Abusive, Narcissistic Conman

This home was previously constructed and owned by relatives -- built in 1979 by Fred Staver (a developer in Vienna.)  Midge Staver (the widow of former Vienna Mayor, Guy Wilson) wanted to relocate to Florida so Bill Mountjoy and DeNese bought this home privately in 1985 for $300,000. 

Bill did share the costs of the downpayment and mortgage more or less equally; although, DeNese paid all the other expenses - food, utilities, etc. We lived here for 6 years - moving in 1991; DeNese loved this home so much and never wanted to move but Bill insisted. 

When we moved to Great Falls in 1991, the Vienna home proceeded to be used as a rental for the next two decades.  Over those twenty years, the grand total of rental income was roughly $640k - that is, over two times the purchase price of the home.  

Although they had contributed to the purchase more-or-less equally while we lived in the home, Bill kept 100% of the rent and did little-to-no maintenance on the property; for the most part, throughout that time my mother paid all taxes (estimated $150k), insurance (estimated $14k), and repair costs (estimated $50k) - for a total of roughly $215k.  (The loan was paid off in 1993.)  So, not only did DeNese not receive her half of the rent - totaling over a quarter of a million dollars - but she paid out almost a quarter of a million dollars in expenses during that time.  My mother's objections to Bill keeping her half of the rent would escalate but never be resolved.  By 2007, attorneys got involved; Bill began depositing the money into a joint account but then claimed a growing list of inflated and unrelated expenses towards the amount - such as Christmas gifts for neighbors and wedding presents for friends.

One word immediately springs to mind when I think back on the rare occasions where Bill chipped in for a repair: stingy - but that label is quite the benevolent understatement.  When the refrigerator needed to be replaced in the Vienna home, Bill decided I would give up the refrigerator in my Central Virginia home.  Transportation of the bulky appliance to Northern VA was also my responsibility and expense.  Bill paid a small amount of cash to a few guys (landscapers, I believe) to install it in the home and took credit for his ingenuity.  (Bill did not replace my fridge or offer compensation, but if I didn't go along with the plan my mother would have suffered the consequences of his wrath.)  

On three occasions, extensive repairs were needed - a new roof, a driveway replacement, and significant work to the pool and surrounding patio.  Since Bill would not part with a dime, my mother had no choice to step up (setting her back approximately $50,000) in order to protect her investment in the home.  Nevertheless, Bill would go on to complain for years that she "pissed all her money away" when she chose an asphalt shingle product because she did not have the liquid funds for cedar.  

The first tenant, Bob Ford, redecorated a number of rooms at his own expense; he had intended to stay in the home long-term but a change in circumstances required him to move earlier than anticipated.  I remember being left home alone at age 12 to escort his wife and their decorator through the various rooms while they selected wallpaper, paint, and draperies.  There would be other tenants - but near the end of this window there was a 9 year span of time where the British Embassy signed three consecutive 3-year leases; the occupants would change due to work assignments - Susan Wilson,  Chris Judge, Nigel Parker, etc.  For better or worse, the actuality of having occupants who have housing provided by their employer is that they simply don't complain much as they are  temporary and generally lack knowledge of comparable options in the the local market.  

The Embassy had an escalation clause in their lease and, as a result, by 2010, they were paying $4,686/month; had they opted for another 3-years under the same terms, the monthly cost would have exceeded $4,900.  Understandably, they did not want to continue with these arrangements.  They initially offered $3,300/month with a 3% annual increase but later I believe they decreased it further to $3,200/month - regardless, any reasonable person would have considered it satisfactory given the condition of the home.  

Bill turned it down.  

I had been living in Richmond since 2004..  By 2011, I was working on my doctorate and teaching part time in Northern, VA.  I would make the two hour commute once a week - coming early in the morning to teach my classes and ending the day by attending classes where I was the student.  Then, I would make the two hour trip back.  Of course, it would have been nice not to commute at all but it was manageable to travel once a week.   After a year, I was thrilled to be offered a full-time position with the college even though I now needed to be in Northern, VA four days a week.  

In 2011, over the Christmas holiday, my mother mentioned to me that the house on Roland was vacant and had been for some time now.  I had not been in the house since I was a child and, much to my surprise, it had not changed at all - and I don't mean that in a good way.  

Throughout my childhood, my mother had rental properties.  I would go with her when she prepped them for turnover - painting, refinishing floors, etc.  So, even though I used a wheelchair myself, I had a good understanding of what needed to be done.   

