Elected officials in The Villages are hailing steps being taken to end fine forgiveness in deed compliance cases in Florida’s Friendliest Hometown.
Officials in community development districts have been feeling the heat from residents unhappy with the forgiveness of thousands of dollars in fines at homes tied up in protracted deed compliance cases. Records show that in many cases the homes are sold at a substantial profit and the fines are simply forgiven.
Last week, the Community Development District 3 Board of Supervisors refused to forgive a $5,200 fine at a home in the Village of Belle Aire. Supervisors complained the home had been “flipped” for a huge profit while the fines were ignored. CDD 3 Supervisor Gail Lazenby said that residents had complained that they might as well ignore the deed compliance rules if fines are levied and ultimately forgiven.
District Attorney Mark Brionez has been researching a method to legally record the deed compliance fines. Right now, if a title search is performed on a home with deed compliance violations, the lingering fines are not revealed by the title search.
“You will actually have a way of recovering the fines,” Brionez told supervisors.
The CDDs could put a lien on the property before it can be sold at a profit. The outstanding fines would be paid at closing during transfer of ownership.
Supervisors were thrilled with the news of the potential solution to this nagging problem.
“This is a huge leap forward. I commend counsel for coming to his conclusion,” said CDD 5 Supervisor Reed Panos.
Supervisors acknowledged they have been feeling pressure from residents when it comes to fine forgiveness.
The CDD 6 Board of Supervisors had a recommendation on Friday’s agenda to forgive $8,600 in deed compliance fines at the home of a deceased Villager. Thanks to the report from Brionez, the decision to forgive the $8,600 in fines has been delayed. In that case, the man bought the villa for $170,800 in 2014 and his estate sold the villa this past January for $206,100. The villa was purchased by Southern Properties Florida LLC.
“Ultimately, the message has to get out there that there are consequences with regard to deed compliance,” said CDD 6 Supervisor Peter Moeller.