McAllen – The money is collected through water bills, but city officials say they are not following their own guidelines for tracking the cash. The city of McAllen collects money from certain homeowners and deposits those funds into the accounts of neighborhood associations. It’s a practice that has been in place for more than 10 years. The money is supposed to be used for improvements, but the city maintains no formal controls into how those associations spend those funds. The city has never done a single audit.

One of the most striking aspects of the issue is the difficulty in getting answers to simple questions. Almost on one wanted to talk about it. The only ones willing to speak about the issue are homeowners who paid into the system and who say they got nothing for their money. “I have no clue as to where the money ends at,” Claudette Guerrero said. “The facade, the landscaping and so on, we just see it as a win-win for the city and that subdivision,” Guerrero said. Guerrero has lived in the same house in the Ponderosa neighborhood of McAllen for 10 years. For almost that entire time $10 a month was added to her water bill.

The city collects the money and then hands it over to that neighborhood’s association. “I would like the city of McAllen to tell me why they’re not checking into this,” Guerrero said. Guerrero has paid $1,200 in 10 years.  Read more:

Last Sept. 28, a group of retired military officers demonstrated at Jantar Mantar, a historic site in New Delhi. “Though we are old veterans, we still have the strength to challenge your atrocity,” read the placard of one protester, who was leaning on a cane.

Their animus was directed at one of the New Delhi area’s biggest residential builders, Kabul Chawla. In 2008, nearly 200 military officers had put down deposits on apartments at Park Serene, a high-rise apartment complex Mr. Chawla was developing. In addition to a swimming pool, a community center and special prices for members of India’s military, a big drawing card was the prospect that the officers could live together in retirement.

More than six years later, the protesters say that Mr. Chawla’s company has collected almost 100 percent of the price of the Park Serene apartments from 400 buyers, payments the protesters estimate at more than $35 million. But the company has not completed the units. “They put their life savings in it,” said Brajesh Kumar, a retired Army major general and spokesman for the protesting officers, who have taken their grievances to a national consumer commission. “They thought that after their retirement they would move in. It’s not a happy situation for a large number of consumers.”  Read more:

Miller says things got out of control when the HOA tacked on interest from the HOA dues and attorney’s fees. “Now attorney fees are $15,000 dollars.” Unable to pay the thousands of dollars in attorney’s fees, Miller said he moved out of his home on January 7th. “The home was built for my family. We’re the only tenants that have ever been in it,” said Miller. Miller said he and his family had been living in the Southeast side home for 14 years. The Monte Viejo Community Association sent a statement to News 4 San Antonio saying in part: “Monte Viejo Community Association takes the rights of our service members very seriously and makes every effort to ensure SCRA compliance before taking any legal action in matters like these. In this case, the Association searched 3 different times in 2011, 2012 and 2014 to ensure Mr. Miller was not active duty.  Read more:

A state law can force some Floridians out of their condo units for only a fraction of what they originally paid

ORLANDO – When Amanda Gonzalez bought her two-bedroom condominium near Orlando in 2006, she thought she was getting a foothold on the America dream.

Gonzalez never missed a payment for her mortgage, condo fees or taxes, even after the real estate crash in 2008 and 2009. When she was laid up after an accident, and money was tight, she still kept her books in order. So it came as a shock when the company that sold her the unit told her the complex was being converted into rental apartments (“terminated”), and that she had to accept what the company offered – far less than what she had paid.

Late last year, the city shot off a letter to the property manager of The Palms that water to the community would be shut off if it did not clear its dues, totaling more than $13,500, by Jan. 15. The deadline wasn’t met, but the city succeeded in getting a written promise from the new homeowners’ association that the money would be paid within a month.

A former Henderson woman pleaded guilty Tuesday in a $1.5 million real estate scheme that involved using $232,000 of the ill-gotten gains to pay restitution in a state criminal theft case.

