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, October 12, 2012
NYC HOA Sued For Allegedly 'Stealing' Little Old Lady's Parking Spot; Management's Offer To Place 93-Year Old Mom On 10-Year Wait List For New Spot Not Adequate: Son
In New York City, the New York Post reports:
Management at a Lower East Side apartment complex allegedly stole a little old lady’s parking spot — and now the 93-year-old is suing to get it back.
Virginia Rubino has kept her sea-foam green 1967 Cadillac convertible in parking spot 1 in the Seward Park Housing Corp. garage since 1987, and she’s had the spot since 1981. But when her son, Richard, went to return it in May after getting some work done on the classic vehicle, he discovered another car parked there — and it wasn’t a mistake.
“We were told we don’t have access to the spot anymore,” Richard said.
The lawyer for the management company told Virginia that “her right to her parking spot was revoked” because the car had “not been operable of driving in over a year” and the registration and insurance policy had expired. She was also told she’d been sent several notices about the problem. Richard said none of the claims were true.
The son said while his mom’s no longer in good enough health to drive, he uses the car to take her to doctor’s appointments. The suit says having the car parked farther away is a physical hardship for Virginia, and Richard says it’s a financial hardship, too.
While the spot in the complex’s garage cost about $100 a month, the public garage it’s in now is closer to $600.
The Manhattan Supreme Court suit says that when Rubino complained, the managing agent offered to add her name to the end of the garage’s waiting list, which had hundreds of people on it. “It’s a 10-year wait,” Richard said.
The suit seeks the spot’s immediate return, plus unspecified money damages for the lifelong Lower East Side resident. The lawyer for the co-op board, Arthur Weinstein, said that the building acted properly but that if Rubino wants “to bring additional facts to our attention” as to why she needs the spot, “we’ll be happy to listen.”
CBC News: Betrayal of Trust (A CBC investigation reveals how lawyers across Canada have misappropriated and mishandled clients money, to the tune of tens of millions of dollars, or sometimes even charging vulnerable people top dollar for shoddy services)
Land Contract/Contract For Deed/Rent-To-Own Rackets
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)
Beware The Fine Print: Consumers Forced To Sign Away Their Rights To Use Court System
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)
Foreclosure Mills' Abysmal Record In Complying With New NYS Foreclosure Requirements
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)
"Produce The Note" Strategy When Dealing With Missing Promissory Notes In Foreclosure Actions
ABC Video: Fighting Against Foreclosure (Some homeowners have found a new tactic to keep the banks at bay)
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