Indebted Owners Sign Over House Titles to 'Rescue Service'
By Sandra Fleishman
Washington Post Staff Writer
Saturday, December 25, 2004; Page A01
When Idriis Bilaal, 77, got a foreclosure notice about a year ago, all he could think about was how he could save the home where he had been born, a run-down red-brick rowhouse in Northeast Washington.
After a series of sleepless nights and failed attempts to find money, Bilaal accepted an offer from one of a host of "foreclosure rescue specialists" who had called or left fliers and business cards as soon as the notice of foreclosure was published.
He signed some papers provided by an ex-con and retired minister named Calvin N. Baltimore -- without wearing his reading glasses, he says.
Soon after, to his horror, Bilaal says, he realized this wasn't a loan -- he had in fact signed away the title to his 100-year-old house to Washington businessman Vincent L. Abell, who was convicted years ago for his role in a huge real estate fraud in the 1980s.
The house recently was appraised for $255,000, but Bilaal received less than $20,000, according to his lawyers -- the $7,000 that he had fallen behind on his mortgage, plus $10,000 cash. But Abell's company did not agree to pay off or assume Bilaal's mortgage, so Bilaal remains responsible for those $714-a-month payments. On top of that, he began making rent payments of $500 a month to Abell's company.
Read The Rest Here
What a sad story, a man tricked out of his home, such a good guy! Or not!
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Now I'm not saying that the investor did not do wrong, as none of us really know the whole story as this article paints the homeowner as a good guy and the investor as a bad guy it's just totally one sided.
Let's look at what was in the article.
When Idriis Bilaal, 77, got a foreclosure notice about a year ago, all he could think about was how he could save the home where he had been born, a run-down red-brick rowhouse in Northeast Washington.
Now we know that he is not making payments on his home because of foreclosure and not taking care of his home therefore causing his own property value to decline and the rest of the area by not taking care of his property. I know you will say he is 77 years old, poor guy just can't take care of his property do to his age. This is far from the truth as I see most elderly homeowners taking care of their properties and if they are unable to there is help out there. Why did not the community help this man?
He signed some papers provided by an ex-con and retired minister named Calvin N. Baltimore -- without wearing his reading glasses, he says and he thought this was a loan?
Well get out my tissue and wipe my tears, sounds like this homeowner has been coached by his attorney vary well. Playing the sympathy card. And shame on the investor for allowing this if he indeed did! I make sure my customers understand all the details or I just do not do the deal!
The house recently was appraised for $255,000, but Bilaal received less than $20,000, according to his lawyers -- the $7,000 that he had fallen behind on his mortgage, plus $10,000 cash. But Abell's company did not agree to pay off or assume Bilaal's mortgage, so Bilaal remains responsible for those $714-a-month payments. On top of that, he began making rent payments of $500 a month to Abell's company.
So what the house was appraised for 255k, much did he owe on the house?
Let's see he was behind 7k in payments and he got an extra 10k. So the investor was nice enough to bring his loan current, give him 10k and rented the house back to him for $500 therefore lowering his payment $214. What a bad and evil investor? Well would it have been better to let the homeowner loose his home in foreclosure and get nothing?
Bilaal still is not sleeping well, but he remains in the house, despite a recent eviction lawsuit filed by Abell's company
Well now looks like he did not even pay the investor the rent payment - look like yet another flake not paying his mortgage, not paying rent and yet he is the good guy. PLEASE!
"I would never have considered selling my house," Bilaal said recently. The veteran of World War II, Korea and Vietnam, who retired with post-traumatic stress syndrome in 1967, said he has always wanted to leave his house to his children. "I wouldn't want to live anywhere else. . . . I came along during the Depression, and the few of us whose families were able to get property want to keep it," he said.
He would have never considered selling his home, well he never consider making the payments as well.
Now comes yet another sympathy card a veteran of World War II, Korea and Vietnam, who retired with post-traumatic stress syndrome in 1967. Always wanted to leave his house to his children. I came along during the Depression. Well why in the world did he mortgage it in such a way that he could not make the payment did he not learn anything for coming along during the depression? I know the answer it was the post-traumatic stress syndrome that caused him not to make his mortgage payment!
