Florida woman, 91, fights for her home after signing a real estate contract she claims she didn’t understand
Florida woman, 91, fights for her home after signing a real estate contract she claims she didn’t understand
Fidela Rodriguez, a 91-year-old woman in Lakeland, Florida, worries she’s about to lose her home.
The Puerto Rican native heard a commercial on the radio about a company that buys houses and helps residents relocate. Rodriguez wants to move to Buffalo, New York, where she lived 18 years ago before her husband died and she still has friends who can help her.
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“I don’t have nobody here to help me,” Rodriguez told ABC Action News.
She called the number from the ad and reached Problem Property Pals, which is called “PPP” in court documents obtained by Action News. Rodriguez says a salesman showed up at her door, and she signed a contract Sept. 2, 2022, to sell her property for $100,000, with a closing date two months later.
“They came to her house [and said] ‘just sign here, sign here, sign here.’” Poly Agbara, Rodriguez’s pharmacist and friend, told Action News. “She didn’t know what she was getting into. She didn’t know she’s signing away her property.”
Rodriguez says she struggles with reading and understanding English, which was the language the contract was written in.
Lawsuit filed
Rodriguez says she believed the company would arrange to move her belongings and get her to Buffalo. Court documents show PPP scheduled movers to come to the house Oct. 28, days before the closing date, according to Action News, and Rodriguez says she was told she needed to be out of her home that day.
“I said, ‘No, that’s not the agreement. You told me that you were going to take me to Buffalo,’” she recounted. “‘One thing before that, you [didn’t] pay me for the house.’”
Court documents show an agent from PPP purchased a one-way ticket to Buffalo for Oct. 31, but Rodriguez said, “he didn’t tell me nothing about flying,” and that nobody offered to take her to the airport, which is about a one hour drive from her home. She also hadn’t arranged for a new place to live.
But Rodriguez was never able to make it to Buffalo. She was hospitalized the week of the closing with chest pain and high blood pressure, according to Action News. The following month, she was sued for breach of contract in an apparent attempt to force the sale of her home.
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The local broadcaster says it tried to visit addresses listed for PPP, but was either told the company had moved out of the space, or journalists were met with a locked door and no sign. Contact was made with Joseph Peck, described by Action News as PPP’s registered agent, who stated he no longer works for the company. Attempts were also made to contact George Beatty, whose photo was featured on documents held by Rodriguez, but he did not immediately respond.
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Rodriguez hired an attorney who filed a countersuit alleging she was exploited because she “does not understand or read English very well” and “lacks the capacity to understand the transaction nature,” Action News reports. Another lawyer filed a complaint on her behalf with the Florida Attorney General’s Office, claiming a realtor valued her home at $220,000 when she signed the contract. That complaint had yet to be resolved.
A trial is set for Oct. 17, however, Rodriguez does not feel optimistic about her chances, and said her lawyer informed her, “if you go to court, probably you lose the house.”
How to protect yourself
The situation appears dire for Rodriguez, but her friends at the pharmacy vowed to stand by her.
“If she loses the house by any chance, she’s not going to end up on the street. I’m going to be with her. She can stay at my house until we find a place for her,” pharmacy technician Waleska George told Action News.
There are steps you can take to protect yourself or loved ones from predatory real estate companies. Never sign a document you don’t fully understand. If you can’t read the language of a document, consult with an attorney before you sign.
If you want to sell your home, consider hiring an appraiser or talk to a real estate agent to determine its value. Online listing sites such Zillow or Redfin can also give you a ballpark estimate of what homes in your neighborhood are worth.
If you have an elderly friend or family member, talk to them about predatory business practices and scams so they know to be cautious when approached by salespeople. If you’re worried about cognitive decline, consider establishing a power of attorney so you or another trusted person can oversee contracts and transactions.
Several government agencies, such as state fraud hotlines, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau and the Department of Housing and Urban Development, may also be able to offer assistance regarding cases of predatory business practices.
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This article provides information only and should not be construed as advice. It is provided without warranty of any kind.
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