The Vienna home had gone over a year with no rent and no solid prospects for a tenant.  So, I offered to move in - temporarily - and get the house into decent shape.  It seemed like a win-win solution and Bill and DeNese both seemed eager to take me up on the offer so, in January 2012, I move in. 

The understanding was that that, instead of rent, I would improve the property; however, after I moved in, Bill began a campaign of bulling and harassment until I consented to pay his "half" of the rent - $1,600 each month.  In essence, I found myself trapped in a situation similar to what my mother had endured for decades - writing checks to Bill, or else.  

In retrospect, I should have packed my bags and left.  I relented because being a full-time college professor had been a deep-rooted dream of mine.  I could have figured something else out over break but classes were now back in session.  If I left, I would have either struggled to find something else immediately that was accessible enough for me to function independently or spend four (plus) hours in the car each day.  I was concerned that changing course at that point would have resulted in losing the job.  Also, I had somewhat naively convinced myself that once there was solid progress Bill's demands would cease.

Nevertheless, I simply did not have $1.600/month to pay Bill in addition to repairs and enhancements to the house.  I was still paying for my home in Richmond as this was not intended to be a long-term arrangement, I had significant credit card debt from my college years, and (almost immediately) repairs were needed to function fully in the home - such as purchasing a washer and dryer as I couldn't make a good impression in the classroom without wearing clean clothes and the machines in the home were broken.  Additionally, due to my disability, I have significant healthcare related expenses each month.  I was actually pretty healthy and independent but costs for adaptive equipment add up.  

When the rent situation was addressed with Bill, he had the audacity to scrutinize and criticize my spending on what he considered to be unnecessary.  (For example, when I bought a low-mileage used Chevy Monte Carlo after looking through listings for three years, my friends were thrilled that I had found something that worked well with my wheelchair but Bill was infuriated.)  Later he would claim he didn't expect me to pay the rent but that instead my husband, Travis, should have been held responsible.  This is so preposterous that it isn't even funny; there is no defense for Bill raking in every possible penny from his own disabled daughter.  Bill's argument was, fundamentally, that someone should cover the cost, despite that not being the agreement, simply because they could - or he thought they could.  He overstates Travis' income as he did not have a "lucrative" job but that's not really the point.  Bill flipping the script underscored his habit of engaging in one racket after another - even targeting his own family.  

I paid my mother nothing but Bill would never accept that answer.  Bill insisted that living in this house was the bargain of a lifetime and my mother was getting some sort of kickback for arranging the deal.  Years prior, Travis had lent my mother money.  Although listed as a creditor when she filed for a reorganization under bankruptcy law, Travis choose not to actively pursue a claim.  Nevertheless, Bill would complicate her life by falsely claiming to the bankruptcy court that allowing Travis to live in the house was an unreported arrangement to pay back debt.  Travis had no arrangement with my mother - period.  Later, when snooping through my mother's belongings, Bill found a check Travis had written her for something entirely unrelated - for years Bill would argue it was a payment for our occupancy in the house.

To come up with the $1,600/month extortion Bill demanded, I had to take on tenants.  Fortunately people interested in month-to-month room rentals aren't usually concerned with high-end accommodations and it helped that the tenants didn't have access to the worst areas of the home.  That being said, we did have showings where individuals were incredibly interested until they saw the home in-person, we often had complaints during tenancy (particularly about the pest control issues that were hard to remedy given the exterior wood rot), and on one occasion, a tenant insisted on breaking their contract because they felt mislead about the state of home.  

Regardless, the funds I received from the tenants never fully covered the amount I paid to Bill or the increased utility costs of having more people in the home - but it did enable us to make ends meet.  Unfortunately, renting out rooms came with roommate challenges and took up a great deal of time that, at the end of the day, reduced the number of projects that could be completed on the house. 

Initially, Bill claimed he was upset we had taken on a border because of the ethnicity of the tenant.  Later, he argued that he should be paid more because he 'knew' we were making money off the arrangement.  He would routinely drive-by to take note of cars in the driveway and scan online advertisements to find the listings.  I felt Bill developed an obsession and seemed driven by a constant need to know what was going on in the house.  In court, Bill would claim he was helping us with applications and leases; that was never the case.  I have significant experience in property management and was handling all the paperwork myself. 

In the summer of 2014, there had been a marked escalation with the incidents involving Bill.  One time he pounded on the door in search of my mother; punches were thrown and the police were involved.  We gave notice to the tenants and, once they left, we did as well - not just because of that specific incident but because we were tired of putting up with Bill's crap round the clock. 