The defendants deny the allegations, saying that they saved the houses from foreclosure and that the homeowners understood the terms of the deals, under which they would be renting back the houses they once owned. The deals give people the chance to repurchase their house after a year. In Bilaal's case, the price would be $110,000, according to the lawsuit
The suit that AARP's lawyers filed on behalf of Bilaal, Meads and Willie King, a third D.C. homeowner, claims that Abell, Baltimore and five others conspired to "deceive" the homeowners, who thought they were getting loans to save their homes, into signing away the titles, and that, in return, the homeowners "got a fraction of the value of their homes."
So they only got a the homeowners "got a fraction of the value of their homes." Look at it this way how much do they get when they loose their home in foreclosure the investor gave them something, an opportunity to avoid foreclosure and an opportunity to get their home back and a year to get on their feet.
The defendants, in interviews or through their lawyers, deny the allegations, contending that they did save the houses because they stopped the foreclosure auctions and the homeowners got to stay as renters.
"I didn't make any false representations to any of these people," Abell said. "These people were in foreclosure and I bought the houses from them, and that's why they're still in their own homes today. Otherwise their houses would have been sold at foreclosure. . . . These people didn't have the money to stop the foreclosure."
Well I say to the AARP, attorneys and all others who have come against this investor what did you do to help them out during the foreclosure. Well I say nothing, just another group of people out on a witch-hunt!
See how they twist this sad story and the story continues:
http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2004/11/19/eveningnews/consumer/main656754.shtml
groups-beta.google.com/group/misc.consumers/browse_thread/thread/2dd8e4c7dc0d069d/6083f2f996dd4592?q=Idriis+Bilaal&_done=%2Fgroups%3Fq%3DIdriis+Bilaal%26hl%3Den%26lr%3D%26safe%3Doff%26sa%3DN%26tab%3Dwg%26&_doneTitle=Back+to+Search&&d#6083f2f996dd4592
Looks like this guy is just playing dumb, but looks pretty smart to me! What do you think?
http://www.nnpa.org/nnpanewsite/newswire/6-25-01/6-25-01.htm
Looks like he should have paid his debt and not donate for politics.
http://www.newsmeat.com/fec/bystate_detail.php?st=&zip=20002&last=Bilaal&first=Idriis
See the receipt at http://herndon1.sdrdc.com/cgi-bin/fecimg/?23992496260
I know you will say the investor has a criminal record
Let's take a look at the details:
Both Abell and Baltimore have criminal records for mortgage fraud. Abell, then a real estate agent in Silver Spring, pleaded guilty in the late 1980s to making a false statement and "causing an act to be done" following a criminal investigation into an operation described in 1990 by The Post as "the largest real estate fraud of its kind in Washington's history." It involved a decade of Federal Housing Administration loan-insurance fraud. Abell was sentenced to two years in prison, with all but six months suspended and two years' probation, was ordered to pay $20,000 in restitution and was fined $5,000. Baltimore pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court in the District in 1990 to one count of conspiracy for serving as a "bird dog," or loan broker, who solicited individuals to borrow money from two lenders at interest rates from 38 percent to 50 percent. Baltimore was sentenced to five years, suspended with five years' probation, and was ordered to make restitution of $8,000. After a subsequent arrest and conviction in 1994 for transporting stolen goods, he was sentenced to 25 months in federal prison and later ordered to serve the earlier sentence of five years for violating probation. He was released in 2001.
I wonder if Idriis Bilaal has a criminal record
The home was sold to EDWARD BERRY JR Sale Price: $91,000 Sale Date: 12/23/2003
The fact is this investor was helping people in foreclosure when no one else would.
Happyhome thanks for the story as this one got me all fired up not at you but the story
John Michael
This is a good story and all investors need to be careful when doing subject to so they are not accused later by the same seller. I think the state attorneys offices are more worried about real estate fraud and we need to make sure everything we do is well documented and lawfu.