TBO.com - TBO is Tampa Bay Online

Homeowners Face Fines

ADVERTISEMENT

By LAURA KINSLER, The Tampa Tribune

Published: December 12, 2007

TAMPA PALMS - The Tampa Code Enforcement Division likely will start fining owners of two New Tampa houses that are in foreclosure and the subject of a lawsuit by a group of South Florida investors who say they were defrauded into overpaying for the houses.

Code enforcement hearing master Joseph Citro issued an order last week to begin fining Gordon Cone $250 a day if he doesn't bring his house into compliance by Dec. 26.

Cone, who owns an abandoned house at 5311 Burchette Drive in Tampa Palms, was cited in the summer for public nuisance for the swimming pool. Inspector Mike Peterson said the algae-filled pool is a health hazard. "It's green, and it's breeding mosquitoes," he said. "If someone fell in it, we wouldn't see them on the bottom."

The house is one of five in Hillsborough County bought and sold last year by Atlantic Coast Investments. All were abandoned and are in foreclosure proceedings.

The investment group bought the house on Burchette Drive on Feb. 27, 2006, for $460,000 and resold it the same day to Cone for $635,000. Cone has said he didn't sign the mortgage notes.
American Home Mortgage filed a foreclosure lawsuit against him Sept. 14. Cone countersued, saying the lender "had to have seen that documents for the closing were forged, altered and not complete" and that the amount of the loans "far exceeded the value of the property."

Hillsborough Circuit Judge Charlene Honeywell is scheduled to hear the mortgage company's motions to dismiss Cone's defense and counterclaims on Jan. 7.

Code Enforcement has set a Dec. 17 deadline for the owner of a Hunter's Green house purchased under similar circumstances to bring the property into compliance or the case will go to a hearing master in January.

The house in the Lockwood Links subdivision of Hunter's Green also was cited for the swimming pool, overgrowth and a broken garage door.

Reporter Laura Kinsler can be reached at (813) 865-4844 or lkinsler@tampatrib.com.

Share this:

Loading Comments...

Email Print

ADVERTISEMENT