We left the house in better condition than when we arrived.  Nevertheless it sat vacant for over another year - in part because there were still unfinished projects but primarily because of Bill's mismanagement.  Bill was unhappy with many of the changes we made, or so he said.  I think it was just about control but another viable explanation could simply be that he was an inept landlord.  He insisted he could fix everything and it would rent immediately for even more than he had asked in 2011, but poor workmanship from the handymen he hired left the property in worse shape.  

In the laundry room, we had replaced the single broken shelf with a large new cabinet, decreased the size of the supply closet for wheelchair access to new the front-loading washer and dryer we had put in, replaced the laminate floor, and chosen contrasting paint colors to complement the new flooring. Bill had the new floor ripped up to lay tile - the handyman broke the front-loading washer while pulling it off it's pedestal without assistance, destroying the new cabinetry and scuffing up the walls in the process.  Sadly, the tile was installed improperly; grout lines varied from a centimeter to several inches and the tiles themselves immediately began cracking.  In the kitchen, an inexpensive paint job Bill set-up left splatter all over cabinets and floors; rather than buy new point for the kitchen, Bill had insisted on reusing what was remaining from our remodeling of the laundry room but that left things looking odd because the color choice wasn't appropriate for the existing cabinets and counters.  Overall, Bill destroyed most of what we had done out of spite - even physically breaking a door because it was 'locked' despite a second unlocked door leading to the same room.  

This time, Bill listed the house for rent at $4,500.  Several months later there was still no interest and he decreased the listing to $4,250.  From what I heard, the only offer during this second full entire year of vacancy was, ironically, from someone who wanted to live here rent-free in exchange for labor.  Well, I should say the only legitimate offer as Bill did end up replying to several fraudulent Nigerian scams.  Upon talk of my returning, Bill had the bathrooms ripped out (leaving the toilet and tile in the backyard) with no plans or budget for new installations.   

In Vienna, Bill had a year to fix the house (again) and had only made things worse.  The only time the house was being 'used' was for Bill to hookup with women - even breaking my mother's furniture during these rough escapades.   It didn't make sense for the house to just sit vacant indefinitely.  Bill was pushing to sell, but my mother refused because he would have then taken that money too; she either wanted Bill to sign over the house or return her portion of the rent retained - with interest.  She also steadily grew troubled by the thought that perhaps Bill had purposely let the house sit vacant to force a sale and, when she discovered he had been covertly meeting with realtors, that suspicion was solidified.  Therefore, in September 2015, we moved back to 402 Roland St SW. 

Although the house was in habitable condition when we left in 2014,  now there was not even one single working bathroom.  Four years would pass without anyone being able to shower in the home.  There was no consistently working HVAC, no oven, one semi-operational burner on the stove, no working fridge, and no hot water; Bill's workers had even managed to break the washing machine we had bought during the prior stay when they pulled the units to rip up the new laminate floor.  We lived in miserable conditions - yes, there are benefits to being in Northern VA but I doubt very many people in developed countries live this way.  In short, living here is like camping - except you don't get to go home and take a shower after a week or two.

This time there was no agreement to make repairs.  The idea of doing anything in the home was nauseating given that last time we had poured our dollars and sweat in the home just to have everything torn out.  Nevertheless, we do take on a few minor repairs and improvements.  After I gave birth in 2017, we added a concrete ramp; there was no accessible route out of the house and I could not be trapped alone with a newborn in case of fire, etc.  Yes, the ramp was probably more expensive than other options but the concrete sidewalk had an extensive crack and was displaced so much that it was a frequent tripping hazard.  One might wonder why a bathroom was not higher on the list of priorities than the ramp but we felt getting out alive in an emergency  was more important than being clean and sanitary.  Plus, we didn't want to put in a bathroom just to have Bill toss that in the backyard too.  

In 2019, State Farm conducted a routine inspection and discovered the exterior deterioration of the home; DeNese had to spend tens of thousands of dollars to avoid the insurance being cancelled.  Bill made no financial contribution to the exterior overhaul but he was quick to criticize our choice to modernize a bit - painting the home a different color and removing the shutters entirely.  

