Posted on 10/15/2008 6:25:28 AM PDT by Colonel Kangaroo
GAINESVILLE | It was supposed to be their retirement nest egg, an opportunity to come in off the road as long-haul truckers and finally spend time with their 11 grandchildren.
Instead, Donald and Kim MacLeod were to lose their 70-acre Old Town farm at auction today through no fault of their own because a lien against the debt of a prior owner was not indexed in Dixie County records.
On Friday, Dixie County Judge Frederick Koberlein turned down the MacLeod's motion that Orix Financial Services should first exhaust other opportunities to collect its debt, paving the way for the farm to go up for auction at the Dixie County Courthouse in Cross City.
He also ruled that the MacLeods pay about $5,000 of Orix's legal expenses.
"They didn't just take our farm. Now they want cash out of our pocket," said Donald MacLeod after the ruling.
"That is so much injustice," Kim MacLeod said through sobs. "This is the system we have now."
Their only recourse now is to sue the county and the prior owner, according to their lawyer, Rob Clarke.
The MacLeods cashed in their retirement savings and bought the 70-acre farm from Joyce Henson for $110,000 in 2001 to go with their 70-acre homestead. The original plan was to raise cattle on one farm and feed on the other, but after Donald suffered an injury on the job, they rezoned the property and subdivided it to build 15 homes. In 2005, they had a $700,000 offer for the property, but financing fell through.
Unbeknownst to them, Orix had placed a judgment lien on the property in 1996 for a debt against Richard and Joyce Henson originating in New York in 1992. The lien was recorded at the Dixie County Courthouse. However, a title search did not turn up the lien at purchase because it was never indexed or alphabetized.
Dana Johnson, Dixie Clerk of Court since 2006, said it was not indexed because the New York authority sent payment for one document instead of two, so the lien was recorded but not indexed.
Orix began pursuing the lien in 2006. The debt, originally $230,000, was up to nearly $600,000 with interest and accruing $75 a day. After collecting a portion of the debt, the judgment amount is now $474,000.
Sounds like the title company may be in for a lawsuit.
I guess they didn’t buy title insurance?
Anyways, this is a terrible thing to have happen.
This is why you buy title insurance.
Remember the days when a Judge was allowed to use common sense?
Just wow. This is wrong on so many levels. A title search comes back clean and you expect that “clean” really means “clean.” Shouldn’t the title company be liable for their own work? Are title firms indemnified against mistakes like this in their agreements? What about the government which failed to properly record the lien? It sounds like the last person who should get shafted is the innocent new property owner.
On the other hand, this sounds just like what an O administration will have in store for all evil capitalist property owners. Just turn all your property over to the State NOW!
ML/NJ
Title insurance?
"Title insurance" is worthless. Go actually read what it is you bought and see for yourself.
L
The MacLeods' legal advice seems to be very, very poor.
Orix is not the bad guy. The bad guys are the Hensons, who lied to the MacLeods and cheated them. As well as the negligent county clerk.
And the question also arises: did the MacLeods have title insurance?
This is EXACTLY why you buy title insurance!
Indeed. If the MacLeods didn’t get title insurance, well, it was a very stupid move on their part.
On an aside note - what a crazy housing bubble we were in - even in rural Florida...
This is what title insurance is for; just like the flood insurance you need to buy if you live in, oh, Galveston for instance.
Amen to that. My "Title Insurance" did squat for my home.
It's in their E&O clause.
L
As I read this, it says they cashed in their retirement.
So I assume they paid cash for the property.
Meaning no mortgage. And with no mortgage lender requiring title insurance, perhaps these poor slobs didn’t BUY title insurance.
Sucks for them.
Then what in heck do we pay them for????
Yes. Feel-good judges legislating from the bench make one's heart throb.
Hey, they weren’t always liberal feel-good judges. There were those who knew right from wrong, who would cast aside plea deals and send a pedophile behind bars for the maximum, or gave some kid the choice between a cell and a 4 year stint in the services (which usually straightened the out).
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