I'm glad to see that my views have helped people really think about their views in this very important area
Having read & digested the variety of responses, I do, however, feel that many people aren't really cognisant of the actual end they are trying to reach or the importance of the process (property investing in this case) to ALL family members.
Unlike lace doily making, cooking or playing the piano, I regard property investing as a business.
And property investment - like any other form of financial endeavour - is not about money as has been the simplistic response of some people on this thread - it's about
the creation & maintenance of a specific level of desired lifestyle.
Different people require different levels of income to maintain the lifestyle they desire.
Businesses need the full participation of all principals to achieve the best return for the shareholders.
Equally, relationships require the full participation of both partners as principals to make them work for the long-term.
If you regard your life partner as a shareholder, then I can see how it would be possible to have a workable relationship where one partner earnt the money & the other spent the money.
However this also means the relationship is fundamentally unequal - not in terms of allocating workloads (such as household chores), but in the sense where one partner is responsible for the creation of lifestyle & the other is reliant on them for the maintenance of that lifestyle.
This is a client relationship where one partner is beholden to the other in ways which distort their ability to have a fully engaged and meaningful relationship.
I regard this as a recipe for a disaster IMHO, particularly with divorce rates running at 50%....
Certainly some people just want to be looked after & are willing to trade emotional involvement or, in extreme cases, sex for long-term financial security - but is this really any way to establish a meeting of minds for a great relationship?
My children are also involved in the property investment area, to the level to which they are able. They understand the process whereby we buy houses for other people to live in & help us by doing tasks (willingly!) to achieve that end, just as they are expected to contribute to our household through doing tasks such as cleaning - we're a family, we work together for our common good - which also gives us more time to play together.
And if my partner was interested in a strategy involving cooking, lace doily making or piano playing to help our entire family achieve and maintain the lifestyle we mutually desire, then I'd fully support her in this as well - it's part of being in a lifelong relationship - it's about RELATING!
Cheers,
Aceyducey