As the years went on, it was repeatedly discussed that Bill needed to sign over the home due to his earlier retention of all the rent.  If the home was in my name, there would be no real estate taxes because I am both permanently disabled and low income.  Also, I would have been able to utilize grants and low-interest loans to repair the home.  I know that may come off as self-serving but that was always my mother's intention - it only makes sense that she would want to help her disabled daughter. What's outlandish is not that my mother wanted me to have the home but that Bill routinely exploits my disability for his personal gain.  

 In 2018, there is a settlement agreement but at the last minute Bill chose to break into our home and steal DeNese's records rather than sign. At any rate, Bill and DeNese were now alternating tax payments.  However, Bill would always put up a fight when it was his turn to pony up - often stalking and threatening us.  Bill will later state in court that we had 80+ pages of police reports - many he didn't even know existed.  Well, life under the umbrella of domestic violence is often one where the police can't help much - the reality is that Bill will go to unbelievable lengths to avoid signing over the Vienna home because having his name on the title limits our ability to take action against his repeated (alleged) stalking.

When my mother was discharged from Virginia Hospital Center, just before Christmas of 2020, she came to live with us in the Vienna home.  

Fortunately, Travis and I had been saving as much as possible in hopes of buying a home in Northern Virginia.  If we hadn't had cash on hand, my mother would have likely permanently ended up in a nursing facility instead of coming to live with us.  The hospital had asked for photographs of our living arrangements (including the bathroom) and therapists would be coming to work with her in the home. 

Given the situation with Bill, we did not want to spend money on the house but now we had no choice. We spent $15,176.86 to get a way to bathe that was not only accessible but could also accommodate a person who uses a wheelchair (me) to fit in the bathroom concurrently with the other person who needed assistance (my mother or my then 3-year-old child.)  We didn't get too far past the tub itself because that would have cost even more.  While it is great to finally have a tub, at the end of the day,  the expense makes it more difficult to find new housing because we are left with little remaining for a down-payment or deposit.

While I certainly understand that Bill's attorney was only following his client's directions, in court twenty-one pages of the transcript are consumed by an objection that, in essence, concludes we aren't even entitled to be reimbursed for half the cost of the bathroom because Bill did not consent to having a working tub in the house.

DeNese was hospitalized in November of 2020.  Now fully aware that he is under police investigation, we receive a letter written on Bill's behalf.  It  threatens a forced sale of DeNese's home in Lorton as well as the home where we are living in Vienna if we do not voluntarily agree to put the properties on the market.  The letter was written by reputable criminal defense attorney Bob Whitestone; widely regarded as the best in Fairfax County, throughout most of my childhood Bill would often talk about how Bob Whitestone got a guilty friend off for murder.  

Had the letter been sent by a real estate attorney or even a name we didn't immediately recognize, we may have taken it for the words printed on the paper and tried to retain an attorney to respond.  It's hard to say with certainty because things were so hectic here as we tried to rebuild my mother's life.  However, after years of Bill's constant threats if we called the police, we took this as another ultimatum - in essence, talk to the police again and I'll make your life difficult.  As it turns out, though, Bill intended to take my mother's property regardless of what we did.

Bill proceeds to follow through on petitioning the court for the sale of the properties the following month.  Although currently mid-trial, there is little doubt that Bill will be victorious and my mother will lose both her waterfront home in Lorton and the home in Vienna.  Bill will claim this is just about everyone getting their fair share but there's nothing fair about this... Bill is taking advantage of a situation he created - leaving my mother to 'defend' herself without any access to her records.  My mother always wanted a third-party accounting but not Bill - he's doing this specifically because the playing field is not level.  Most of Bill's argument hinges on a falsehood - claiming my mother agreed to him keeping the rent at Roland.

The Slaey/Mountjoy Accounting of the Roland Property shows the math if we take everything Bill said during Bill's deposition as the truth.  It also excludes over 50k in renovations and repairs DeNese paid for on the home.  Nevertheless, the end result is clear - even giving Bill the completed and uncontested benefit of the doubt not only does DeNese own 100% of the home, but Bill would actually have to pay DeNese well over a quarter of a million dollars just for her to break even on the investment because of this years of retaining all the rental income while my mother paid expenses.  (If she could prove it.)

Furthermore, given her extensive history of real estate investment, had she been given her portion of the rents on the home one can reasonably conclude she would have invested that money in another property purchase and earned more - but Bill and Bill alone had the opportunity to invest and gain interest when he cashed-out on the home by collecting over 100% of the rent for 15+ years.  Nevertheless, Bill will essentially take advantage of the law to bully DeNese out of the only familiar surrounding she has left.