All Forum Posts by: Nat C.

Originally posted by @Clint Shelley:

If the county allowed it to be severed, what is the city's hangup. New regs or just one of those municipalities that are hard to deal with? I would definitely get new outside counsel. I think you're best chance is to try to squeeze the city into a variance or subdivision, etc. Although it'll be a pain it will likely be the cheapest route to go. See if you can get a joint meeting with the city and county representative. Have your new attorney meet with their attorneys to figure out why one would allow and the other not. Try to get this done in lieu of a lawsuit that will bring everyone in. The threat of a big suit will hopefully help you get to where you want to be. Play the victim, and see if they will be favorable toward you. If that doesn't work your best shot at relief would be against the seller, as they would have sold you an illegal lot, though they could argue the contrary since the county approved. This is messy and who knows what will happen. Keep is posted and good luck.

Clint

I am loving your advice, Clint. It’s definitely a conundrum that the county allowed the separation but the city will not.
You are most correct that they have a reputation for being difficult and I am also told there is a high level of corruption within their organization.

I am outside of the country for at least another six months which makes it impossible to go in there in person and play the victim card. The seller and his attorney recently paid for a survey to be done and also paid someone to spend a lot of time at the city to persuade them. Unfortunately the city wouldn’t budge.

And yes, the seller's attorney has already argued with me that the contract terms were met because he executed the separation with the county.  

An ex-colleague (a broker) suggested to self-expel and relegate my property from the city jurisdiction and join Unincorporated Dade County. I always thought Unincorporated Dade County was strictly a geographical area outside of the city limits but he said there are unincorporated parcels dotted throughout the city area. I don't know what process to undertake to such an endeavor would be. This plan sounds a little far-fetched to me. Does anyone know anything about this?

Originally posted by @Peter Walther:

Nat, this is a very complex issue.  First, I would hesitate to rely on a complaint drafted by a UK attorney for you to file yourself (pro se).  I believe if he's recommending a quiet title suit he doesn't understand the problem.

Second, I'm unclear what you purchased.  Generally condo real property is in one of three categories, units, common elements and limited common elements.  Generally only units are sold to purchasers with a pro rata interest in the common elements and a exclusive right to use the limited common elements servicing that unit coming with it.  To sever any of those three from the condominium requires the agreement of anyone have an interest in the condo including the developer if (s)he continues to own units, the condo association, anyone owning a unit in the condo and any lender having a mortgage on any of the three including units because the lender also has a lien on the unit owners undivided interest in the common elements.  What did you buy?

Third, to remove real property from a condo requires strict compliance with Florida laws governing condominiums.  You need an attorney with condominium experience if you want to fix this problem.  If everyone with an interest is in agreement with severing the property, perhaps they would also agree to allow you to purchase some additional land adjacent to what you bought sufficient to meet the city's requirement.

Fourth, is your former attorney correct when she writes the initial contract did not have any contingencies?  If so had did the contingency get added?

Last, I believe this matter is way to complicated for you to rely on any advice you receive on this board.  If you want to salvage anything other than a lesson well learned you need to sit down with a good attorney and figure out what your options are.

Peter thanks again for your continued excellent advice. I am now confused about what the building is, based on your comments too.

When I purchased the building I was told it belonged to the condominium developers. The seller's name on the documents is of an individual. I am told he was and still is on the condo board. I don’t know what percentage he owns.

The condition of the seller severing the property was on the original purchase agreement. It wasn’t added at a later stage. When my attorney, Miss C, said there were no contingencies, I believe she means the due diligence period was already over when she started handling the closing.

You are correct that the situation is messy. I disagree that I can't rely on feedback from you all here, to help me navigate the situation. On the contrary, it helps me immensely to understand the situation before I contact a zoning attorney.




I apologize if I have failed to address any of the items you mentioned correctly

Originally posted by @John Teachout:

Originally posted by @Nat C.:

@John Teachout

I was out of the country for 80% of the time I owned the building. The issue only came to light when I recently went to sell the building.

So it was vacant when you purchased it and was empty the entire time you owned it? I assume you had a plan for it when you bought it but then went in a different direction?

Well there are a lot of additional personal issues to address this question. I was in my early 20s when I purchased it and prior to that I had only dealt with SFR remodels. I should have looked for a partner with more experience. I paid a contractor 20k upfront and he did work without obtaining permits and then did a runner. I then paid for architectural plans to submit to the city for permits and found another licenced contractor. Unfortunately I then had to leave the US and I have been out of the country for the past 4 years and the building had just been sitting there.

@Brian Van Pelt

The course of action you have outlined is exactly what I am going to undertake.

I appreciate everyone here helping me flesh out the situation and figure out the way forward.

@John Teachout

I was out of the country for 80% of the time I owned the building. The issue only came to light when I recently went to sell the building.

@Michael P.

No, Michael.

Originally posted by @Jay Hinrichs:

That is amazing the tax foreclosure doesn't affect anything.

Forgive me, I don't understand your statement about selling it to someone on sweat equity. The major problem is that the city won't give any permits on it and don't recognize it as its own parcel. 

I did just discover the chunk of land behind the property is owned by a lady who nearly lost it in foreclosure in recent years. I am going to reach out to her to ask if she will sell off some of the land to me. If she did, that would increase the lot size and solve the problem.

You are smart Jay. @Wayne Brooks offered me the same idea, which I thought was highly creative. There's also some liens on the property now, so Wayne suggested letting it go for unpaid taxes to wipe out the liens. The only risk is if it sells for 10k or something. I also don't want to have a foreclosure on my record. 

I emailed a gentleman who did some legal work for me in the past. He did a law degree in the UK and he has a 'legal services' company in Florida. He is not a licensed attorney. He offered to take on the lawsuit for a small fee plus 25% of any monies awarded. Using him would certainly mitigate the financial risk factor.

I have only briefly explained the issue to him but I am unsure about his response. I don't know much about Quiet Title but I didn't think it could be used in this situation. Can anyone shed further light?

"I think a lawsuit arguing breach of contract, and negligence on the part of the 1st attorney, Ms. ****, would be the best course of action. In the complaint a request to the Court could also be made to quiet title to the property in your favor. I would be more than willing to draft the lawsuit for you and file it in the Dade County Courts".

Originally posted by @Peter Walther:

You can also consider filing a grievance against your attorney with the Florida Bar Association.

https://www.floridabar.org/pub...

Thanks a lot for the link, Peter. I will absolutely follow through with this