Cape Coral Real Estate nowhere near recovery....... (Port Charlotte, Lehigh Acres: real estate market, condos)

[tommy-105]

Originally Posted by old_cold

Foreclosures are generally sold 'as is' and banks are not required to disclose anything.
If a prudent person is buying a foreclosure they will have an inspection done that will (should) uncover any defects, especially one that was apparently this obvious.

Just to clear things up...Here's a working link to the story. It didn't take place in Cape Coral and the guy DID have an inspection done.

Why didn’t somebody say something about the Chinese drywall?
That’s a question that’s really bugging Ken Abel.
Abel hails from Long Island, N.Y. During an Easter vacation here, he and his wife Nataliya decided to buy property on the Treasure Coast. They found what looked like the perfect candidate in Tradition.
The townhomes at the Promenade at Tradition (http://www.traditionfl.com/main.php - broken link)development had everything the Abels wanted. The development is within walking distance of downtown; it’s close to the Palm Pointe school, stores and other amenities.
In May, Realtor Vincent Rossignol helped them find the unit, 5-212 at 10400 Stephanie Way.
Rossignol says he strongly urged Abel to have the unit fully inspected. There were rumors about Chinese drywall in Tradition, he said, although at that time he wasn’t sure exactly where.
Abel decided to select an inspector himself rather than using any of the names the Realtor suggested.
On May 13, A&A Home Inspections, accompanied by Rossignol, checked out the apartment.
The unit came up “clean.” There were none of the telltale signs of Chinese drywall: blackened copper wiring or corroded copper coils in the air conditioning system.
Abel went ahead with the sale. At $67,500, the unit was a bargain, having originally sold for more than $200,000 in 2006. It was a foreclosed property, being sold by a bank.
The sale closed on July 3. The following Monday, Abel says he learned from a neighbor that the place has Chinese drywall.
By now he’d uncovered blackened wiring and corroded evaporator coils on the AC unit.
Abel says he went back to the property management company office and asked why he’d not been informed of problems with the unit. The man there said that he hadn’t been authorized to disclose that. He gave Abel a copy of a letter dated April 30 addressed to the former owner of the unit from the condo association.
That letter clearly states that prior inspections had revealed that Unit 5-212 was “severely tainted.” It went on to outline that the association was negotiating with the builder, Centerline Homes, to work out a solution.
Even though the April disclosure letter was sent to the previous owner, the bank now disposing of the property apparently didn’t get a copy.
There was no evidence, right up until the closing, that anything was amiss.
“I did everything I should have done,” Abel says. “I was relying on these people (the management company and the condo association). I feel like we were scammed.”
Efforts to contact the president of the condo association were unsuccessful Monday.
So, who knew what and when?
Certainly it was no secret that many units at Promenade had drywall problems. What’s not so clear is why a prospective buyer like Ken Abel wasn’t let in on the secret, too, before he signed on the dotted line.

[yoko]

Originally Posted by tommy-105

Just to clear things up...Here's a working link to the story. It didn't take place in Cape Coral and the guy DID have an inspection done.

Good thing that you checked on the link. Originally, I wanted to post something else about Cape Coral but left it out at the end.

Now, that the readers have the right link, I hope they will see "compassion" has no place in real estate dealings!

[Compression]

Originally Posted by twobums

There is plenty of blame to pass around for this real estate implosion ~ many people (bankers, appraisers, RE agents, even politicians) made enormous amounts of $$$$.

Our kid's kids will be discussing this debacle at length, in history class.

And they'll probably be speaking mandarin when they do.............

Yachtcare has spoken.......

[fwi]

Originally Posted by yoko

In the complex world of Cape Coral....


" Abel went ahead with the sale. At $67,500, the unit was a bargain, having originally sold for more than $200,000 in 2006. It was a foreclosed property, being sold by a bank.

The sale closed on July 3. The following Monday, Abel says he learned from a neighbor that the place has Chinese drywall.

By now he’d uncovered blackened wiring and corroded evaporator coils on the AC unit.

Abel says he went back to the property management company office and asked why he’d not been informed of problems with the unit. The man there said that he hadn’t been authorized to disclose that. He gave Abel a copy of a letter dated April 30 addressed to the former owner of the unit from the condo association.

That letter clearly states that prior inspections had revealed that Unit 5-212 was “severely tainted.” It went on to outline that the association was negotiating with the builder, Centerline Homes, to work out a solution.

