I'm 17 and live in Canada. I worked the past two summers and managed to save $3100. Two weeks ago my mom started dating this young guy, and on Thursday she cleaned out my savings account. All of my money's gone. Yesterday she left for Vegas with her new boyfriend. I don't even know how long they plan to stay there. I'm stuck here, watching the house.
It wasn't in a joint bank account or anything, it was a proper youth account with no connection to my mother (this I made sure of); she either used my online account to make the transfer or took my card and went down to the bank.
Negotiating with her isn't an option. I was saving that money for university. There's no point in even working if she can just take as she pleases from me. Cursory searches lead me to the conclusion that, as a minor, I have no rights. They suggested that I'm owned by my guardian and all of my belongings (including funds) in fact do not belong to me. She's not an abusive parent, and I understand being a single mom is tough — but this is something I really can't excuse her from.
If possible, I'd like to look into being emancipated, but I have no idea what sort of difficulties are associated with that. I'm in my last year of high school, and I attend online, meaning I learn at my leisure and when I choose. I can work all day, for instance, and come home and do homework and write quizzes. I'm confident I could sustain myself, and I even have a friend in university who's looking for a roommate.
I understand the money's probably a lost cause, but I don't want something like this to happen again. I can't trust my mother at all. I'm hesitant to even call her my mother; she's negligent to such a degree she might as well be fully absent. I cook all of the meals, I do all of the laundry, I work more than she does — she collects cheques and prowls for new flings. The sooner I get her out of my life, the better.
I'm not asking for legal advice (though that could be useful); I want to find a solution to this problem. I want to hear ideas that haven't ever crossed my mind. Emancipation is probably unrealistic, but there has to be an alternative besides waiting a year to come of age.

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