Vegas Attorney To Begin Targeting Real Estate Agents, Lenders, Appraisers Who Allegedly Cheated Homebuyers

In Las Vegas, Nevada, the Las Vegas Review Journal reports:

• When Brad Cohen's monthly mortgage payment jumped from $1,700 to $2,400 and the bank came calling with foreclosure notices, Cohen did what any red-blooded, meat-and-potatoes American would do. He called a lawyer. The pending lawsuit could become the first local test case in a broadening national spate of claims against Realtors and lenders who lawyers say put buyers in houses too pricey for their budgets. Cohen is suing the mortgage broker who refinanced his loan and has retained trial attorney Robert Cottle to represent him.

• Cottle is preparing several lawsuits against Realtors, lenders and appraisers -- "a triangle of professionals, every one of whom failed consumers most of the time," Cottle said. [...] Cottle estimated as many as 15,000 Las Vegans could have solid claims against sales agents, loan brokers and appraisers. He's evaluating about a dozen other cases for a multiparty lawsuit he might file after he files Cohen's lawsuit. [...] "The burden of making a good financial decision is on the consumer, but he's got to have the right guidance," Cottle said. "If the defendants can't prove they did their job with professional responsibility, then the consumer wins." [...] "The consumer relies upon the professional to do their job to protect his interests. This is professional greed. Greed won, the consumer lost, and now we're in this mess." [...] Cottle won't seek money damages alone; he'll also ask judges to issue restraining orders halting foreclosures, and he'll request improved mortgage terms. In cases involving flagrant fraud, he's hoping for punitive damages.

For more, see Feeling cheated, homeowners sue (Lawsuits say lenders, Realtors, appraisers failed their clients).