Opera Tower, LLC & Tibor Hollo Sues Me for $25M
January 29, 2008 by Lucas Lechuga
The interesting thing about this case is that I did not have my license hung with EWM when I wrote that post. In my opinion, Tibor Hollo and Opera Tower, LLC are coming after EWM because their parent company is owned by Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway. I have no ill feelings against EWM. I fully understand their position on the situation, given that they are owned by a much larger entity.
The reason why I wrote the post is because I was receiving a lot of phone calls from contract holders at Opera Tower telling me that they had no intention on closing on their condos. In my opinion, a blog is a vehicle to share opinions, thoughts and concerns. I was merely sharing these concerns with potential buyers and contract holders. About three weeks ago, a local newspaper disclosed a story about a class-action lawsuit against the developer filed by contract holders wanting to get out. This topic was an area of concern, and one that I felt needed to be addressed to my readers.
I had no malicious intent against Tibor Hollo nor the condo development. I was merely sharing my opinion with the readers of my Miami real estate blog and the concerns of current contract holders. I see myself as a real estate agent on the street that is sharing the concerns and opinions of others.
[…] Real Estate Blogger Sued for $25 Million for Negative Post at Miami Condo Investments. This is a story every real estate agent needs to read. I don’t think the blogger did anything wrong, but it’s something every blogger still needs to watch out for. […]
This is legal harrassment. Personal opinion expressed in a blog is clearly protected speech. Too bad about the bankruptcy error but mistakes happen and only need to be retracted. Given that the purpose of this legal action is to stifle free speech, a countersuit might be lucrative
Lucas I think if anything this is bringing you good publicity, I bet your blog stats on wordpress have quadrupled or more over the past week.
Your blog is a great resource.
This lawsuit is garbage. Maybe better than the ACLU would be a hi-profile private litigator with an interest in free speech / First Amendment issues (like Floyd Abrams). Liability for blogging and posting comments is certain to become an issue that needs to be settled. I’m confident some ace private lawyer would be interested in taking a case like yours for FREE in order to shape that law and make a name. Also, pls countersue for a big number – I hope it ends up as a windfall for you.
I don’t know anything about the real-world business aspects of a brokerage, but perhaps you could start your own. You could represent buyers and realistic sellers. As the owner of a few properties in NYC (with an eye on distressed properties in Miami), IMHO you seem to be much more interested in and thoughtful about market dynamics and pricing trends than the average broker. There is always demand for people smarter in a field than the rest.
I recognize that only a small percentage of your readers will actually buy a condo in Miami any time soon, but as an independent you might not need huge numbers to make it profitable.
Best of luck. If you need to, please do open a defense fund, I for one will definitely contribute.
TK,
Thank you for the support. I appreciate it! Unfortunately, I can’t go into detail on what I plan to do but I definitely appreciate the advice. I’ll likely provide an update at a later date. Thanks again!
I was sorry to read about your troubles – best of luck with this, and keep up the good work. That clown at EWM and his “only good news” philosophy is spouting the kind of crap that got us into this mess to start with.
Wow! I first heard about this yesterday and couldn’t believe it.
That “tort genius” definitely takes the prize though.
Guess you’ve never heard, Mr. Tort Genius (like the other genius builder out there), that, “opinions are like noses…everybody has one!” And that, my dear geniuses, is the way of the blog! A place to have a written conversation and express opinions. As an expert, I’m entitled to my opinion (and of course…the geniuses can have their opinion too – which is summarized in Two words…American freedom).
Also, I disagree with your assessment of Lucas and whether he is an expert or not. The blogsphere says he is…so he is.
Besides, I watch CNBC quite a bit and wonder if the comments and opinions about the market, the recommendations to buy or sell, the opinions of the strength any company or investment weighs on the market are ‘suable’ comments and opinions? After all, MILLIONS of people (worldwide?) watch these reports and guide a lot of their investment strategy on these news, comments, opinions, etc in each of these shows (Mad Money’s Cramer being one of the most outspoken. Not always right or respected by all, but always listened to).
I know, I know….the argument is weather Lucas made an inappropriate comment regarding the bankability of this developer. Regardless…how’s this lawsuit going to get his condo’s sold now (or in a very long time)?
Who’d buy from someone in the middle of litigation?
Now, follow me here. Here comes the turn of the century, with stock markets crashed, people choose to move their investments to real estate, driving up market values, creating demand for more and more housing. Temperatures raise, excitement builds, bankers and lenders of all types begin to come out of the woodwork, investors compete for business also going to speculators.
All hell brakes loose, Greenspan notes the “exuberance” in the market and warns this cannot be sustained, Market experts say the same thing time and again and then…VOILA! We have a real estate market meltdown!
LET’S SUE THEM ALL. THEY CAUSED THIS MARKET TO TURN by simply pointing out the doom of it all!
