Florida Appeals Court Nixes Foreclosure "Sale Of The Century" Of $500K Home For $1000

In Martin County, Florida, The Palm Beach Post reports:

• It might well have been the sale of the century. But then came the lawsuit. On Wednesday, a state appeals court nixed a 2007 foreclosure sale in which a company paid $1,000 for a Martin County home worth 500 times as much. According to the order of the 4th District Court of Appeal, the home's mortgage company was the "innocent victim of the mistakes of its attorneys and agents."

• A sales agent for Long Beach Mortgage Corp. attended the May 2007 sale, but she didn't make a bid because she lacked instructions, according to a synopsis in the court ruling. An employee of a law firm was preparing those details, but she thought the sale didn't start until 11 a.m., an hour later than its actual start time.

For more, see Court tosses $1,000 sale of $500,000 Martin home.

For the decision of the Florida appeals court, see Long Beach Mortgage Corporation v. Bebble (#4D07-3100; 4th District Court of Appeal, June 11, 2008).

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For other unusual foreclosure sale stories, see:

• $6.5 Million Property Bought At Foreclosure For $2,000 (a California case where the represenative for the foreclosing lender got stuck in traffic, and arrived late to the sale. By the time of arrival to the auction, the subject property had already been sold for $2K. A California appeals court upheld the sale. No word if the foreclosing lender's attorney had his malpractice/errors and omissions insurance policy paid up),

• $2.6 Million NJ "Cat House" Foreclosure Sale Voided; "Duped" Buyer To Get Back Deposit (a New Jersey case where a guy bought his next door neighbor's home at a foreclosure sale for $2.6 million, only to find out days later that the home was inhabited by some 150 cats and a few dogs. The trial judge in the case allowed the guy to back out of the deal and get his deposit back).