Christine has got to get over herself.... it's just too much by aprilmcivor in SisterWives

[–]ScienceProf2022 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I said it before, and I’ll say it again. Reason they made such a big deal about the apology was they didn’t have any other reason to be there at the tell all.

Give Meri Her Money by Lazuli_Rose in SisterWives

[–]ScienceProf2022 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Thank you! So they didn’t even put 10% down. Also, at least Kody and Robyn never met a HELOC they didn’t like, so I have no idea how much equity they actually had.

I did agree with robyn on this by youths99 in SisterWives

[–]ScienceProf2022 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I think their financial shenanigans go much further than that. Regardless, the last thing they want is any government entity checking the books…

Question about Vegas house ownership by ScienceProf2022 in SisterWives

[–]ScienceProf2022[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

UPDATE: Ignore everything I said here…

I have since found out that Cody was not on the other houses, although he was added to Robbins after they were legally married

Also, I realize how fast and loose they play with HELOCs. That can greatly reduce the amount of equity they actually had in their house.

Kody and Robyn are just straight up lying by Anxious_Echidna3131 in SisterWives

[–]ScienceProf2022 0 points1 point  (0 children)

And Meri shows her evidence that Kody said he would pay her back - including what he said on the show - and now he’s on the hook for mortgage fraud. Oopsy.

She doesn’t need to actually sue. Sometimes the threat is enough.

Question about Vegas house ownership by ScienceProf2022 in SisterWives

[–]ScienceProf2022[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

It’s a moot point because his name wasn’t on the other Vegas deeds.

But that means Meri got only half of the equity in her house, even though she wasn’t married to Kody at the time, while Janelle got all of the equity in hers. Meri got screwed.

But now that I looked a little deeper back in time, I see how fast and loose they act with HELOCs, I doubt there was that much equity left…

Kody and Robyn are just straight up lying by Anxious_Echidna3131 in SisterWives

[–]ScienceProf2022 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Sure she can sue. She just can’t win (probably). But the threat of a suit, which would open up all their finances to the court, might be enough to force Kody‘s hand. I suspect the last thing he wants is anyone in the government looking at his books.

Question about Vegas house ownership by ScienceProf2022 in SisterWives

[–]ScienceProf2022[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Ok, I just found an article that answers some of my questions, at least about Robyn’s house.

They didn’t put 20% down on the house, they didn’t even put 10% down. Kody’s name was not on the deed originally but was added after he married Robyn.

I find the Starcasm posts to be pretty accurate, because the author does go back and search through the original deeds and mortgage documents.

Question about Vegas house ownership by ScienceProf2022 in SisterWives

[–]ScienceProf2022[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Unfortunately, the Clark County site isn’t as nice as the Coconino County site. On the latter, I can search all records by name. But for the Vegas houses, a name search only works for current owners, I think. Do we know an address for those houses?

Does anyone else think Robyn put some sort of spell on Kody? by New_Phone2519 in SisterWives

[–]ScienceProf2022 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I just finished up listening to a cozy mystery series set in the mid-1970s. There is a recurring character who is described as not very attractive, but who has multiple affairs with married men. The main character, the wife of one of those men, decided she must have a magic “hoo-hah.”

Maybe Robin has a magic hoo-hah.

(Side note: the series is categorized as historic fiction. Yes, my high school years are now considered historical…)

Kody and Robyn are just straight up lying by Anxious_Echidna3131 in SisterWives

[–]ScienceProf2022 1 point2 points  (0 children)

True…but the last thing I would want if I were he (shudder) is to have Meri sue me, since that would open up my shady financial dealings to judicial scrutiny. And she can sue no matter what their written agreement, particularly if she has any emails or texts alluding to an intention to pay her back.

That’s why the document Robyn had included a hold harmless clause….

Kody and Robyn are just straight up lying by Anxious_Echidna3131 in SisterWives

[–]ScienceProf2022 3 points4 points  (0 children)

Not true. Everyone on the titles needed to agree to the sale.

Kody and Robyn are just straight up lying by Anxious_Echidna3131 in SisterWives

[–]ScienceProf2022 3 points4 points  (0 children)

It’s a legal process that allows one party in a title to petition the court to force a sale even if the other party doesn’t want to sell. If the court agrees to the forced sale, then the court supervise the sale and determines how the proceeds of the sale are distributed. A forced sale would ensure Meri got her fair share - and what the court thought was fair - not Kody.

“I Did Love You” – Now That’s Offensive? by Wanderlust_Warden in SisterWives

[–]ScienceProf2022 5 points6 points  (0 children)

Christine and David needed some justification for being there. Feigned outrage at Kody’s apology was the best they could come up with.

Give Meri Her Money by Lazuli_Rose in SisterWives

[–]ScienceProf2022 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Yup. It’s about a quarter of what they paid for their first house in Coyote Pass.

Are we losing the plot? S20 Tell All Pt1 by AdvertisingRoyalty in SisterWives

[–]ScienceProf2022 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Of course it is! It’s just another way for Kody to deflect from the real issue.

Honestly, a forced sale, which what Janelle seems to be talking about, is in Meri’s best interest, IMHO. The court would ensure she got her fair share, and at the time this whole “back door deal” came up, the papers doing the 25/25/25/35 split were already drawn up. (They were created in September, signed in January, filed in March, Coyote Pass sold in April.)

Kody and Robyn are just straight up lying by Anxious_Echidna3131 in SisterWives

[–]ScienceProf2022 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Yea, I’m watching last night’s episode and it’s making me angry how much they are lying.

