Would Disney exercise ROFR on a contract that has “probate issues” ?

[debdreamsofdis]

We are first time buyers who have been toying with the idea of DVC for a long time. We happened to see a resale contract for VGC at our price point and decided it made sense to finally take the plunge. Our offered was accepted immediately and we submitted a contract to Disney for ROFR on Dec 3. We are now at 44 days and counting. At first I just figured it was taking longer because it was around the holidays and people might be on vacation. On about day 35 I called my broker to see why it was taking so long. She said that it looked like there was some kind of “probate issue” and there were emails going back and forth between the title company and Disney about some kind of paperwork from the seller. She told me to give it till the end of the week and then call if I still hadn’t seen anything. About day 40, I called again. She told me that it looked like the contract was in Disney’s hand waiting on ROFR. I’m assuming whatever paperwork glitch they ran into was worked out (?) I asked what she thought about whether or not it would even pass ROFR. It is a smaller contract, but it’s loaded and has a lower price per point. The broker said “The good news is that Disney doesn’t like to deal with contracts like this.” What does that mean? Is that good or bad?? If Disney doesn’t want to deal with it, is it something that could cause a problem for us??


Of course this all happens at the same time that the crap hits the fan about new resale restrictions and price increases , so now Disney and the brokers are swamped. Our broker said she would put in a request to expedite the process since we have been waiting so long, but honestly I don’t know if that will do any good. Meanwhile, our deposit is still being held and we couldn’t really make another offer on another contract while we’re waiting. Besides, any other contracts that we would have considered before the resale rule changes are now gone. If this contract does get taken by Disney, we really don't have many other options to try and get a grandfathered contract. Should I worry that everything has gone completely wrong ? I just want to know one way or the other , I don’t like being in limbo.

 

[Best Aunt]

It looked like the contract was in Disney’s hands awaiting ROFR? Shouldn’t the broker know for sure?

 

[CarolMN]

We are first time buyers who have been toying with the idea of DVC for a long time. We happened to see a resale contract for VGC at our price point and decided it made sense to finally take the plunge. Our offered was accepted immediately and we submitted a contract to Disney for ROFR on Dec 3. We are now at 44 days and counting. At first I just figured it was taking longer because it was around the holidays and people might be on vacation. On about day 35 I called my broker to see why it was taking so long. She said that it looked like there was some kind of “probate issue” and there were emails going back and forth between the title company and Disney about some kind of paperwork from the seller. She told me to give it till the end of the week and then call if I still hadn’t seen anything. About day 40, I called again. She told me that it looked like the contract was in Disney’s hand waiting on ROFR. I’m assuming whatever paperwork glitch they ran into was worked out (?) I asked what she thought about whether or not it would even pass ROFR. It is a smaller contract, but it’s loaded and has a lower price per point. The broker said “The good news is that Disney doesn’t like to deal with contracts like this.” What does that mean? Is that good or bad?? If Disney doesn’t want to deal with it, is it something that could cause a problem for us??

Most of us believe that Disney prefers not to exercise ROFR on contracts involved with a bankruptcy or an estate or otherwise involved with a court proceeding. My best guess is that you will get your contract. Good luck!

Of course this all happens at the same time that the crap hits the fan about new resale restrictions and price increases , so now Disney and the brokers are swamped. Our broker said she would put in a request to expedite the process since we have been waiting so long, but honestly I don’t know if that will do any good. Meanwhile, our deposit is still being held and we couldn’t really make another offer on another contract while we’re waiting. Besides, any other contracts that we would have considered before the resale rule changes are now gone. If this contract does get taken by Disney, we really don't have many other options to try and get a grandfathered contract. Should I worry that everything has gone completely wrong ? I just want to know one way or the other , I don’t like being in limbo.

It's really hard to be patient, but there's nothing to gain by worrying about it before it happens. There's nothing for you to do right now except keep your fingers crossed! Of course you know that already, so I'll just wish you good luck again.

 

[Jack_Sparrow_NJ]

If there are probate issues the seller doesn't have clear title and can't sell it to anyone until those are resolved. Depending on the issue probate can be a long drawn out process

 

[drusba]

The mention of a "probate issue" raises possibilities that could delay ROFR. If the record owner is deceased and in probate, then any sale has to be first properly approved by the probate court, and Disney is not going to decide to exercise or not exercise ROFR until it is certain a proper order has been entered. If it is an issue that one of the joint owners is in probate, i.e., only one joint owner is deceased and in probate, then the surviving owner automatically becomes the sole owner and can sell, but the title company is not going to clear title until needed steps are taken to assure the public records show the death and that the surviving owner has all rights to sell, which is another reason that Disney would delay deciding whether to exercise ROFR.

 

[Matty B13]

Make sure to read your contract for when you can get your deposit back without penalty, cause it might come to that. I would be calling my broker ever day about this issue, because as far as I'm concerned this should have been mentioned/disclosed before any offers were made on the contract.

 

[KAT4DISNEY]

I'd feel the probate issues are much more of a concern than ROFR. It needs to be cleared on your behalf.

 

[debdreamsofdis]

I just got off the phone with my broker. I think she seems to be getting as frustrated as I am that this process is taking so long. She told me that the title company has ensured that the correct paperwork was received and provided to Disney. Apparently because the property is in California and "California laws are different", it's causing a bit of a hiccup. She assured me that she would not list a property that did not have a clean title. She has emailed both Disney and the title company again because she did not get a response to her first email. So, we continue to wait. *sigh*

 

[MouseOfCards]

We also purchased a couple of contracts with probate/legal issues. The good news: they passed ROFR fairly quickly. The negative: they both took a really long time to finally close. One required multiple heirs to sign. The other one was stuck in divorce proceedings. We felt the fast ROFR decisions meant Disney did not want to touch these with a 10-ft pole.

Agree with others that Disney normally does not want to deal with these issues. But a little disconcerting that Disney is waiting for more documents even after 40+ days. Still, wishing the best for you, OP! Hope your contract passes.

 

[debdreamsofdis]

Good news! My broker emailed me today and Disney FINALLY waived ROFR. I feel like I had to be a squeaky wheel, but finally got some grease Crossing my fingers that the rest of the process can go smoothly. I'll post the contract details in the ROFR thread. Thank you for everyone's input. We're excited to be calling the Grand Californian "home."

 

[MouseOfCards]

Good news! My broker emailed me today and Disney FINALLY waived ROFR. I feel like I had to be a squeaky wheel, but finally got some grease Crossing my fingers that the rest of the process can go smoothly. I'll post the contract details in the ROFR thread. Thank you for everyone's input. We're excited to be calling the Grand Californian "home."

Congratulations! That resolves so many issues. Wishing a smooth closing for you!

 

[KPeterso]

Glad you got your contract. As someone who bought VGC resale about a year and half ago, I will watn you he rest of the process will also take a little longer. They have to work with a CA lawyer and than Orange County CA for the deed recording. I passed ROFR in mid August and did not close as I recall until close with the deed recorded until late October. I did not expect it to take quite so long to get to that point.