Even though the April disclosure letter was sent to the previous owner, the bank now disposing of the property apparently didn’t get a copy.

Certainly it was no secret that many units at Promenade had drywall problems. What’s not so clear is why a prospective buyer like Ken Abel wasn’t let in on the secret, too, before he signed on the dotted line." "

http://www.tcpalm.com/news/2009/jul/...when-it-comes- (broken link)

[+] R

Another "Cape Coral real estate" horror B.S. story......... posted without first getting the name of the city right!

[hiknapster]

Originally Posted by fwi

Another "Cape Coral real estate" horror B.S. story......... posted without first getting the name of the city right!

In this case, does it REALLY matter? There is plenty of Chinese drywall in Cape Coral. Some reports say that the majority of it is in swFlorida. A lesson can be learned from the story and could help potential owners. How can it hurt?

[yoko]

" Abel says he went back to the property management company office and asked why he’d not been informed of problems with the unit. The man there said that he hadn’t been authorized to disclose that. He gave Abel a copy of a letter dated April 30 addressed to the former owner of the unit from the condo association.
That letter clearly states that prior inspections had revealed that Unit 5-212 was “severely tainted.” It went on to outline that the association was negotiating with the builder, Centerline Homes, to work out a solution.
Even though the April disclosure letter was sent to the previous owner, the bank now disposing of the property apparently didn’t get a copy.
There was no evidence, right up until the closing, that anything was amiss.
“I did everything I should have done,” Abel says. “I was relying on these people (the management company and the condo association). I feel like we were scammed.”
Efforts to contact the president of the condo association were unsuccessful Monday.
So, who knew what and when?
Certainly it was no secret that many units at Promenade had drywall problems. What’s not so clear is why a prospective buyer like Ken Abel wasn’t let in on the secret, too, before he signed on the dotted line." "


http://www.tcpalm.com/news/2009/jul/...n-it-comes-to/


Why are buyers deceived in such "uncompassionate" manner? Why each individual person involved in this story with no sense for guilt or responsibility lied or kept the truth away from the innocent buyer ?

To sell a house at the cost of human lives and livelihood is just NOT right. That's is the point of story.

[chaotix]

Originally Posted by yoko

" Abel says he went back to the property management company office and asked why he’d not been informed of problems with the unit. The man there said that he hadn’t been authorized to disclose that. He gave Abel a copy of a letter dated April 30 addressed to the former owner of the unit from the condo association.
That letter clearly states that prior inspections had revealed that Unit 5-212 was “severely tainted.” It went on to outline that the association was negotiating with the builder, Centerline Homes, to work out a solution.
Even though the April disclosure letter was sent to the previous owner, the bank now disposing of the property apparently didn’t get a copy.
There was no evidence, right up until the closing, that anything was amiss.
“I did everything I should have done,” Abel says. “I was relying on these people (the management company and the condo association). I feel like we were scammed.”
Efforts to contact the president of the condo association were unsuccessful Monday.
So, who knew what and when?
Certainly it was no secret that many units at Promenade had drywall problems. What’s not so clear is why a prospective buyer like Ken Abel wasn’t let in on the secret, too, before he signed on the dotted line." "


Anthony Westbury: Buyer beware when it comes to Chinese drywall» TCPalm.com


Why are buyers deceived in such "uncompassionate" manner? Why each individual person involved in this story with no sense for guilt or responsibility lied or kept the truth away from the innocent buyer ?

To sell a house at the cost of human lives and livelihood is just NOT right. That's is the point of story.

Prior to purchase, this buyer had knowledge that this development had chinese drywall. If nothing else, his prime target and concern during inspection should have been to verify the presence of chinese drywall.

At the bargain price $67K, when units were selling at$200k-$300k just a few years earlier, should have been a huge red flag. Buyer beware.

[hiknapster]

Originally Posted by chaotix

Prior to purchase, this buyer had knowledge that this development had chinese drywall. If nothing else, his prime target and concern during inspection should have been to verify the presence of chinese drywall.

At the bargain price $67K, when units were selling at$200k-$300k just a few years earlier, should have been a huge red flag. Buyer beware.

I don't agree.

He had the home inspected. The inspector said it was fine.

It is quite common for units that were priced $200,000 to $300,000 a few years earlier to be now be listed for $67,000.

[twobums]

integrity used to mean something

[hiknapster]

Originally Posted by twobums

integrity used to mean something

It still does. There are many places in this world where your word is your bond and the right thing is done when no one is looking.