(WXYZ) — They promise quick cash, if you promise to list your home with them, but several attorneys general across the country say their business practices are deceptive and unfair.
And now the daughters of a Clarkston man who recently passed away have a warning for everyone in our area.
“How do they sleep at night,” said Lisa Imerman. Imerman wants everyone in Michigan to know about a company called MV Realty.
“We're going to fight this because I don't want this to happen to somebody else,” said Imerman.
Imerman’s dad, Michael Sanford, died earlier this year, devastating her family.
“The grief of losing him is one thing to deal with, and to be selling your childhood home, then all this legal stuff,” said Imerman.
Imerman and her sister Rebecca Lund had to move quickly to sell Sanford’s Clarkston house because he had very few assets to cover the cost of maintaining it. They also needed to minimize costs so they could honor his dying wish that his five grandchildren each inherit one thousand dollars.
“We can’t fulfill his last wishes without selling the house because there is no money,” said Imerman.
Lisa says a young couple made an offer on the home, but as they all worked to close the deal, the title company found a problem.
MV Realty had filed a memorandum with the Oakland County Register of Deeds creating something the county clerk says is legally viewed as a lien, because of a contract Sanford signed. His daughters had no idea about the contract until after his death.
Lisa says her attorney sent a letter, letting the Florida-based MV Realty know that Sanford had brain atrophy and dementia. Lisa says that means her dad was not competent when he apparently signed MV Realty’s Homeowner Benefit Program contract that gave him about $820, as long he gave MV Realty the exclusive right to sell her dad’s property. That agreement lasts for 40 years.
Imerman says the contract also created a covenant with the land, binding Sanford’s heirs to the contract. Imerman says the only way they could sell the house was to pay MV Realty more than $8,200.
“I really think he didn't realize what he was signing at all. I think it just sounded like free money, they gave him $820.00,” said Imerman.
MV Realty’s Founder is Amanda Zachman. Zachman was formerly on the TV show “Big Brother” where she used the last name Zuckerman.
After the 7 Investigators contacted MV Realty, they changed course and cancelled the contract so Imerman and her sister could sell the home.
“What kind of a human being would try to bind another human being to a contract like this? This entire agreement is unconscionable,” said attorney Corey Silverstein.
Silverstein says there are several problems with these kinds of contracts.
“You're tying up the next generations of that family, and whoever they potentially left the house to,” said Silverstein. “This is just riddled with legal issues, moral issues.”
“Stop preying on people,” said Oakland County Clerk and Register of Deeds Lisa Brown.
Brown says there are legislators working to outlaw this in Michigan, but right now the filings are allowed. Brown says more than 100 of them have been filed in Oakland County.
“It is viewed legally as a lien,” said Brown. “I think the message is, if someone’s offering you money really for nothing, question it.”
A spokesperson for MV Realty issued this statement to us:
“We extend our deepest sympathies to Mr. Sanford’s family as they navigate this heartbreaking time. As we do with any customer who has dementia, MV has voided Mr. Sanford’s contract and any obligation of his heirs. MV’s team of realtors and support staff across the state stand ready to support Mr. Sanford’s family if needed and we wish them well.”
While Imerman’s family is grateful, the scrutiny on MV Realty is still under way.
“It makes me very angry that they do this to elderly and low-income people. So as an attorney, I looked at it and said we've got to stop them,” said Imerman.
Attorneys General in Florida, North Carolina, Pennsylvania and Massachusetts have all taken legal action against the company. The state of Utah has banned the practices used by MV Realty and other states are trying to stop it as well.
The 7 Investigators reached out to Michigan’s Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs (LARA). They say no enforcement actions have been taken against MV Realty at this time, but there are open complaints that are currently being investigated.
The Michigan Attorney General has received eight complaints against MV Realty.
The Macomb County Clerk’s Deputy Register of Deeds told the 7 Investigators that when MV Realty’s documents started arriving in their office, they eventually refused to accept them. After reviewing it, the Clerk determined it was not a document they have to record.
Both Macomb and Oakland counties have free alert systems that you can sign up for that will let you know if anyone files something against your property.
You can find those links here:
Oakland: https://ocmideeds.com/alerts
Macomb: https://clerk.macombgov.org/Clerk-RegisterOfDeeds-FraudAlert
