Advice on writing a hardship letter to Grandview at Las Vegas

[Ellie23]

Hello everyone. I have a question that I'm hoping someone will be able to answer. In 2015 I got suckered into signing a Grand View at Las Vegas contract with my now Ex whom lives in another state. We haven't made mortgage payments since 02/2018 and I will not be paying this years maintenance fee as I can't afford it. I have been the only one they pursue for any fees and the only one who gets sent to collection when a payment is defaulted on even though I and the ex signed the paperwork equally. I'll now get to the question. I was just trying to provide a little back story.

I want to write Grandview a hardship letter. My personal hardship would be financial. I make $10.50 an hour working part time. My ex makes a lot more money, but I was wondering if he could write a medical hardship letter as he has PTSD and is terrified of traveling by car, so that makes it difficult for him to travel. If this would work does anyone know how to start a hardship letter and where to send it to Grandview. Do each of the letters have to be notarized and what all has to be in them for GV to consider them?
Thabk you in advance for any and all advice. I am very oblivious to all this timeshare stuff and simply want out. (Hopefully avoiding foreclosure and complete destruction of my credit)

 

[DaveNV]

Do you still owe money on the purchase contract? (Is that the "mortgage payments" you mention?) If so, defaulting on things and letting it go to foreclosure is about your only hope. I doubt writing a letter would do any good. Timeshare sales people don't care how much of a burden it places on buyers - they're only after their own commission. The Collections people also will not care about anything but trying to recover the money you owe. It's not a good position to be in.

I don't know if Grandview offers any sort of deedback program, but it may be worth looking into.

If the purchase contract is paid off, you can likely sell or give away the ownership. Depending on what you own, Grandview is a resort that trades reasonably well, and has a certain amount of demand. There are threads on Tug to assist you in deciding how best to pass along a timeshare to a new owner.

So before you bail out on your situation, do some research. It may be easier than it seems.

Good luck!

Dave

 

[ausman]

I'm a little confused as to your situation.

If as you said "we" made no mortgage payments since 2/2018, any reasonable person would interpret to mean there was still an outstanding mortgage balance at that time. I find it unbelievable that in the ensuing 4 years that the unit had not been foreclosed on already. Wanting you to pay current maintenance fees just doesn't agree with that interpretation and makes me wonder if you are being pursued not for current amounts but amounts prior to a foreclosure.

 

[Ellie23]

Do you still owe money on the purchase contract? (Is that the "mortgage payments" you mention?) If so, defaulting on things and letting it go to foreclosure is about your only hope. I doubt writing a letter would do any good. Timeshare sales people don't care how much of a burden it places on buyers - they're only after their own commission. The Collections people also will not care about anything but trying to recover the money you owe. It's not a good position to be in.

I don't know if Grandview offers any sort of deedback program, but it may be worth looking into.

If the purchase contract is paid off, you can likely sell or give away the ownership. Depending on what you own, Grandview is a resort that trades reasonably well, and has a certain amount of demand. There are threads on Tug to assist you in deciding how best to pass along a timeshare to a new owner.

So before you bail out on your situation, do some research. It may be easier than it seems.

Good luck!

Dave

Thank you for sharing your advice. Yes we still owe on the mortgage. Ultimately I will be finding a way to pay it off and just have to count it off as a very expensive lesson learned because I want to avoid foreclose and them getting the money through sueing me. Hopefully I will be able to find someone interested in taking over the TS once I get it all paid off.
theres quite a bit of posts to sort through, but I'll definitely have to do some research. Would you happen to know what details you should post to advertise your TS? The only details I know is what week it is, number of bedrooms and the current MF. Is there anything else I should add to it?

 

[Ellie23]

I'm a little confused as to your situation.

If as you said "we" made no mortgage payments since 2/2018, any reasonable person would interpret to mean there was still an outstanding mortgage balance at that time. I find it unbelievable that in the ensuing 4 years that the unit had not been foreclosed on already. Wanting you to pay current maintenance fees just doesn't agree with that interpretation and makes me wonder if you are being pursued not for current amounts but amounts prior to a foreclosure.

You are correct that there is still an outstanding mortgage balance. The MF have been paid every year since 2015 and I even got a bill for 11/09/2021. I haven't received a notice of foreclosure either by mail, email or even a collections report. If a timeshare is sent to foreclosure does that mean that the MF are supposed to stop then? (Sorry for the delayed response. I didn't notice that I had any responses to my post.)

 

[DaveNV]

Hi Ellie. I'm sorry to hear about your situation. It is difficult, certainly. I have a few suggestions:

If you intend to make the contract payments to pay for the timeshare, don't avoid also paying the maintenance fees. Those are part of the equation, and if you default on mainenance fees, you may end up with the account closed anyway, as a separate issue than non-payment on the contract. You'd still owe the purchase contract, but would face the same foreclosure thing for non-payment of maintenance fees. (This assumes you're paying two separate entities - one for the contract, and one for the maintenance fees.) So if you're going to pay one, be sure to pay the other.

