CCFJ.NET: Riverview family’s loss in court shows how HOA lawyers pile on fees
Article Courtesy of The Tampa Bay Times
By D’Ann Lawrence White
Published March 7, 2017
Hillsborough Circuit Judge Joelle Ann Ober has upheld the sale of the Riverview home where Tina and Luis Lopez have lived 12 years and raised their two children. The home was sold to an investor at a public auction for $19,000 and a new certificate of title has been issued.
Tina Lopez shared the bad news with her 16-year-old son, Anthony, but hesitated to tell 8-year-old daughter, Jessica.
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“This is the only home Jessica’s ever known,” Tina Lopez said. “I don’t know how I’m going to tell her. We’re just devastated.”
The Lopez family isn’t packing their bags just yet, though. They’ve hired Tampa attorney Ryan Torrens, whose practice specializes in homeowner association foreclosures, for a last ditch attempt. Torrens filed an emergency request Monday to vacate the judge’s decision.
The Lopez family’s story, published last month in the Tampa Bay Times, drew widespread reaction from others in the same boat and from critics of those homeowners associations who use aggressive means, including foreclosure, to collect dues and fees.
In Lopez family’s case, the Rivercrest Community Association failed to record a $150 annual payment they made in 2009. They even have a canceled check showing they made the payment. Read more:
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