
    via u/Ok_Dependent_6505
  • 07
    So my girlfriend and I bought this house together and we told our families after it was official. My parents took offense to me calling it my childhood home. They said I grew up living with them and was raised in their home. My grandparents reminded them I spent more time in their (now mine
    via u/Ok_Dependent_6505
  • 08
    HOME SWEET HOME
    via jefunne from Getty Images Pro / Canva

    This image is for illustration only, and the subjects are models; the image does not depict the actual subjects of the story.

  • 09
    and girlfriend's) house than my parents house. That wasn't good enough for my parents. They said it was insensitive and was a dig at them. And I said that wasn't what this was. I told them it as about what felt true to me.
    via u/Ok_Dependent_6505
  • 10
    My parents said it was disrespectful to them and I wouldn't change their mind. That I should have known better. AITA?
    via u/Ok_Dependent_6505
  • 11
    OperationMediocr... • 11h ago NTA Sounds like your parents might need to think a little more logically and a little less emotionally.
    via u/OperationMediocre794
  • 12
    DeciduousEmu • 11h ago NTA - Your parents are a couple of ., selfish people.
    via u/DeciduousEmu
  • 13
    Cheezburger Image 10493592576
    via cottonbro studio from Pexels / Canva

    This image is for illustration only, and the subjects are models; the image does not depict the actual subjects of the story.

  • 14
    Couette-Couette • 11h ago NTA. Your parents are obviously rewriting your family history to feel better about themselves. You don't have to agree to make them happy.
    via u/Couette-Couette
  • 15
    RandomReddit9791 • 11h ago NTA. Your parents van live a revisionist history if they want to, but you don't have to agree. Congratulations on being able to have your first home be your forever home. I'm glad it has meaning for you.
    via u/RandomReddit9791
  • 16
    • teacup-cat 10h ago to bond with my siblings You mean babysit? Nta
    via u/teacup-cat
  • 17
    krazykatzzy ⚫11h ago Your parents are ashamed of their behavior and want to blame you. NTA
    via u/krazykatzzy
  • 18
    grayblue_grrl 11h ago • Who cares what they think? They are allowed to think anything they want. JUST AS YOU ARE. So, you said your reality and that's it. They can be upset about it.
    via u/grayblue_grrl
  • 19
    The fact they can't acknowledge your reality because it makes them look like bad parents IS a sign of guilt. And they just made it worse by having a fit over it IMO.
    via u/grayblue_grrl
  • 20
    THAT's not on you to cushion their feelings or make them feel better about themselves or their parenting or lack thereof. You got your childhood home and you feel good about it. You and your gf should be proud of yourselves. That's the beginning and end of things.
    via u/grayblue_grrl
  • 21
    Good luck to the two of you in your new home. NTA.
    via u/grayblue_grrl
  • 22
    jrm1102 11h ago NTA - if this is where you felt more at home thats your experience But I dont think this should be something to argue over.
    via u/jrm1102
  • 23
    DanaMarie 75038 • 11h ago NTA. Home is where the heart is. Your parents just refuse to accept that your grandparents did their job. My husband felt the same way with his grandmother. It's not disrespectful when you speak of the truth and from the heart. I can understand them feeling hurt.
    via u/DanaMarie 75038

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