Legal Question in Real Estate Law in Florida

I am not sure exactly where my question falls in terms of the area of law, but here is my question/situation...

I am a 100% Disabled Quadriplegic (54 years old) living in Sebastian, Florida, and last March [2010] I was forced to sell a commercial property my sister and I were partners on in Anaheim, California, because SHE could no longer make her share of the mortgage payment.

This is bad enough, but the real issue is that our total mortgage was $825K and though I realize that I/we BOTH legally owed the entire amount, I only received/owed 20% of the proceeds of the loan (several years ago), One Hundred Sixty Five Thousand ($165,000.00) Dollars, and she [Virginia] received the remaining 80% of the loan, Six Hundred Sixty Thousand ($660,000.00) Dollars.

We had agreed to pay the portion of the monthly payment equal to the amount/percentage of the proceeds we received, I [Keith] paid Thirteen Hundred Twenty ($1320.00) Dollars and Virginia paid Five Thousand Two Hundred Eighty ($5280.00) Dollars.

When she notified me that she could no longer make her share of the payments in the fall of 2009 we were forced to place the property up for sale. I did not want to do this as this was a good asset and provided us each with $3333/mo NNN (Net $2K/mo to me), so it cash flowed nicely for me. She on the other hand was almost $2K/mo negative, and she had been taking larger and larger loan amounts against it for years and living on the borrowed money, all the while assuring me she had no problem making the payments with the income from her other commercial property.

Long story short, On March 4, 2010 the Real Property located at 1898 W. Lincoln Avenue, Anaheim, California was sold for One Million ($1,000,000.00) Dollars, and all costs of the sale were to be shared equally, and proportionate amounts owed by me and Virginia were to paid from the proceeds to satisfy the outstanding loan.

At the time of Final Settlement, March 4, 2010, Eight Hundred Thirty Nine Thousand Four Hundred Thirty Seven ($839,437.50) and 50/100 Dollars was owed to the lender, and my sister and I were to pay our respective percentages (Keith 20% - $167,887.50, and Virginia 80% - $671,550.00), and share equally all other costs of selling the property, Seventy Four Thousand Five Hundred Ninety Two ($74,942.51) Dollars, or Thirty Seven Thousand Two Hundred Ninety Six ($37,296.00) Dollars each.

Additionally, Six Thousand Twenty One 51/100 ($6021.51) Dollars was owed to the new Buyers in Prorated Rent that had been collected by us, all of which was returned out of the proceeds of the sale of the property, but was never returned by Virginia.

Nine Hundred Twenty Thousand Fifty One ($920,051.01) and 01/100 Dollars in total was owed in order to pay off all debts and costs involved to satisfy all costs associated with the sale of the property, leaving only $80K to be paid out to Keith. Virginia continues to owe Keith $211,839.26 (plus interest, fees, opportunity costs, etc).

Virginia has since sold another commercial property in California and never notified me or even attempted to pay anything towards what she owes me.

She continues to live in a $1M+ house, while I have a $250K house that I am now 4 months delinquent in the mortgage on, as she forced the property we owned jointly to be sold or be foreclosed on, and therefore stopping my net monthly income of $2K (I still receive $1K/mo Disability).

I have contacted Virginia numerous times since March 4, 2010 via telephone (Voicemail) and eight E-mails between April 26, 2010 to October 19, 2010, and received electronic confirmation that the E-mails have been received and read, and yet Virginia has refused to reply to any message. She did have an attorney send me a letter telling me that although she agrees that she had taken the loans out against the property she did not want to sell it, and only did so to help me out financially. First of all it in no-way helped me out financially, and secondly I never wanted to sell it (and I have numerous emails supporting this as well as her stating that SHE can�t make the payments, can't get it refinanced, and must sell it.

So there you have the ugly truth. I have several emails to support my claims and to disprove hers. She should have significant funds from the sale of her commercial property in Seal Beach California earlier this year, her $1M+ home, Antique Cut Glass collection and furnishings, and attach her wages as a real estate agent.

Though I am not an attorney I have drafted a seven page complaint covering Breach of Oral Contract, Fraud and Deceit, Negligent Misrepresentation, Intentional Misrepresentation, Conversion, Unjust Enrichment and Money Had and Received. I am open to any option.

My bottom line is I am an active 54 year old guy in a wheelchair who simply wants to stay in his home. I have lived a rather conservative lifestyle and I have always lived well within my means. Now I find myself basically broke, behind in my mortgage for the first time ever, my credit ruined, all because my sister has used me financially and now thrown me under the bus while she continues to live her "Rock Star Southern California Lifestyle" (her words)

Can you help me? Please?


Asked on 12/14/10, 11:56 am

1 Answer from Attorneys

Shelly Schellenberg MI & FL private practice

You need a California Attorney if you want to sue for a dispute over property located in California.

Read more
Answered on 12/20/10, 5:12 am


Related Questions & Answers

More Real Estate and Real Property questions and answers in Florida