Thousands of Florida homeowners scammed by MV Realty could soon get justice
A South Florida real estate brokerage accused of trapping thousands of Florida homeowners into fraudulent contracts is now cancelling those agreements in accordance with a February ruling from a Hillsborough County judge.
More than 9,000 Floridians signed 'homeowner benefit agreements' with MV Realty, giving the company the exclusive rights to list their homes.
Many did not realize that those contracts lasted 40 years and allowed MV Realty to place a lien on their homes if they listed with another brokerage. The only way to get out of it was to pay a fee equivalent to 3% of the property's value.
After the Tampa Bay Times reported on the scheme in 2022, the Florida Attorney General sued MV Realty over its deceptive business practices.
In February, Circuit Court Judge Darren D. Farfante ordered the company to terminate any existing homeowner benefit agreements within 14 days.
That didn't happen.
In court filings, the Attorney General said the company violated the judge's injunction by changing the language in some of its contracts instead of terminating them fully.
But now, MV Realty is starting to cancel the agreements.
Since March, it has filed paperwork to terminate more than 1,000 contracts in Hillsborough, Pinellas and Pasco counties.
Charles Gallagher, a St. Petersburg attorney who has represented several clients in cases against MV Realty, said this is helping to correct a 'stain on the public record,' that's prevented homeowners from selling their properties and taking out loans.
'You're kind of kidnapped in a way until those documents of record are terminated,' he said. 'So this is a super positive outcome for homeowners.'
Some homeowners have already paid a fee to MV Realty to get out of their contracts. Gallagher said the judge's ruling does not entitle them to a refund, but it does give them a strong legal argument if they wanted to sue MV Realty to get their money back.
The Florida Department of Business and Professional Regulation has suspended MV Realty's license, so it can no longer do business in the state.
The Attorney General's lawsuit is still ongoing as MV Realty tries to convince the judge to dismiss two of the claims over deceptive advertising.
Neither MV Realty nor the Attorney General's Office responded to requests for comment from the Times.
Though the company is still continuing to operate unfettered in several other states, in Florida, 'I think this is the end of the line for them.' Gallagher said. 'I don't think they're going to be able to hurt homeowners again.'
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