WKMCD

As the executor, contact the beneficiaries. $5x divided x ways is probably not a lot of money. If your father-in-law was able to put $20k deposit on an $80k car, his estate is probably worth a bit. Let the beneficiaries decide what to do.

Been there - Done that.

bigsapper

Which makes you wonder why he came here in the first place. The fact the vehicle is a Corvette is actually immaterial in this context.

And he apparently is already referring to a lawyer. In his situation, it never would have occurred to me to post this on the internet.

Purple92

First and Foremost - my condolences to you and your family on your loss !!!

Second - I think you made a wise decision accepting a $18K refund on a $20,000 deposit. Yes, getting 100% back would have been a nicer outcome for you and the estate - but people seem to forget - being an executor takes a fair amount of time even in the best of cases, and time is not free. There are lots of things that have to be cleaned up when someone passes away - and in most cases - the executor makes numerous decisions that can cost or save the estate money. (My favorite example is if a house needs to be cleaned out and sold - maybe you make a decision to throw away $5,000 worth of "stuff", and get the house on the market sooner. Doing so may save $10,000 worth of taxes and "holding costs" (utilities Insurance etc.) on the house.)

Due to the various incentives out there right now - it's almost certain that you would have lost more than $2K if you took delivery of the car for the agreed upon price and tried to sell it privately, so those suggesting that course of action have probably not looked at recent Corvette advertisements...

So - you spoke to the dealer and they upped their offer to refund 90% of the deposit. Personally, I'd say you did well !!! Would a letter from the lawyer assisting you with the estate have gotten the full 100% back - maybe - and maybe not (the specifics of the contract and the state laws come into play here), but it would have added some cost, and it MAY have caused the dealer to dig in their heels and not even up the offer to $18K... Think about it a little bit - the dealer is probably not going to do real well selling this car - Will they move it or trade it - YES.... They're going to get it in Jan/Feb, and the market for Corvettes (and other High Performance cars) in the winter months - especially in the northern states is NOT GOOD !!! So - it's quite likely that this Vette will be on their lot for a while. So - while there is some assistance from GM, the fact is that this is probably not a car they would have brought onto the lot if it had not been ordered.

Take the check - deposit it in the estate account, put the matter behind you and move on to the hundreds of other things you've got to deal with.

GOOD LUCK !!!!

AttyVette

Sorry for your step-fathers loss and glad you managed to get 90% of his deposit back — hiring a lawyer to try to get the total deposit back would still probably have cost you $2,000 dollars of your $20,000 dollar deposit money.

Riverdog

First, my condolences on your family's loss. That being said, I strongly recommend two "common sense" steps: 1. Contact a lawyer--and you already have one for the estate, so that's good--and let him/her read the contract to see if the deposit is refundable in full or only in part; and 2: DO NOT take possession of the car and have it titled. That immediately makes it a used car and it's value drops by at least 1/3.

(I bought my C6 from an estate, but after the owner had driven it 900+ miles, so it's not quite the same situation; but as to the depreciation hit you would suffer if you took possession of the car, it would be in the 30-35% range, which is typical for a full first-year depreciation on a new Corvette. Plus, you'd have to pay the state sales tax and motor vehicle fees if you take possession and title it. )

desmophile

Sorry for your situation.

My perspective>

I hate lawyers
Is the 5K a major issue for you financially?
Seems like a pretty reasonable offer from the dealer who likely won't be able to sell the car for another 5K off the price.

As with marriages, do you want to be happy, or do you want to be right?

JALLEN4

It is amazing how many people read the first post in a thread, are oblivious to several more pages of discussion, but still want to give an authoritative statement on the matter. It doesn’t matter that the situation has been settled and all the figures have changed. It is always better to not have a clue what you are talking about but to be “strong” in your opinion!

walleyejack

it has long been settled and they are still ranting on. smh

desmophile

Gosh Jallen, hope I didn't offend you with my opinion. Didn't think it was anything more than how I would approach it. Didn't read the whole thread because it was getting pretty long. Had I done so, it would not have changed what I have written.

JALLEN4

Actually it should have changed what you wrote. The dealer wound up giving the OP $18,000 back and he lost two Grand not five.

desmophile

Your are right there.
I was quite comfortable with him getting 15K back.
At 18 K back maybe I should have just said OK. Sorry for the loss of you father.

owc6

I disagree.

I've been on the other end of a car like that (special ordered, owner died, and the dealer put it on the lot), and it did not affect my car-buying decision one bit. They listed it, and I approached it the same as any other new car with the same considerations with regard to price and options.

The only effect that had on the dealer or myself was a cool story to tell to people, both in person and the internet.

AttyVette

People that blanket state that they hate lawyers may never have needed one...So good luck if they are sued when they represent themselves in court. It can be done but wouldn’t recommend it usually. I personally never single out a profession and say I hate ( fill in the blank to the profession ) as there are good and bad people in all professions. Furthermore, sometimes the only way to settle a dispute is to use a lawyer to handle the case.

Zelicious

I factory ordered a 2018 Grand Sport from a dealership about the same time your step-father did. I did have to give a deposit but I was also told that if I didn't take the car for any reason that the deposit was 100% refundable because by law they are not allowed to keep that money. You or the estate should get all of that deposit back.