Decent earner creates a fake bank account to ward off mooching family members, his wife accidentally spills the beans to them years later: ‘They'd come to me like an ATM machine’

Author image for Lana DeGaetano
Lana DeGaetano • "Show me to me please."
Nov 15, 2025 6:00 PM EST

Even the dearest of family members might try to take advantage of your personal financial situation, especially if your financial situation is more fruitful than theirs, and you don't know how to say no with a firm hand.

Helping family out is important, though, so sometimes, we go against our better judgment for the sake of those we love. At the end of the day, money is futile, and when we leave this planet, those who remember us will think of our relationships with others and not the money we made. Y'know, we're not billionaires. Nobody cares about our wallets.

The 50-year-old man you'll read about in the story below was sick of his mooching family members and their empty promises of paying him back. At a young age and earning a decent wage, lending folks money feels like giving away a vital organ. You want to save as much as you can to cushion the blow of any financial fall—it's understandable. But, when you don't get the money back, you end up being the bank of "taken advantage of." It's not a great feeling.

If you're in a position like this, create a fake bank account and store funds that only reflect your needs. That's what this fella did. Scroll to read.

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  • 01
    man holding phone with his bank account open
    via Behnam Norouzi For Unsplash+

    Image is representative only and does not depict the actual subjects of the story.

  • 02

    "AITA for telling friends and family I’m broke when they need money?"

    I (50M) had several instances in my 20s where friends and family members borrowed money from me.
    via Fresh_Blueberry_3200
  • 03
    They either never paid it back or I had to really pressure them for the money.
    via Fresh_Blueberry_3200
  • 04
    Problem is everyone knew I make decent money, and knew I was a habitual saver. So when they got hard up, they'd come to me like an ATM machine.
    via Fresh_Blueberry_3200
  • 05
    They'd be like "come on man, I know you got the money!" Then I'd get the hard luck sob story followed by "I'll pay you back when I get..." So I opened up a new bank account.
    via Fresh_Blueberry_3200
  • 06
    I only put $20 in savings (the minimum required by this bank. Then I'd put enough in the checking for bills, groceries and spend it that day so that account only had a few bucks left.
    via Fresh_Blueberry_3200
  • 07
    When folks would hit me up for money I'd be like "sorry, I'd like to help you out but money's tight right now?" They'd call bull shit and I'd log into that account and show them.
    via Fresh_Blueberry_3200
  • 08
    They'd go away all dejected. After a few years of this, people started asking where my money went.
    via Fresh_Blueberry_3200
  • 09
    Obviously I'm not going to tell them the truth (savings, HYSA, investments). So I'd say "beer" or "strip club" or "casino".
    via Fresh_Blueberry_3200
  • 10
    And not only did they believe me (because that's what they did), but by the 2010s they were lecturing me about not wasting my money!
    via Fresh_Blueberry_3200
  • 11
    jar that says savings and has money inside of it
    via Alexander Mils For Unsplash+
  • 12
    Anyway in the 2010s I got married and filled my wife in on the situation.
    via Fresh_Blueberry_3200
  • 13
    She thought it was funny. Anyway my sister came over for Halloween and made some comment about how glad she was that I'd learned to be more responsible with money.
    via Fresh_Blueberry_3200
  • 14
    My wife started laughing and spilled the beans. My sister confronted me and I confirmed it was true.
    via Fresh_Blueberry_3200
  • 15
    Then I told her I wasn't 20 anymore and if she hit me up for money the answer was "no!" She told the rest of the family.
    via Fresh_Blueberry_3200
  • 16
    Some think it's hilarious but others think I'm a tight wadded a Some have asked me how much I have, and I tell them "none of your business." So, AITA?
    via Fresh_Blueberry_3200
  • 17
    kibbiepdx NTA but your sister is for telling everyone.
    via kibbiepdx
  • 18
    Fresh_Blueberry_3200 She's a yapper
    via Fresh_Blueberry_3200
  • 19
    GrammaBear707 Wife is the yapper
    via GrammaBear707
  • 20
    Fresh_Blueberry_3200 Yea she is.
    via Fresh_Blueberry_3200
  • 21
    MischievousBish Yup, an original yapper....that wife. LOL TO OP NTA You have every right to refuse to give money to anyone even though you didn't have much money. They'd kept hitting you up all those years if you handed out money.
    via MischievousBish
  • 22
    MarionberryPlus8474 NTA, and you've learned a valuable lesson to tell your family and friends to MYOB. Personally I would drop people that were always hitting me up for money.
    via MarionberryPlus8474
  • 23
    Fresh_Blueberry_3200 I did drop the friends, and avoided the moocher family members too.
    via Fresh_Blueberry_3200

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family dynamics family drama entitlement reddit story family feud entitled family reddit thread parent Reddit parents entitled people
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