Welcome to The Home Equity Theft Reporter, a blog dedicated to informing the consumer public and the legal profession about Home Equity Theft issues. This blog will consist of information describing the various forms of Home Equity Theft and links to news reports & other informational sources from throughout the country about the victims of Home Equity Theft and what government authorities and others are doing about it.
Friday, July 27, 2012
HOAs Add Nonlitigious Tactics To Collection Efforts Against Unit Owners Owing Back Due Maintenance Fees
In New York City, The New York Times reports:
A SUCCESSFUL condominium depends, in large part, on owners’ paying their monthly fees promptly and in full. Delinquencies can mean less money for maintenance and amenities — and draw the ill will of fellow residents. While the sheer size of larger buildings can often blunt their impact on the budget, small buildings with a high number of delinquencies can be toxic for buyers and a millstone for sellers.
Now, with New York’s economy seemingly recovering, condominium boards are growing more aggressive in cracking down on delinquent owners, according to brokers, lawyers and board members.
Some are publicly shaming deadbeats by posting their names on hallway bulletin boards or barring them from facilities like health clubs and concierge services. Others are reflexively filing liens against owners who are more than 60 days in arrears. And boards are writing requirements into their bylaws to provide additional protections.
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[C]ondominiums have begun employing [] nonlitigious tactics to persuade the delinquent owner to pay up. This can include barring the owner — or the owner’s tenant, if the unit is being rented — from using nonessential services in the building like the health club or the pool. Doormen may be required to stop accepting packages and deliveries. Some buildings even resort to public humiliation by posting names in common areas.
“A number of our buildings, especially those with high-level amenities, are now passing house rules that revoke the privileges of owners or their tenants who are in default for more than 60 or 90 days,” said Dan Wurtzel, the president of Cooper Square Realty, which manages more than 500 buildings in New York City.
One complex, Zeckendorf Towers at 1 Irving Place, recently instituted a rule that prohibits a tenant from paying the unit owner advance rent, so that if the owner becomes delinquent it will be able to collect directly from the tenant.
“Now, in the event the owner doesn’t keep up with the common charges, this gives the board the ability to go directly to the tenant and have them pay us,” said Lynda Deppe, a senior vice president of City Connections Realty and a resident broker at Zeckendorf Towers. “If they had already paid their rent, we wouldn’t have that leverage.”
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The New York Times: The Housing Trap (In the wake of the housing crisis, low-income families have turned to seller financing to buy homes but these deals can be a money trap)
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The NY Times: Arbitration Everywhere, Stacking the Deck of Justice(Part 1 in series examining how clauses buried in tens of millions of contracts have deprived Americans of one of their most fundamental constitutional rights: their day in court)
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Justice Deceived: How Large Foreclosure Firms Subvert State Regulations Protecting Homeowners
MFY Legal Services Report On Questionable Practices By Process Servers In Debt Collection Cases
Justice Disserved: A Preliminary Analysis of the Exceptionally
Low Appearance Rate by Defendants in Lawsuits Filed in the Civil Court of the City of New York
Mortgage Mess Redux: Robo-Signers Return (A Reuters investigation finds that many banks are still employing the controversial foreclosure practices that sparked a major outcry last year)
CNN Video: As Foreclosures Mount, Florida Court Turns To 'Rocket Docket'
The Wall Street Journal: A Florida Court's 'Rocket Docket' Blasts Through Foreclosure Cases (2 Questions, 15 Seconds, 45 Days to Get Out; 'What's to Talk About?' Says a Judge)
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ABC Video: Fighting Against Foreclosure (Some homeowners have found a new tactic to keep the banks at bay)
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