Real Estate & Property Law

Super-Remorseful Attorney Gets Less Time for Mortgage Fraud

Stephen Gunther reportedly made less than $10,000 by closing four real estate deals on terms he didn’t disclose to the mortgage lenders. And now the Virginia real estate attorney is paying a high price after straw buyers defaulted on the loans. Lenders lost some $231,000, and Gunther must make restitution…

Jun 24, 2010 12:23 AM CDT

Peeps Experts to Testify in Wrongful Eviction Trial

Lawyers are planning to call several Peeps connoisseurs on behalf of their Colorado client who claims she was wrongfully evicted for her hallway Easter display. Among those testifying on behalf of plaintiff Carol “Chay” Burdick are a former art teacher who works with Peeps, a Denver man who hosts an…

Jun 23, 2010 11:44 AM CDT

Real Estate Attorney Indicted re $1.5M in Personal Loans His Lawyer Says Are Paid Up

A Rhode Island lawmaker who has a private practice as a real estate attorney has been federally indicted on seven counts of bank fraud concerning $1.5 million in personal loans that his lawyer says are not in arrears. State Sen. Christopher Maselli, a Democrat, is accused of lying about his…

Jun 18, 2010 11:31 PM CDT

‘Sting Operations’ at Real Estate Closings Help Feds Nab Mortgage Fraud Suspects

Federal prosecutors this week announced stepped-up enforcement against mortgage fraud and, at least in Georgia, they are apparently using a new weapon to pursue such cases. U.S. Attorney Sally Quillian Yates says “sting operations” at the real estate closing table are becoming part of the prosecution arsenal to combat mortgage…

Jun 18, 2010 11:20 PM CDT

Ex-Red Wings Star Fedorov in Foreclosure, Blames Law Firm for Loss of $60M

A former star player for the Detroit Red Wings is facing foreclosure. Sergei Fedorov owes more than $2 million on two palatial homes in Bloomfield Hills, according to foreclosure notices filed by the PrivateBank and Trust Co., reports the Detroit News. He has blamed Hyman Lippitt for some $60 million…

Jun 17, 2010 5:26 PM CDT

Squatters Add to Mortgage Lenders’ Woes; Eviction from $3.3M Listing a Civil Matter

As if banks didn’t have enough work to do with a record-breaking deluge of foreclosure cases, at least a few are dealing with an extra hurdle that must be cleared before they can gain possession–squatters who move into vacant homes. It happened with a mansion listed for sale for $3.3…

Jun 14, 2010 6:17 PM CDT

Wily Real Estate Agents Found a Way to ‘Flop,’ Scamming Lenders on Short Sales

Banks have made it harder to get a mortgage in recent years, after a national lending spree to buyers with dubious qualifications that contributed to an ongoing foreclosure crisis. But, adjusting their tactics to the new economic reality, two wily Connecticut real estate agents found a way to profit despite…

Jun 10, 2010 6:46 PM CDT

Law Firm Points Trash-Out Crew to Paid-Up ‘Foreclosure,’ Is Sued

Martin Powelson paid off his delinquent Detroit mortgage. But after a law firm that handles a high-volume foreclosure practice mistakenly said told the lender that the redemption period had expired with the loan unpaid, a so-called trash-out crew paid a visit to his house. Contending that crew removed some $60,000…

Jun 7, 2010 6:51 PM CDT

Massachusetts Law Firm Apologizes For Racist Ad

Newton, Mass.-based law firm Harmon Law apologized this week after it placed a foreclosure notice in a local newspaper that contained racist language. The legal notice, which the firm says was scanned directly from the property’s deed, stated that, “The said land shall not be sold, leased or rented to…

Jun 3, 2010 11:33 AM CDT

Hospital Treats Patients By Pointing Them to Legal Help

The rats kept scurrying through Idrissa Munu’s home in Washington, D.C., for several years, even after he killed three with a baseball bat and took them in a plastic bag to the property manager’s office to complain. But after a doctor at the Children’s National Medical Center connected the rodents—and…

May 27, 2010 10:59 AM CDT

Sarah Palin’s New Neighbor, Author Joe McGinniss, Is Writing a Tell-All Biography

Sarah Palin has a well-known new neighbor living some 15 feet away from her Alaska home, and she isn’t pleased. It’s best-selling author Joe McGinniss, known for his true-crime books and other nonfiction writing. And, as the former Alaska governor and onetime Republican candidate for vice president of the United…

May 26, 2010 5:16 PM CDT

Law Firm Warns Super-Yacht Owners: Beware of Ship Seizures in Italian Waters

A London law firm has issued a travel-advisory to super-wealthy clients planning to sail their super-yachts into Italian waters. Due to an apparent crackdown on suspected tax evaders as Italy struggles to deal with a budget deficit, even legitimate vessels under a Cayman Islands flag could be seized there for…

May 25, 2010 9:04 PM CDT

Is Tattoo Artistry Protected by the First Amendment? 9th Circuit to Decide

A tattoo artist who wants to relocate his business to Hermosa Beach, Calif., is asking a federal appeals court to make it possible. Tattooing isn’t allowed under Hermosa Beach’s zoning laws, and tattoo artist Johnny Anderson says the ban is a violation of his First Amendment rights, the Los Angeles…

May 24, 2010 2:06 PM CDT

Lawyer Is Puzzled Why Alleged Scammer Used His Name and Bar Number

California lawyer Mohamed Salem says he doesn’t know why an alleged scammer chose his name and bar number to mislead homeowners trying to avoid foreclosure. “What are there, like a quarter of a million attorneys registered with the state bar?” Salem said in an interview with the Recorder. “I don’t…

May 21, 2010 1:35 PM CDT

Lawyer Says Condo’s Proposed PooPrints DNA Program Is ‘Absolutely Ridiculous’

The board overseeing a ritzy Baltimore condo put off a vote Wednesday evening on a plan to collect “doggie DNA” to identify the dog or dogs that are leaving their droppings in the common areas of the building. Scarlett Place condo board members didn’t vote on the idea, and didn’t…

May 20, 2010 4:10 PM CDT