MV Realty accused of scamming homeowners

A Florida-based real estate company has been sued by the Massachusetts and Pennsylvania attorneys general for allegedly scamming financially struggling homeowners, the Philadelphia Inquirer and CBS Boston reported.

MV Realty is accused in both states of misleading homeowners by obtaining mortgages on their homes without their knowledge, the outlets said.

The company, according to the lawsuits, paid homeowners a few hundred dollars in exchange for the right to be the listing agent in the event a homeowner decided to sell their home.

MV Realty, under the 40-year contracts, would receive money if the company sold the property, the homeowner canceled the agreement or if the property was transferred in some other way, including foreclosure or a transfer when the owner dies, the Inquirer reported.

The contracts also allegedly permitted MV Realty to obtain mortgages on the homes, unbeknownst to the homeowners.

“I was shocked,” Philadelphia homeowner Timothy Calhoun, who entered into a contract with MV Realty, said at a hearing, the Inquirer reported. “They never told me that I was signing a mortgage. If I had known that I was gonna put a mortgage on my house, I would have never had signed the agreement.”

Calhoun, who claimed he was surprised when he received notice that MV Realty had taken out a mortgage on his home, said he was told he could pay more than $6,000 to get out of the agreement.

A Massachusetts homeowner said she had to pay two real estate commissions on a property she sold because she allegedly unknowingly signed a 40-year agreement with MV Realty.

The Pennsylvania attorney general’s office estimates there are about 1,000 mortgages involving MV Realty in the commonwealth, while the company says it has 550 “client relationships” in Massachusetts.

MV Realty, which operates in 33 states nationwide and has also been sued by the Florida attorney general, denied it engaged in any false or deceptive practices.

“We are confident that after a full airing of the facts, the conclusion will be that MV Realty’s business transactions are legal and ethical and that our team has operated in full compliance with [Massachusetts] law,” the firm said in a statement to CBS Boston.

The company issued a similar statement to the Inquirer.

— Ted Glanzer