refund of entrance fee from assisted living

[Anonymous]

My dad passed away two years ago. He was living in a retirement community that had a relatively large up-front buy-in fee. Because he passed away soon after he moved in, his estate was due back a percentage of his entrance fee. The contract for all residents states that the refund is to be made once his unit is re-rented. It's been two years, and I'm wondering if this is just something we have to wait in perpetuity for. I check in with the comptroller of the organization every few months, and have spoken with the director, and they both say that that's the law, that's how they have to do it, and they prioritize units where refunds are due when they rent new units. I wondered if any DCUM folks know anything about this. If so, does that sound right? TIA.

[Anonymous]

I know someone with a similar complaint. The assisted living place was using the unit as model and not even trying to rent it.

[Anonymous]

That's the biggest risk with these CCRCs. If they've overbuilt, your estate can't get the money back.

[Anonymous]

And there's no recourse? That's legal?

[Anonymous]

Can you rent it out month by month yourself?

[Anonymous]

The director misled you, they prioritize renting the units with no or low entry fee refunds due. I am in the industry.

[Anonymous]

This is likely because the entry fees they are selling (or are trying to sell today) are lower than what your father paid, hence they have to dip into working capital to fund.

[Anonymous]

Can you try to find a tenant yourself?

[Anonymous]

OP here, thanks all. This is very disheartening to hear. So in theory they could drag this out for decades...

[Anonymous]

I would call who ever regulates it or consumer affairs.

[Anonymous]

I wonder if offering an extra "bonus" directly to the salesperson would move things along.

[Anonymous]

OP here. For the person(s) in the industry who responded--can you think of any other recourse? How do you think offering a percentage directly to the salesperson would play out? Thanks all.

[Anonymous]

Not a PP here, but I would write them a letter and request in writing information such as how many available units are there, how many units have been empty for longer than your unit, how many people have requested to view your unit, how many people have been shown your unit, etc. If they refuse to answer you and/or give vague answers, then I might start wondering if as a PP noted they are deliberately not trying to fill your unit so as to avoid paying your refund. While they have a contract right to not refund you until the unit is filled, all contracts have an obligation for the parties to act in good faith. If you have a basis for believing the center is deliberately acting in bad faith to avoid paying you you can certainly talk to an attorney to see if you have any legal recourse (well, you can obviously talk to an attorney regardless). It could just be your unit isn't getting filled bc the market is bad or maybe it is a less desirable unit bc it has less sunlight, is noisy, etc in which case you are probably stuck waiting it out. If you want to consider an attorney, I would look for a solo practitioner/small firm that would give you a free consultation that specializes in breach of contract/bad faith claims.

[Anonymous]

PP again. Forgot to say, you can also try to negotiate with them. They may be willing to buy you out of your contract up front, or similarly, pay you a small some now, and another sum when the unit is filled (but both options would result in you getting significantly less than the full refund).

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Not a PP here, but I would write them a letter and request in writing information such as how many available units are there, how many units have been empty for longer than your unit, how many people have requested to view your unit, how many people have been shown your unit, etc. If they refuse to answer you and/or give vague answers, then I might start wondering if as a PP noted they are deliberately not trying to fill your unit so as to avoid paying your refund. While they have a contract right to not refund you until the unit is filled, all contracts have an obligation for the parties to act in good faith. If you have a basis for believing the center is deliberately acting in bad faith to avoid paying you you can certainly talk to an attorney to see if you have any legal recourse (well, you can obviously talk to an attorney regardless). It could just be your unit isn't getting filled bc the market is bad or maybe it is a less desirable unit bc it has less sunlight, is noisy, etc in which case you are probably stuck waiting it out. If you want to consider an attorney, I would look for a solo practitioner/small firm that would give you a free consultation that specializes in breach of contract/bad faith claims.

I am the PP who is in the industry. This is good advice. Also get your state insurance commission or elder affairs office involved. It could be the market has turned and the units just aren't going for what they were in the past (this is the likely scenario). That said, no one wants a lawsuit, they are expensive, time consuming, bad for their reputation and judges/juries tend to like to stock it to the "bad guys". So the more noise you make, the more likely they are to come out of pocket to get the matter resolved.

Btw, I do not work for one of these places that has this sort of setup on their entry fees, but I am familiar with the business model.