Right?
HA!
This shortsighted, failed developer who’s now looking for any dumb excuse to recover some of his losses, is probably one of those like the “tort genius” who believe that things happen TO them. Scarcity vs. Abundance mentality.
They just want to blame what was truly caused by market forces and themselves, on others.
But…since “the markets” can’t be sued…and Lucas and EWM can…he does! Simply, heroic!
Each of these developers are businessmen (some are loosers). Each made a decision, after carefully studying market conditions (ehem), to invest and borrow money to acquire land, secure an architect, present, propose and get the city approval and permits for building a project (Opera is only one of hundreds!), build whatever concept they envisioned, hire Realtors (really…they quite liked Realtors then – ironic isn’t it?), create marketing parties, etc.,
Yet, if they missed what “market forces” control, and end up holding the bag on millions of dollars in real estate because their investment got started at a poor time (that they chose), they misread the market and miscalculated the results of thousands of units coming out simultaneously, missed the warning signs discussed by EVERY EXPERT IN EVERY CHANNEL, EVERY NEWSPAPER AND EVERY COUNTRY and continued to exuberantly build, and still refuse to recognize that, “la cagaron”….well….I guess, “sue somebody” was their moment of brilliance.
So, after throwing their creation down the drain, now they choose to make matters worse by going after a “little guy”. The big, bad developer, going after the little blogger/ Realtor. Great story, genius!
So, blame ONE LONE blogger/Realtor for their demise. How lame!!
Each of those buildings were sold on good merits or shady tactics. Each picked their fight. I don’t know which platform was Opera sold under, but I know now who they’re looking at to back up their failed dreams…You Lucas. It seems they’re now looking at you to bankroll their demise.
Many developers sold to would-be investors (speculators) who ONLY purchased OPTIONS. That’s what some of these developers are in denial about. They never sold condo units to these speculators…they sold options!
They were not called options in their contracts, but deep inside each of these speculators knew the way out. They had the OPTION to walk away and not close. The developers knew this, but by sheer greed many chose to keep their eyes closed to this reality.
They figured, once the upfront moneys are in…the rest of the financing is done, I’ll worry about the few that don’t close (THAT ONE BIT EVERYONE OF THOSE DEVELOPERS), and resell the units (ha!) and double dip (yeah, right). Gatcha!
Options work DAILY in the stock markets. If each of these short or long option position holders were not able to walk away from their option and their option money and were forced to close on purchases they did not want, where would our markets be?
This is what this ridiculous suit is looking to dictate on the real estate market. It expects to regulate how idiots pretending to be investors (and even some builders), escape from their failed decisions. They want to remove responsibility for their choices and accountability to their creditors for making bad investment decisions.
Stock market or real estate market. Different market, same concept. Except, in the paper markets, there are ways to hedge each position.
In real estate, If you walk away, you walked away. The hedge actually, is not carrying a mortgage you cannot afford and did not intend to support. The intent of most of these investors (speculators) was to resell. Not to hold. So now, they simply are choosing to cut their losses. 6+ years of inventory!
Who among these speculators want a piece of that!?! Specially with now overvalued properties which are now worth less than they’d have to carry in financing for some 5-10 years before they can recover and earn what they might have expected to earn in 2-3 years.
You, Mr. Lechuga, keep your chin up. I hope that blogger who wrote about a team of lawyers who were taking a look at your case to defend you really put their money where their mouth is.
If this developer gets away with this, it affects EVERY blogger out there and everyone who issues an opinion (and yes, that blogger who suggested we all write a disclaimer may not be too far from reality).
I loved that link pointing to your welcoming to EWM. Obviously, not only did they know and post about it, their interview with you during the hiring process had a lot to do with this, and I’m sure that can also be documented.
What if?…Just…what if Mr. Buffett were to drop EWM for hiring you knowing about your blogging and the risks (?!?!?!) involved, like EWM dropped you for offering an opinion in a blog they sanctioned by hiring you AND your blog!? How would they like THEM APPLES?!
The developer already made that connection and it is therefore, suing you both. Wouldn’t that be a shame for EWM? What if Christies drops their affiliation as well? After all, they may not want to be affiliated with a company being sued for $25M and undergoing so much chatter on the internet, would they?
Also, will this suit actually open a can of worms for all developers who may be innocent bystanders but still, the outcome of this fiasco could easily start a class action suit against one or more developers, like the suits being brought by some cities who are suing banks for reverse redlining? Wouldn’t this be a stinger!?
That should really help put Miami on the map!
Thanks a lot geniuses (and your attorneys too)! Here’s to the new mini economy being created in blog lawsuits.
In the end Lucas, I feel you will be triumphant. One way, or another.
Actually, do what politicians do…spin it, and win! Million$ await you on the other side.