Mary Musso, 62, who now lives in New York, pleaded guilty to one federal wire fraud count stemming from the scheme, which is alleged to have occurred in August 2010. She also pleaded guilty to one count of making false claims to the Internal Revenue Service on her 2009 tax return.

Musso, who is free on her own recognizance, agreed to pay $1,350,000 in restitution to the chief victim of the scheme, a Las Vegas businesswoman, and other victims. She also agreed to pay the IRS $177,676.

She is to be sentenced June 3 before U.S. District Judge James Mahan.

Her lawyer, Jess Marchese, said later that Musso is looking to “move on with her life.”

The $232,000 was funneled through the client trust account of longtime attorney Mace Yampolsky, who defended Musso in a 2005 criminal case in Clark County District Court, according to her July 2012 indictment.

Yampolsky, who no longer represents Musso, was unaware of the scheme and was not accused of wrongdoing.

In August 2010, Musso fraudulently obtained $1,350,000 in loans using high-end condominiums as collateral without the knowledge of their owner, businesswoman Joan Morris, Musso’s plea agreement states.

Musso fabricated emails and forged deeds of trust and promissory notes in the scam, according to the plea agreement.  Read more:

James Mosbey bought a home in the Northwood Park subdivision in 2003.  For several years, he has been operating a car detail business from his detached garage, as well as a personal training business inside his home.  He has a couple of signs outside the home advertising both businesses.

Mosbey says up until about two years ago, he had never had any issues.   But on Aug. 15, 2003, court documents show the county filed a lawsuit seeking an injunction to prevent Mosbey from operating his businesses and forcing him to remove the signs outside his property.

According to the documents from a lawsuit, on Jan. 25, 2013, Mosbey received a notice from Harris County “indicating for the first time that his use of the property and the signs advertising that use was a violation of the deed restrictions in effect for the property”.  Read more:

The Homeowners Association (“HOA”) and a member of the HOA had brought a lawsuit attempting to ban Congregation Toras Chaim from peacefully meeting for prayer, worship, and study in a private home.  

Because the tenets of the Jewish faith instruct that Orthodox Jews may not drive or ride in a car on the Sabbath or on Jewish holidays, Congregation Toras Chaim members must meet to worship at a place within walking distance of their homes.

Alleged harms offered as evidence by the HOA included one neighbor having to stop a vehicle for a woman pushing a baby carriage to cross the street—and another having to stop a vehicle so that a blind person could cross the street. Read more:

“This is probably one of the most aggravating situations I’ve ever encountered in the 45 years of my life,” homeowner Robert Stubbs said in an interview with 4 Investigates.

His oasis is not a monstrosity — it’s a cabana that sits behind his home and a cinder block wall.

Stubbs brought the cabana with him to the Wildflower subdivision in 2009 — near the corner of Fire Wheel and Primrose.  He customized it to meet the demands of the homeowners association and said no one’s ever raised concerns.  Read more:

Another key defendant pleaded guilty Tuesday in the scheme to take over and defraud Las Vegas-area homeowners associations.

Bail bondsman Charles McChesney, 49, who is not in custody, pleaded guilty to conspiracy and three wire fraud counts, all felonies. Federal prosecutors are recommending dismissing 11 other wire fraud counts against McChesney.

He is to be sentenced on July 20 by U.S. District Judge James Mahan.

Prosecutors have alleged that McChesney was a straw buyer and controlled HOA board members in the massive takeover conspiracy that occurred between 2003 and 2009. He admitted in his plea agreement that he also participated in dirty tricks to help elect board members who could be controlled by the conspirators.

The conspirators, through election rigging and other dirty tricks, packed association boards with members who handed out legal and construction defect contracts worth millions of dollars at the expense of the homeowners.

The plea agreement allows McChesney to cooperate, if needed, against the remaining defendants in the high-profile case. Prosecutors will recommend a lighter sentence in response to his acceptance of responsibility and cooperation.  Read more: