Florida Real Estate Attorney specializing in Condo and Preconstruction contracts

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Latest news in condo and pre-construction deposit recovery lawsuits.

Two investors looking to get out of their condominium contract have filed a federal class-action lawsuit against Bonita Springs-based homebuilder WCI Communities Inc.

David Berry and John Schrenkel have sued the company, saying it violated the Federal Interstate Land Sales Act in a contract they signed in 2005 for the purchase of a unit at the 21-story Florencia at The Colony in Fort Myers.

They say WCI failed to include a provision in the contract that gives buyers a 20-day notice of default and an opportunity to “cure” it, or make it right.

The lawsuit also alleges that WCI failed to provide a recordable legal description. Both exclusions would allow the purchasers to get out of the contract, and get their deposits back, their attorney Robert Cooper said.

WCI thinks otherwise. The company has filed a motion to dismiss the lawsuit and its attorney expects the case to be thrown out.

Plaintiffs filed an amended complaint with new claims Monday, which will force the judge to deny WCI’s motion to dismiss, said Cooper, who is based in Aventura on the east coast.

“We don’t know how many people will end up being in the class,” he said.

For now, there are just two. Berry and Schrenkel put down a $115,000 deposit, but never closed on the unit. WCI kept the money.

“They want to try to get their deposit back. That’s what it is all about,” said Thomas Roehn, a Tampa-based attorney representing WCI.

In the contract, Roehn said, WCI did include the 20-day default provision in the contract, but mistakenly said the seller — not the buyer — would get the notice. Before the lawsuit was filed, WCI made it clear that it would honor the 20-day notice requirement for the buyers, he said. At that time the buyers were not in default.

He said they forfeited their deposit by failing to close.

“They didn’t come to the closing. They just didn’t bother showing up,” Roehn said.

He said the case has no merit because the buyers waited too long to file the lawsuit. They have exceeded the two-year statute of limitations, he said.

However, Cooper said that’s not true. He said the buyers asked to cancel the contract before the two years were up, and they have an extra year after that to file a lawsuit.

This type of lawsuit has become more common as buyers look for ways to get out of contracts in a slow market.

Cooper said he’s representing 150 purchasers on properties throughout Florida who have changed their minds for various reasons.

In another lawsuit filed Aug. 29 against WCI in Collier County Circuit Court, Timothy Glock, a Michigan resident, seeks to get out of contract for a different reason.

In the suit, Glock said he agreed to purchase a unit at Lesina at Hammock Bay in Naples on April 30, 2005, for $1.17 million. At the time he signed the contract, he was told his unit would have 3,760 feet. After he signed the contract, he was informed it had 3,498 square feet, the lawsuit says.

WCI made a change to the layout, excluding a window that would have given him a view of north Marco Island, which was an incentive for him to purchase, he said.

Because of the change, Glock notified WCI that he wanted to cancel his contract on March 22. But WCI would not allow him out of the contract, he said. The company has filed a motion to dismiss his complaint.

WCI struggled financially amid sluggish sales. In its most recent quarter, the company reported a $33 million loss.

The company builds traditional homes and condominiums in Florida, New York, New Jersey, Connecticut, Maryland and Virginia, primarily for retirees and second-home buyers.

We look forward to serving your needs and protecting your legal rights.

Law Offices of Eric L. Bronfeld, P.A.
PO Box 22506
Fort Lauderdale, Florida 33335
954-527-1512(South Florida Area)
1-877-527-1512 (Toll Free outside South Florida)
info@depositrecoveryservices.com
http://www.depositrecoveryservices

Miami, Florida condo and preconstruction contract attorney

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Law Offices of Eric L. Bronfeld, P.A.
PO Box 22506
Fort Lauderdale, Florida 33335
954-527-1512(South Florida Area)
1-877-527-1512 (Toll Free outside South Florida)
info@depositrecoveryservices.com
http://www.depositrecoveryservices

Florida Condo contract suits grow in Florida and around the country

Condo and Preconstruction contract law. Florida Real Estate Attorney. A growing number of buyers, who eagerly locked in prices during the Florida condo boom's height only to see the market collapse before their units were built, are suing to recoup their deposits and get out of their purchase contracts.

While no one knows exactly how many such "buyer's remorse" suits have been filed, they are widespread and on the rise statewide.

"It's all over the place," said William P. Sklar, a West Palm Beach real estate attorney who has been following the trend. "I would say there are probably dozens, maybe hundreds, of these suits pending in Florida. The market has changed and more buyers have remorse and they want out."

Sklar said he's aware of numerous cases in Palm Beach, Broward and Miami-Dade counties but the trend extends far beyond the glutted South Florida condo market:

• In Manatee, buyers have filed more than two dozen suits against three separate developers, court records show.

• Buyers at two condo projects, one in Charlotte County and the other in Sarasota County, have filed at least five suits, said an attorney involved in those cases.

• Almost three dozen buyers in one condo in Tampa's Channelside district are suing the developer, the St. Petersburg Times recently reported.

Buyers also are increasingly complaining to state regulators. The Florida Department of Business and Professional Regulation said it opened investigations on 2,682 condominium complaints between July 1, 2006 and June 30, 2007 - a 44 percent jump from two years earlier.

Not just in Florida

The growing number of suits isn't limited to Florida, either. Buyers in Las Vegas, San Diego and other former condo hot spots also are increasingly accusing developers in court of everything from breach of contract to fraud, according to news reports.

"It has really spiked nationally," said Robert Chasnow, a partner with the law firm Holland & Knight in Washington D.C., who frequently lectures and writes about a federal law governing land sales. "I would say the number of buyers seeking to get out of contracts is concentrated in just a few states, Florida being one of them."

The unique nature of Florida's condo boom and bust are behind the rise in legal actions, observers said.

At the boom's 2004-05 height, investors eagerly snapped up condos at pre-construction prices with visions of quickly flipping the units for fat profits. Developers fed the buying frenzy with plans to build a glut of new condos, including as many as 3,000 in Manatee.

But hurricane-related material and labor shortages delayed construction or canceled projects outright. By early 2006, as the first condos neared completion, the once-sizzling market was fizzling. Prices dropped as more units came online in an overbuilt market. The resale market evaporated.

Getting out of contracts

Many investors, on the hook for units they couldn't afford or sell, began seeking ways to get out of their contracts.

"I've had people ask me if chipped paint is enough," said Ryan Snyder, a Bradenton real estate attorney who's not involved in any of the Manatee lawsuits. "They're looking at anything."

Some buyers opted to sue, generally alleging the developer broke the terms of the purchase contract - usually by failing to complete the unit on time, failing to build promised amenities, canceling projects or making other changes the lawsuits claim are "material and adverse" to buyers.

Developers generally argue the contracts remain valid, the delays were legally excusable and any changes were not detrimental to buyers.

Attorneys involved in the cases and other legal observers said buyers appear more willing to risk the uncertainties of court than walking away because they had to put up larger deposits - many in the mid- to high six figures - and prices are falling.

"The reason it was not litigated much previously was because no one wanted out of their contract," said Sheryl Edwards, a Sarasota land-use attorney who is representing several discontented condo buyers in Manatee, Sarasota and Charlotte counties. "They still wanted to buy. Now, it's different."

Law Offices of Eric L. Bronfeld, P.A.
PO Box 22506
Fort Lauderdale, Florida 33335
954-527-1512(South Florida Area)
1-877-527-1512 (Toll Free outside South Florida)
info@depositrecoveryservices.com
http://www.depositrecoveryservices