AITA for turning the home I inherited into an Airbnb? My sister thought it would be a “family home” forever.

A Redditor shares how inheriting their late grandfather’s beach house has sparked conflict with their sister. While the sister and cousin received $500k in cash each, the Redditor inherited the California beach home and decided to turn it into an Airbnb to cover expenses.

The sister, who had been using the home for free, is upset over the change and accuses the Redditor of being unfair and ruining the neighborhood. The Redditor feels torn due to their sister’s guilt-tripping. Read the original story below…

‘ AITA for turning the home I inherited into an Airbnb? My sister thought it would be a “family home” forever.’

About six months or so ago my grandpa died. For simplicity sake, let’s say hi estate is worth about $1.5 million. In his will he said that me, my sister and my cousin each get 1/3 share. His estate was basically two cash amounts and the other share was his beach home in California.

Basically the oldest got to pick which they wanted, the second oldest and the youngest which was me. I got the beach house, my sister and cousin got $500k. For the last six months I’ve allowed my sister to stay in the house whenever she likes but I just got my first tax bill and I either have to sell it or start making some income off it.

After talking to the real estate agent I’ve decided the best course of action is to put it on Airbnb. That way I can still use it if I like, but sister can pay me to use it if she still wants to go there, basically there’s not someone renting full-time.

My sister is furious with me for so many reasons, first of all I know she’s upset because she can no longer use the house for free. But she’s also telling me that I basically becoming a rent seeking capitalist who is going to ruin the neighborhood which has been a total classic surf neighborhood since the 1950s.

She has written me angry email after angry email after angry email calling me all sorts of names. She also says it’s not fair because her inheritance is gone for her debts but I still make money from mine, and that if she had chose the house I could stay there any time I want.

She’s my older sister and I’ve always been impressionable to the things she says to me and I’m feeling a lot of guilt and shame for what she told me. Am I the a**hole here?

Here’s what people had to say to OP:

countrylemon −  NTA. She’s welcome to either rent it or buy it off you with that 500k she now has. She even had the option to pick it and she herself thinks money is more important. Of course you’re feeling guilty, that’s what a GUILT TRIP is supposed to do to it’s victim! Your sister is 100000000000000000000000% in the wrong here.

peithecelt −  …. SO NTA – your sister had a choice whether to take the house or the money AND she had a choice how to handle her money (half a million in debts, how’d she do that???)

You have done NOTHING wrong, and better it be an airbnb than it be lost to the family forever because you can’t keep it due to the taxes. tell your sister to take a hike, and that you expect her to share anything she bought with her 500k with you if she thinks she still deserves free access to the house.

wishingonmars −  NTA. Did you tell her you can’t afford to keep the house unless you do this? I think she is being selfish. You didn’t get to choose what you wanted, so she got 500k cash and you got a home. It’s not your fault she already used all the money.

Devourer_of_felines −  She also says it’s not fair because her inheritance is gone for her debts but I still make money from mine, and that if she had chose the house I could stay there any time I want.

If she really had half a million in debt she wouldn’t have been able to keep the house long enough for you to stay over. I’m feeling a lot of guilt and shame for what she told me Well don’t; you’ve done nothing wrong and she’s just upset you putting the house up on Airbnb is inconveniencing her.. NTA.

AuditorTux −  **NTA** You all got your share of the assets. Its *yours*, not the families. Your share of the assets, however, has some costs that you have to bear. If that asset has the ability to generate some income to cover those costs, great. If it has the ability to generate income to cover those costs and more, even better.

If she doesn’t like the idea, then you should offer to let her buy a portion of the house (and take responsibility to pay some of those costs) and she would then have a say in how the house is used. I think the real issue here is that she’s pissed you’re going to have an income stream in the future and she’s got nothing.

What she doesn’t understand is that her “income stream” is the money that she would have been paying towards her debts that were erased with her inheritance. She took the immediate benefit. You got one that provides a long-term benefit.

No, you’re not the a**hole. She is. Edit: Let me be clear – I said he should offer to let her buy in but she’s have to do at the current market rate, not for what he got it for. And honestly, I wouldn’t really suggest that. My real thought is “You got yours, I got mine. Pound sand.” But I was trying to be polite.

StopDoingThisAgain −  NTA. She should have chosen the house.

RamblingManUK −  NTA. Your sister is an i**ot for calling you “a rent seeking capitalist”, does she think property taxes pay themselves?

Gigafoodtree −  NTA… Dude. Your sister and cousin each got 500k, and they want you to SPEND money so they can have a vacation home as your share of the estate? That’s absurd. Don’t listen to your sister.

McFeely_Smackup −  So the sister calculated that if she took the money instead of the house, she’d have the money AND the house whenever she wanted. and now she’s upset that she’s only going to have access to the house sometimes.

it’s your house, just like the other inheritance was her money. Unless you demanded unlimited use of her money, she’s just being pissy. also, being upset that her inheritance is gone but you still have yours has to be the worst argument I’ve ever heard. she could have invested the money…or bought a beach house.

[Reddit User] −  NTA Property taxes are no joke. If she was so concerned about the house, she had her chance to claim it. She didn’t. Do not let your older siblings shame you for doing as you want with your inheritance. Honestly, she sounds pretty toxic.

s the Redditor right to turn their inheritance into a source of income, or does their sister have a point about preserving the “family home”? Should inherited property come with shared family expectations, or is this just a matter of practicality? Share your perspective in the comments!