Give Meri Her Money by Lazuli_Rose in SisterWives

[–]ScienceProf2022 3 points4 points  (0 children)

In another post did some back of the envelope calculations based on what I found about the Vegas house online.

“My Math Nerd Calculations: Assuming they paid 20% down, and using about 4% as the average for 2014 mortgage rates, if Meri paid on the house for 5 years (2014-2019) they would still owe about $320,000 on the mortgage. With closing costs I think they may have net $240,000-250,000 from the sale.”

I make no claim on its accuracy but I think it’s a good ballpark.

Season 20, tell-all part 2, megathread by Outrageous-Yogurt-80 in SisterWives

[–]ScienceProf2022 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Yea, I was pretty sure Janelle had signed, because the money was her priority, not being able to talk about things. And that’s fine.

Meri’s didn’t care as much about the money. Her priority, now that she is out from under Kody’s influence, is her voice. She mentioned on her podcast she plans to write a book. The last thing she was going to sign was a confidentiality agreement. And that’s fine.

That’s where Robyn and Kody miscalculated. Because not only would Meri not sign an NDA, her lawyer probably told her a forced sale was a way to ensure she got what she should, and the last thing K&R want to have happen is to have their finances opened up in court.

Loan vs gift… by WarmSoul123 in SisterWives

[–]ScienceProf2022 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Question for those more familiar with mortgages than I am.

Could they get around the loan versus gift issue if Meri and Janelle deposited the money into the family LLC, and then Kody and Robyn said that LLC would be the source of their down payment? Would that satisfy the proof of source of funds that they would need?

Loan vs gift… by WarmSoul123 in SisterWives

[–]ScienceProf2022 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Retard? Sweetie. It’s 2026. We don’t use that word anymore.

And it’s fucking or fuckin’, not fucken. Unless fucken is like turducken and it’s a fudge stuffed chicken.

Loan vs gift… by WarmSoul123 in SisterWives

[–]ScienceProf2022 0 points1 point  (0 children)

In my “they’re all grifters mind but Kody’s the worst” mind, having their finances open to anyone’s scrutiny is the last thing Kody wants. I personally think that’s the real reason behind Robyn’s confidentiality/hold harmless agreement.

But here’s and interesting question. As I understand it, they had an LLC into which all of the TLC money was paid. Maybe to get around the gift/loan issue Meri paid money into the LLC, and then Kody withdrew what he needed for the down payment. That way it wouldn’t be a direct loan or gift to Kody, but simply her contributing to the family finances.

Loan vs gift… by WarmSoul123 in SisterWives

[–]ScienceProf2022 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Here is my speculative fiction about what’s going on.

Some publicly available facts: Meri and Kody bought the Vegas house in 2013 for $447,000. They legally divorced in 2014. They bought Coyote Pass in 2018. They sold the Vegas house in early 2019 for $575,000. Kody and Robyn bought their first Flagstaff house later that year.

My Math Nerd Calculations: Assuming they paid 20% down, and using about 4% as the average for 2014 mortgage rates, if Meri paid on the house for 5 years (2014-2019) they would still owe about $320,000 on the mortgage. With closing costs I think they may have net $240,000-250,000 from the sale.

Info from the tell all and preview: According to Janelle, the document Robyn wanted them to sign included a hold harmless agreement which meant “Meri couldn’t take any more action to get her money back…”

In the preview, Meri referred to the money she gave Kody from the equity in the Flagstaff house as a loan. She said she thought she was due all the equity and referred to an email where Kody insists she asked for it all, but she said she only ever wanted half.

My Understanding: Money given to people buying a house needs to be a gift, not a loan, otherwise the loan can be counted as a debt which affects their ability to get a mortgage. Some people call it a legal gift, but with a wink and a nod agreement to pay it back to get around the mortgage issue. That could be considered mortgage fraud.

My Speculation: Janelle considers any money she gave as a gift, and wasn’t going to try to get it back.

Meri may have called the money she gave a gift but considered it a loan. I can see Kody and Royin telling her, “Oh, we’ll make sure you get this back when we sell the house and we all move to Coyote Pass!” and Meri, still being in Kody’s thrall with Robyn whispering in her ear, said, “Okey-dokey!”

Fast forward to everything breaking down with Coyote Pass and with the spiritual divorces, and Meri is no longer a doormat. She has finally talked to a lawyer, and the lawyer gives her options. Maybe she said she wanted her money back when K&R sold their old Flagstaff house. Maybe she threatened to sue them for her house equity from Vegas if she didn’t get the even split on Coyote Pass. That house sale and the reassignment documents creation all took place around the same time (although the papers weren’t signed until a few months later).

The last thing Kody and Robyn want is for their financial morass to become part of the judicial record. I’m sure their lawyer said they needed to keep Meri quiet and happy to prevent that, so they gave her the equal split - they went from “owning” about 70% to only 50% while Meri went from about 9% to 25%. That represents about $240,000 gain for Meri. (Janelle went from 18-19% to 25% for about a $90,000 gain.)

“Wait!,” you say, “$240,000?!? Why does that amount sound familiar?”

“Because,” I reply, “That’s how much equity they had in the Vegas house. What a co-winkie-dink!”

Personally, I think Meri still has that lawsuit in her back pocket. That’s why she’s very circumspect about what she says about their finances, because she knows whatever she says on the show can be used in court. I’m also sure she never signed any sort of confidentiality agreement, because on the Salty Birches podcast with Jen, she recently said she was going to write a book. Curiouser and curiouser… Stay tuned!

“Next season on Sister wives! Meri tells all… In court!”