The advantage of paying both is you will have full use of the timeshare. Get your Ex to either pay his half of things, or buy you out. If you jointly purchased, then you're equally responsible for the contract. He shouldn't get off scott-free just because he avoided his obligations. If you end up with things in your name, and you do find a way to pay for everything, you'll own a decent timeshare that is worth having, if you learn how to use it. So there could be a positive spin on things, if you can ride it out till it's done. There are plenty of threads here on Tug that will help you learn how to use what you've purchased.

If the contract payments and maintenance fees are being paid to the same financial office, you might try contacting them and asking if they have a payment plan for people in financial distress. With the Covid issues these last few years, they may have something in place for that. There is also what is known as a "Deed in Lieu of Foreclosure," which is essentially a deedback program, where you surrender the ownership and things can be cancelled. I don't want to get your hopes up, but I do suggest you contact the resort's business office to ask about your options. Be honest and frank with them, and explain your circumstances - your co-buyer has bailed out, and you can't afford to pay things on your own, financial hardship, etc. They may have a program in place to help you out. If so, that may be the easiest way to go.

If the above doesn't work, and you have no choice but to default and let things go, it isn't the end of the world. Yes, you'll take a hit on your credit, but that is temporary. With time, it'll recover. Timeshare forclosures are a known thing on credit reports, and any creditor will take it in perspective of the rest of the report. As long as you aren't seeking to buy something that requires perfect credit, within a few years the foreclosure will drop off the report. You also have the right to make a statement on your credit report, so you could explain why it is there. That's especially important if the rest of your credit report is in good shape. Having one bad thing on a good report otherwise stands out. If the rest of your credit report is already in bad shape, then it won't matter.

If things default and go to foreclosure, you'll get the usual demands for payment, and maybe some calls from creditors. Eventually those will stop, things will be done, and that will be that. A timeshare is not like real estate or a car, where you have possession of a valuable asset. A timeshare is buying time to spend at a location. If you default, you have nothing to repossess - they can't kick you out or come with a tow truck in the middle of the night. They just won't allow you to book the resort any more. But chances are, you wouldn't want to do that anyway. Above all, you'd be out from under the obligation, and the stress would end. You'd have to weigh whether it's important enough to you to continue to fight the battle.

Good luck with things. Be sure to report back on what you end up doing.

Dave

 

[bnoble]

Ultimately I will be finding a way to pay it off and just have to count it off as a very expensive lesson learned

For starters, I am not a lawyer, nor a financial advisor. Treat this advice as worth everything you paid for it. That said:

Given your situation ($10.50/hr) I don't see any way of doing this that doesn't significantly cut into your ability to cover day-to-day necessities of food, housing, etc. If I were in your shoes, I'd likely choose to not pay them another dime, and to ignore any collections efforts much as @DaveNV suggests above. Also per his suggestion, I'd write them a simple letter telling them your situation and that you will not pay any more and that they are welcome to either foreclose or take the unit back.

If by some miracle they do try to sue you for the deficiency, that might be a good time to declare bankruptcy. You cannot get blood from a stone.

No matter what happened, I'd also be inclined to leave my ex out of it. If the resort wanted to deal with my ex, that would be the ex-spouse's problem, not mine. Did your divorce agreement say anything about the timeshare debt?

 

[Ellie23]

Hi Ellie. I'm sorry to hear about your situation. It is difficult, certainly. I have a few suggestions:

If you intend to make the contract payments to pay for the timeshare, don't avoid also paying the maintenance fees. Those are part of the equation, and if you default on mainenance fees, you may end up with the account closed anyway, as a separate issue than non-payment on the contract. You'd still owe the purchase contract, but would face the same foreclosure thing for non-payment of maintenance fees. (This assumes you're paying two separate entities - one for the contract, and one for the maintenance fees.) So if you're going to pay one, be sure to pay the other.

The advantage of paying both is you will have full use of the timeshare. Get your Ex to either pay his half of things, or buy you out. If you jointly purchased, then you're equally responsible for the contract. He shouldn't get off scott-free just because he avoided his obligations. If you end up with things in your name, and you do find a way to pay for everything, you'll own a decent timeshare that is worth having, if you learn how to use it. So there could be a positive spin on things, if you can ride it out till it's done. There are plenty of threads here on Tug that will help you learn how to use what you've purchased.

If the contract payments and maintenance fees are being paid to the same financial office, you might try contacting them and asking if they have a payment plan for people in financial distress. With the Covid issues these last few years, they may have something in place for that. There is also what is known as a "Deed in Lieu of Foreclosure," which is essentially a deedback program, where you surrender the ownership and things can be cancelled. I don't want to get your hopes up, but I do suggest you contact the resort's business office to ask about your options. Be honest and frank with them, and explain your circumstances - your co-buyer has bailed out, and you can't afford to pay things on your own, financial hardship, etc. They may have a program in place to help you out. If so, that may be the easiest way to go.

