The sudden slamming of brakes on the housing boom seems to be coinciding with a rise in litigation against condominium developers, according to the Wall Street Journal. Most peculiar-sounding lawsuit mentioned: one against a Miami developer that has canceled an unbuilt 49-floor condo tower and, it says, has refunded prospective buyers’ deposits with interest. It’s still being sued by 58 buyers demanding the profits they expected to reap had the condos been built — though the plunging South Florida real estate market makes such profits sound, um, speculative at best. Maybe they should thank the developer for canceling. (Troy McMullen, “Condo buyers take developers to court over promises”, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, Nov. 11).
Condo developers sued
The sudden slamming of brakes on the housing boom seems to be coinciding with a rise in litigation against condominium developers, according to the Wall Street Journal. Most peculiar-sounding lawsuit mentioned: one against a Miami developer that has canceled an unbuilt 49-floor condo tower and, it says, has refunded prospective buyers’ deposits with interest. It’s […]
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I’m not a big country fan, but you know, evry once in a while, it just fits too wll:
“Darned if don’t, danged if do.”
The first thing I wondered was exactly what the contract said about cancellations. Surely, no developer would be so stupid as not to include an escape clause?
Scrolling way, way down through the linked article:
“And, as required in the purchasing agreement in the event that the project was canceled, the company has already returned buyers’ deposits, in most cases 20 percent of the purchase price, with interest,”
My E&O carrier advised against my getting involved in anything larger than 6 units because of the litigation.