Philly Feds Pinch "Slumlord Millionaire" In Connection w/ Allegedly Peddling Shabby Homes In Rent To Own Scam Leaving Wanna Be Homebuyers In F'closure

In Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, the Philadelphia Daily News reports:

• FOR THE alleged victims of Philadelphia's homegrown "Slumlord Millionaire," federal prison for him would be too comfy.



• Robert Coyle Sr. - the real-estate mogul who was widely known for peddling shabby homes to the city's poorest and robbing them of their dream of home ownership - was indicted last week on charges of defrauding banks out of $10 million. If convicted, Coyle could face up to 120 years in prison and $4 million in fines.



• "I'm liking that he might have to pay $4 million in fines - he'll feel that," Inez Ramos, an alleged Coyle victim, said last night. "But if he goes to prison, he'll still have a roof over his head. He is not going to get cold or worry that he's not going to have enough money for food. He'll have a place to sleep and he'll get three meals a day, and taxpayers like us, we'll have to pay for it."



• Ramos is one of dozens of cash-strapped tenants, mostly in Kensington and Port Richmond, who claim that Coyle promised that they could rent-to-own their homes. The hopeful homeowners used what little money they had to make Coyle's rickety homes livable. They spent their life savings to install sinks, toilets, windows, walls, roofs, kitchens and front doors.



• After all that, instead of getting deeds, they got slapped with foreclosure notices and faced eviction.



• In an October 2009 article, the Daily News detailed how Coyle, who ran Landvest and at least 11 other companies, obtained more than $15 million in bank loans on some 300 homes that he owned or rented out, then stopped making bank payments and padlocked his Port Richmond real-estate office.(1)

For the story, see They want 'slumlord' to feel their pain.

From the Office of the U.S. Attorney (Philadelphia, Pennsylvania):

• Indictment: U.S. v. Robert Coyle, Sr.;


• Press Release: New Jersey Man Charged With Loan Fraud.

(1) For earlier posts on ths story, see:

• Philly DA, Feds Probe "Dream Killer" In Suspected Rent To Own Scam Peddling Shabby Homes To City's Poorest; Victims Paid Thousand$, Now Face The Boot;



• Probe Continues Into Suspected Philly Rent-To-Own Racket; Unsophisticated Would-Be Buyers Duped Into Fixing Up Decrepit Homes & Ended In Foreclosure.