Combining households with stepchildren can present some truly unique challenges that push the boundaries of patience, love, and personal space. For one individual, the pressure reached such an overwhelming level that he felt compelled to take the most extreme action.

He decided to share his experience on Reddit, providing an explanation of what had occurred.

“In November 2022, my wife passed away. She left me with three adult stepchildren who have made it obvious that I am not their parent, despite having been a part of their lives for over a decade. Their father has chosen to spend his retirement in the Philippines.

These individuals are 21, 22, and 25 years old. We’ve been providing them with a place to live since our city has such a high cost of living. The youngest child is currently attending school, while the other two have already found employment.

Following the loss of their mother, they became less motivated to take care of household tasks. We had been providing them with rent-free accommodation to help them save money. The older two were in charge of handling their own expenses, apart from that. I covered the costs of power, water, Internet, and all the necessary utilities. We even provided food for the youngest.

It’s frustrating how they don’t contribute to household chores anymore. I’ve recently hired some assistance to help with the cleaning around the house. It’s stupid.

I decided to list the house for sale. The price has increased significantly since I purchased it, to the point where I could retire to the Philippines if that was my thing.

I was amazed at how quickly my property sold, and now I’m excitedly preparing to move into my cozy cabin. I distributed a generous sum of $10,000 to each child and informed them of the recent sale of the house. They aren’t idiots, they had seen the for sale sign and been around for the open houses.

It seems that I’ve managed to upset them by asking them to leave their residence. It seems that they experienced some personal growth during their time there, but they never truly valued it beyond being a mere resting place.

I think that their mom would be disgusted with how they treated me and our home.

They combined their funds and secured an apartment, but relying solely on the money I provided them will leave them with nothing within a year.

Am I wrong for doing this to them?”