If the above doesn't work, and you have no choice but to default and let things go, it isn't the end of the world. Yes, you'll take a hit on your credit, but that is temporary. With time, it'll recover. Timeshare forclosures are a known thing on credit reports, and any creditor will take it in perspective of the rest of the report. As long as you aren't seeking to buy something that requires perfect credit, within a few years the foreclosure will drop off the report. You also have the right to make a statement on your credit report, so you could explain why it is there. That's especially important if the rest of your credit report is in good shape. Having one bad thing on a good report otherwise stands out. If the rest of your credit report is already in bad shape, then it won't matter.

If things default and go to foreclosure, you'll get the usual demands for payment, and maybe some calls from creditors. Eventually those will stop, things will be done, and that will be that. A timeshare is not like real estate or a car, where you have possession of a valuable asset. A timeshare is buying time to spend at a location. If you default, you have nothing to repossess - they can't kick you out or come with a tow truck in the middle of the night. They just won't allow you to book the resort any more. But chances are, you wouldn't want to do that anyway. Above all, you'd be out from under the obligation, and the stress would end. You'd have to weigh whether it's important enough to you to continue to fight the battle.

Good luck with things. Be sure to report back on what you end up doing.

Dave

Thank you so much for sharing this with me. I haven't made an official decision but as you mentioned in letting it got to foreclosure, aren't they able to garnish wages and take money from your bank account in order to recoup what they lost? That's my main concern. If they are able to do that, then I'm better off just finding a way to pay back the mortgage. (Unfortunately I don't believe my ex is going to take responsibility, so I will be stuck with all the payments)

 

[Ellie23]

For starters, I am not a lawyer, nor a financial advisor. Treat this advice as worth everything you paid for it. That said:

Given your situation ($10.50/hr) I don't see any way of doing this that doesn't significantly cut into your ability to cover day-to-day necessities of food, housing, etc. If I were in your shoes, I'd likely choose to not pay them another dime, and to ignore any collections efforts much as @DaveNV suggests above. Also per his suggestion, I'd write them a simple letter telling them your situation and that you will not pay any more and that they are welcome to either foreclose or take the unit back.

If by some miracle they do try to sue you for the deficiency, that might be a good time to declare bankruptcy. You cannot get blood from a stone.

No matter what happened, I'd also be inclined to leave my ex out of it. If the resort wanted to deal with my ex, that would be the ex-spouse's problem, not mine. Did your divorce agreement say anything about the timeshare debt?

Thank you for your advice. He's actually an ex boyfriend. We never got married. Another big mistake of signing with him, but theres no going back.

 

[TheTimeTraveler]

I am not a Lawyer, but if you signed with your boyfriend then I would think he would be 50% liable.

With that said I would think you may want to consider suing your boyfriend for half of the liability. I think you would have a strong case working in your favor.

Best of luck!


.

 

[DaveNV]

Thank you so much for sharing this with me. I haven't made an official decision but as you mentioned in letting it got to foreclosure, aren't they able to garnish wages and take money from your bank account in order to recoup what they lost? That's my main concern. If they are able to do that, then I'm better off just finding a way to pay back the mortgage. (Unfortunately I don't believe my ex is going to take responsibility, so I will be stuck with all the payments)

I think that would be where you'd want to have a discussion with an attorney. If you're only making such a low wage, there isn't much room for them to garnish anything. (And that's where the discussion with the resort's business office would be important. If you explain to them your financial situation and that you've been left holding the bag for your deadbeat ex-boyfriend, they might take pity and do something for you.)

Another alternative, should it come to that, is filing a personal bankruptcy. That would be the only way to get completely out from under the obligation, and hang onto your assets (presuming you have minimal assets.) I had to do that years ago, and they didn't take anything I owned.

Again, more suggestions than answers. Good luck!

Dave

 

[bnoble]

as you mentioned in letting it got to foreclosure, aren't they able to garnish wages and take money from your bank account in order to recoup what they lost?

They can try (in some states, including Nevada IIRC). But, the question is: would they? Bringing that action costs money, and they may decide that the chance they will get anything out of it would not be worth the cost and trouble of trying. We hear a lot of people on TUG talk about defaulting and having a purchase foreclosed. Some of them have taken noticeable credit hits. I'm hard pressed to remember anyone having to respond to a civil suit to recover the lost purchase cost.

And, if by some miracle they decide to pursue that path, that's the time to consider personal bankruptcy as noted above.

I get that you are trying to do the right thing here, but your income is so modest that the right thing is probably taking care of yourself first.