Fees for Harry

[lizzyben04]

No: HPFGUIDX 179363

Catlady:
> Well, she wouldn't, would she? Even if the entire Dursley family 
was
> living on Harry's hypothetical generous allowance, she would 
complain
> about the expense of keeping him. It's her personality.

lizzyben:

But we're looking for any indication that the Durselys got money, 
and there isn't. Petunia specifically complains about the expense of 
keeping Harry, Harry realizes that they never knew he had money, DD 
never mentions that he paid money to the Dursleys, etc. So, there's 
a ton of evidence that the Dursleys didn't get a dime. What's the 
evidence that they were paid? None. Why assume that Petunia is lying 
about the hypothetical monetary payment that no one ever mentions, 
when it's much simpler & more logical to conclude that the Dursleys 
weren't paid? Occam's Razor, here.

Catlady:
<snip>Or DD might have funded his Muggle account with one lump
> withdrawal of cash and instructions for paying it out, perhaps 
during
> the 24 hours between Hagrid taking Harry from Godric's Hollow and 
DD
> putting Harry on the doorstep. <snip> Maybe she was a big-time 
investor in
> the Muggle stock market, and her sons learned finance as well as 
lies
> and secrecy at her knee.

lizzyben:

This is total wild speculation here, though it's somewhat 
interesting to imagine the knut/pound conversion rate, or DD's 
mother's hypothetical talent for finance.  And I haven't found an 
answer for my original question - how did DD end up w/the Potter's 
key in the first place? He wasn't the heir, or the guardian. So, I'm 
not sure DD had any right to get money out of the bank vault in the 
first place. 

Catlady:

> Thinking that James and Lily had somehow had enough sense to buy 
life
> insurance to buy an annuity for their kid if 'something happened' 
to
> them is not the same as thinking that Harry has access to a large 
bank
> account for when he comes of age.<snip>

lizzyben:

The Dursleys treat Harry like he's worthless because they consider 
him worthless, and a drain on the family finances. Once the Dursleys 
realize that he's got access to money, they change their ways, 
because it's now in their interests to be nicer to Harry. They also 
insisted that Harry's parents were layabouts, which is more evidence 
that Harry's parents didn't provide Muggle life insurance, etc. 
There's absolutely no evidence that the Dursleys got money for 
raising Harry, & considerable evidence that they did not. 

Finally, IMO the last reason that DD didn't provide money to the 
Dursleys is because it would not be in DD's character or interests 
to do so. For the Chosen One plan to work, DD needed Harry to be 
absolutely loyal to DD only & willing to sacrifice his life for 
Hogwarts & the wizarding world. An involved Muggle family would 
muddle this plan, because the family might object, & Harry might not 
be willing to die for DD's cause. So DD would want the Dursleys to  
resent Harry, and ensure that Harry's experience with the Muggle 
world was a miserable one. Then, by the time Hagrid comes back to 
fetch Harry to Hogwarts, Harry is so insanely grateful that he's 
willing to do anything for DD & to protect his new home in the 
wizarding world.

Lynda:

What money? I never got the idea that the Dursleys got any money for 
keeping Harry. <snip>

lizzyben:

Exactly.