HOME HORROR
‘Apparently I no longer have a home,’ man says as property of 17 years is ‘sold’ despite not missing a mortgage payment
Another resident in the same HOA faced a similar situation
A HOMEOWNER said he feared that he could lose his family home of 17 years despite not missing any mortgage payments.
Gil Gonzalez Ramos, who lived in the Green Valley Ranch area of Denver, Colorado said his HOA had filed a judicial foreclosure against his property.
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Ramos said his home was sold to an investor and manager in 2022 following unpaid HOA fines, according to CBS affiliate KCNC.
The homeowner said that his HOA, Master Homeowners Association for Green Valley Ranch, had fined him nearly $5,000 for small infractions of the rules.
"From $50 for grass. From $50 for siding. From the trash can being out. Stuff like that. I failed to pay these fines. I hold myself accountable for that," he said.
Ramos noted that he had only expected a lien on his home for the unpaid fines.
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He said that he did not know the HOA had the legal power, under Colorado state law, to go to the courts for foreclosure.
Ramos added that he had not missed his mortgage payments to Wells Fargo and that the news had taken him by surprise.
"Apparently I no longer have a home. They sold it,” he said.
“I didn't know I was going to get stuck with a judicial foreclosure through the HOA,” he added.
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Ramos explained that he had purchased the home 17 years ago as affordable housing but explained what the impact of possibly losing his home had been.
“It is frustrating to deal with this, especially when I have to explain to my children what is going on," he said.
My $500,000 home was sold from under me for $30,000 - I even had a seller lined up but there was nothing I could do
"I am a father of four,” he added.
“When they decided to tell me I lost my home, that is when it hit.”
Ramos said that the investor and manager had proposed renting the home back to his family.
The father said he would attempt to find a way to keep ownership of his home but it is unclear if he has been successful.
How can your home be sold without your consent?
Your home can be sold from under you for various reasons - here are three key things to look out for:
Tax Sale
- A Tax sale is the sale of property by a governmental entity to recover unpaid taxes by the owner who has reached a certain point of delinquency in their owed payments.
- Before a tax sale takes place, there is a right-of-redemption period where the owner can pay off their debt and reclaim their home.
- Each state has different laws surrounding tax sales but in most areas, the basic requirement is that adequate notice is given to the owner to pay the outstanding money, and any sale must be open to the public.
Foreclosure
- Foreclosures can take place when lenders take control of a property after borrowers have failed to make their repayments.
- Borrowers will receive a Notice of Default, triggering the foreclosure process.
- Homeowners in HOA communities can also see their homes foreclosed by their HOA for falling behind on fees.
- This means that even if you keep up with mortgage repayments, you could still lose your home if your HOA has a lien on your property.
- When such a foreclosure takes place, the sale price only needs to be enough to cover the HOA debt meaning that properties can be sold for much less than they are worth.
Property Fraud
- Criminals can sell or mortgage homes by pretending to be the owner by using a fake or stolen ID.
- Typical targets for property fraud include absent owners like landlords, owners who live abroad, and sole owners of unmortgaged homes.
- The U.S. Sun previously reported on a man whose vacation home worth $300,000 was sold by criminals for just $9,000 - they even had the deed to the property.
“I've been in this home for 16 or 17 years,” he said.
“To think I lost all of that equity, it would be financially devastating.”
The U.S. Sun has previously reported on another family who risked losing their home in the same HOA.
The Mendozas similarly had not missed their mortgage payments but they had racked up over $6,000 in HOA fee debts.
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According to the family, it started when HOA management complained that his garage doors were two different colors just days after the family first moved in.
The U.S. Sun has reached out to the Master Homeowners Association for Green Valley Ranch for comment.
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