Am I greedy to buy this property?

[MuckFusk]

I notice a lot of people on MN are down on owning vacation homes, and I get why that is, considering how short housing is and the population density in the UK. I'm in Canada (where it's very common to have a vacation home) and I just made an offer on a property which will be used probably four months out of the year. I felt it was a better option environmentally to travelling, as it is not far to drive to, so no plane travel needed. I plan to kit it out for sustainability just as I have my current home; high efficiency heat pump, insulation, etcetera. The major reason I bought it as a future income property for my disabled daughter, especially for when I am no longer living, but it will be a vacation home for awhile. I don't think I'm depriving anyone else of high demand home, because it's been sitting on the market for a month and is in an area with a glacially slow housing market right now.

However, I do wonder if I'm greedy to have more than one property when some people can't even afford one. So you can vote YABU if you think I shouldn't have it and YANBU if you think it's okay.
It might seem like a weird question, but I second guess myself a lot.

Sounds like a solid plan. Good for you.

I don't take heed to comments made in ignorance of the facts, which is why I specified it was Canada and that the market is different. It's not my responsibility if some people ignored that. Still, it has sparked some interesting conversation about the housing shortage in the UK, which I like.

By my many replies to people you will be able to tell I'm not AI.

Good points. Here there isn't a council which buys individual houses anyway. It's not the way they do social housing.

Well, that certainly took a turn.
It's all to the good though, I was hoping this might spark discussion about housing issues. Surely you don't blame it all on immigration though?

I appreciate what you're saying. I don't have a fuck everybody else philosophy, but I don't think I'm actually fucking anybody else by doing this.

It's not a robust market for buying and selling, but she will be renting it to somebody local. There is a decent market for that.

There isn't a lack of housing to buy in the area at all. There may possibly be a lack of rentals, which is good for my daughter when she wants to rent it out. It's small town Quebec, not a resort or a town popular with commuters.

Areas like resort towns in the UK?

Indeed. It's hard to clearly picture it, though I can imagine high population density in the abstract.

There is no such site. I find the level of conversation here is a step above most places anyway. Sorry if it bothers you that I posted it here.

Thank you. You are absolutely right.

No, there's no market for renting it in the cold months if the year. There are no ski slopes close enough to make it desirable.

I have a guilt complex, which should answer that question. ;-)

That's wonderful. I'm happy for you.

Thank you. Yeah, some of the posts do have that feel to them. Most have been lovely though.

Excellent points. It's easier to scold somebody on the Internet than to actually do something productive about these problems.

What’s the rental vacancy rate in the village? More than 12%, fill your boots. Less than 5%, it’s not as fine as you’d think. CMHC can tell you. There’s a handy map.

What do you mean? It's both an investment and a vacation property. It's not a binary choice.
Great lengths? Okay, whatever.

That's an interesting perspective and I was hoping this might spark some discussion about that sort of thing. Can you elaborate on small island mentality? Really would like to get more of your POV on that.

Great idea. Will look at that.

I think the closest way I can see it is to think about things I do with water that is completely safe to drink:-

Drink it
Shower in it
Water my garden with it
Shit in it!

For the simple reason that I only have access to water that is completely safe to drink. To me there is basically an endless supply of completely safe water and that is normal to me.

But for many countries safe water is a rarity. They would never use it to flush a toilet. They are barely able to get enough of it to drink.

Good analogy. Potable water is something we certainly aren't short of here either. It's a privilege to be so blessed with natural resources.

I meant the info in my post was Google AI, I wasn’t implying you are AI!

OP, you're still catching flak from a few posters, I see. Honestly, don't let it get to you. What you're witnessing here is just a charming slice of that quintessentially British cocktail — three parts jealousy, two parts moral posturing, shaken over a cube of hypocrisy and served with a passive-aggressive lemon twist.
We do love a good grumble in this country, especially when someone dares to plan ahead, show kindness, or — heaven forbid — use their own hard-earned money to support their own child. Shocking, I know. Next thing you’ll be telling us you bought her decent shoes too.
The idea that helping your daughter — a young person with special needs — is somehow “unfair” says far more about them than it does about you. It’s not about fairness, it’s about decency, compassion, and basic flipping humanity. You’re doing something wonderful. That rattles people who wouldn't lift a finger unless there was a Facebook post in it for them.
So carry on. You’ve got your head screwed on, your heart in the right place, and frankly, that’s more than I can say for some of the commentary floating around here.
Oh honestly. You’d think someone was proposing to buy a mansion made of gold bricks and unicorn tears the way some people carry on
This idea that supporting your own child is somehow "unfair" to others is absolutely bonkers. Life isn't a game of equal slices of cake.
People will always have opinions. But they don't have to walk in your shoes, raise your child, or live with the long-term worries you no doubt carry every single day. You are thinking ahead. You're trying to do right by your family. Anyone calling that wrong or immoral has either never been in your position or is projecting their own hang-ups.
So go ahead, do what you need to do — and know that some of us are absolutely cheering you on.

Are you sure you to buy in England instead of Canada where people, culture and education are better? 😎

So to sum up (and lampoon, in some cases) the gist of most of the responses;

YANBU-

-It's nobody else's business. Do what you like.

-It's a good thing for your daughter. Go for it.

-Maybe you could use it to lend to other families with disabled relatives.

-It's obviously a very different market there, so it's okay.

YABU-

-You're being selfish.

-Why are you posting about something you're doing in Canada on MN? I went to the trouble of opening this thread, all for nothing. Then I answered you, all for nothing. You're daft.

-Why on earth do you care what other people think? Why would somebody post on AIBU to ask what other people think? That's weird.

-You're just bragging. About the property you've said is not in a hot market and isn't anything fancy.

Have I summarized it correctly? 😉