This is a long story. It began when my grandpa passed away and left his house on a small piece of land to my mom and my two uncles.
One of my uncles was living at that house so, the siblings decided he should keep on staying there. That uncle's business was going poorly and at one point in time he borrowed money from the bank showing the house as collateral. Both siblings agreed to this so, there were no problems between them. Then my other uncle passed and now 1/3 of the place belongs to my two cousins and their mom.
At one point in time my sister and I told our uncle to file for bankruptcy seeing that he will soon be a lot more in debt. He reluctantly agreed. Mind you the failure of the business was not his fault. His lenders were expecting payment but the organizations who owed him, did not pay him on time or at all. So, the cash flow situation became very problematic and we wanted him to stop working to stop the loss.
He spends his time between an apartment I have bought from him to help him with his cash flow a few years ago and my mom's apartment. He has a small Social Security income and I pay all his utilities and whenever he needs a car, he uses my 2010 Nissan which I am not using. I have another car I bought this year. He is not happy since he feels he screwed up and he thinks he is a burden. Very far from the truth. He is our only uncle, my mom's only living sibling and his failure in business was no fault of his. Lots of bad luck. He also took care of my grandparents for many years since he lived with them. Also he is the only living man in our family. He is only 9 years older than I am and I consider him more a brother than an uncle.
I own his portion of the family home left to them since, I took over the bank payments for the loan he took showing the family home as collateral. Lately my cousins and their mom declared that, they are in need of money and they would like to sell their shares. Mom does not know this, since she will be upset if we sell the home. The property isn't worth much. So, selling it would be meaningless and would upset mom. Therefore, I have decided to step up (again) to purchase their shares. Tomorrow I will talk to my cousin.
When all is done, I will be owning 2/3 of the family home. 1/3 belongs to mom.
So, now I own my current residence, a two bedroom apartment in Istanbul, another two bedroom apartment in Ankara which I rent (still looking for a new tenant), a three bedroom apartment in Antalya which is mostly used by my uncle although everybody goes and stays there a few weeks a year, and 2/3 of a small house in Konya which is desperately in need of repair. Except for my residence, I truly have no need for any of the other properties. I would much rather have cash in a savings account than all this real estate. However, I cannot sell them for obvious reasons.
The bank loan will be gone in October 2019. Before that, I cannot really do any repairs on the home except for the much needed roof. I will probably slowly do the repairs and use that place as a weekend home for all the family. I intend to plant some fruit trees too. My grandpa used to have a great garden. So, at least we can go and stay there any time we want. I think this will make both mom and uncle happy.
I am glad I have the means to step up and do all this. I do not know what would have happened if I did not.
You are very kind to your family, I only wish you're uncle could read this to see how much he means to you and your family. Perhaps real estate is the safest place to put your assets with the currency being devalued so much lately, although upkeep of them could cost you. Perhaps as time goes on you can slowly become less real estate rich
ReplyDeleteThank you Cheapchick. My family is really very small and I always feel blessed to have them. My sister's in laws included, there are only 10 of us.
DeleteI hope that you're able to find a tenant for that apartment in Ankara soon!
ReplyDeleteWhat a blessing that you've been able to support your family when they needed it. I hope they all appreciate you and the family bond as much as you obviously appreciate them.