Suit Alleges KB Home, Countrywide Conspiracy With Appraisers To Inflate Home Prices, Class Action Status Sought

In Los Angeles, California, The Associated Press reports:

• Two California couples are suing KB Home (KB) and mortgage lender Countrywide Financial Corp., claiming the companies schemed with real estate appraisers to inflate prices paid for homes as the housing market began to tank. [...] The plaintiffs, Deborah and Lonnie Bolden, and David and Dolores Contreras, all residents of Live Oak, are seeking unspecified restitution as well as compensatory and punitive damages. They also want class-action status to cover KB Home customers in California who obtained financing through Countrywide and closed on their purchases between Aug. 1, 2005, and July 31, 2006. In the lawsuit, the couples claim prospective home buyers were presented with false or misleading data on previously sold homes in order to justify higher asking prices on new purchases.

For more, see Lawsuit claims KB Home, Countrywide inflated home prices.

See also, San Francisco Chronicle: A Court Case That Could Be A Sign of the Times (3-21-08).

Go here, Go here and Go here for more on recent Countrywide problems with consumers.