Looks as if some banks lost money on Mr. Tibor Hollo.
From the Washington Post:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/01/24/AR2007012401731_pf.html
“When Congress last overhauled the bankruptcy laws in 1978, it sought to make it easier for people and businesses to recover from financial ruin. But in practice, the system Congress created favors debtors over creditors, the people who owe money over the people to whom it is owed, many specialists say.
“The system is broken,” said an associate who helped Trump use the system to his advantage.
“It’s the system that gives power to the debtor where it shouldn’t.”
Debtors enjoy such a strong position that creditors “have to buy them off,” said Michael C. Jensen, a Harvard Business School professor.
Some borrowers who go broke negotiate deals that enable them to avoid bankruptcy altogether. Others get caught up in bankruptcy proceedings but hold on to small fortunes because their lenders get tired of fighting.
Business executives who have plunged into insolvency and emerged wealthy include local real estate investors Conrad Cafritz and Dominic F. Antonelli Jr. Florida developer Tibor Hollo said he was left with a net worth of $35 million after lenders released him from $364 million of his personal debt.”
Lucas,
I am a licensed real estate agent who will be moving to Miami in a month. I do not sell real estate but prefer to keep my license active. When I’m ready to buy a home you will get my business. Thanks for keeping it real. And counter-sue the pants off Mr. Hollo (even if he does file bankruptcy this time, he will have enough left over to pay a judgment).
The clown appears to have hit you with a SLAPP suit:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SLAPP
Fortunately, there are laws against this type of behavior. And he could be a candidate for a tortious interference lawsuit.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tortious_interference
Wishing you well!
– Ben
Well, since Hollo(w) filed the lawsuit, guess what, you get to DEPOSE Hollo(w)! Make sure you do a VIDEO deposition that you can post here and on YouTube.com. It will be hilarious. You get to ask him about his finances since he made it an issue in the case. Start subpoenaing all of his bank accounts, etc. for the last 30 years since that is relevant. Ask him for proof that he made sure the purchasers in Opera were qualified buyers….and get their financial records too! The discovery will be endless so start hitting Hollo(w) with it as soon as possible since he is getting a bit old. File an attachment on his estate for damages too. The old fart will soon have EVERYTHING for EVERY development he has ever done exposed by this lawsuit. I’m sure there is a lot of shady dirt there and false pumping up of property values to make this front page news for quite some time. He filed, he’ll have to face the consequences. Let the discovery commence!
This was obviously a lawsuit filed to silence and out of frustration. To win, Hollo(w) will have to win on liability (he won’t), prove an amount of damage (none can be attributed to this blog), and collect (I’m sure Lucas doesn’t have $25M or whatever). If Hollo(w) wants to throw money at his lawyers so be it. But soon he will have to turn over ALL of his financial records. Ha ha ha, he’s the one that filed it and claimed he was damaged! Go for it!
P.S. Defamation, my ass.
[…] Peter Santiago, posted this video in response to the recent defamation lawsuit filed against a Miami blogger (I leave out his name because of Google). Peter has a great mind (he’s got a degree in […]
Looks like “Gourge” Perez doesn’t want to be left behind.
Today’s Miami Herald article could be viewed as a pre-cursor to the “mad developer” syndrome. I will refrain from stating my opinion. However I do wonder when and if “Gourge” is going to be suing the RCRS agents?? That should be couched nicely enough to keep Greenburg Traurig off of my doorstep….
Subpoena the financial records and you’ll see if he is currently bankrupt. Maybe he is?
The people at subprime implosion got slapped with a lawsuit as well,get in touch with them and ask what happened and how they got out of it.
ml-implode.com , a major lender went after them. Keep blogging, we will follow you through this.
I’m amazed that the entire econmic downturn, for this developer, rests on your little shoulders. How narrow minded is this company?!
RA – I just have to say, hahahaha.
Tortuous interference is the unlawful interference into one’s contractual or business affairs. For example, someone who uses the web to defame an individual’s business and contacts their customers (or prospective customers) may be violating this law. A special case of tortuous interference called “Tortuous Interference with Prospective Advantage” is available in some states to punish those who seek to damage one’s ability to find and retain new customers.
The elements of the tort of interference with contract are:
A valid contract between the plaintiff and a third person that confers upon plaintiff a contractual right against a third person.
The defendant knows of the contract.
The defendant intentionally induces the third person not to perform the contract.
The defendant acts without justification.
The defendant’s conduct causes actual pecuniary harm to the plaintiff.
The above was copied verbatum from the oracle training website for internet usage. Lucas, maybe you should have consulted it before you decided to libel someone.
I certainly cannot feel sorry for you. Nor should anyone else for that matter. There are buyers at Opera Tower whose investments were trashed by you. How do you think they feel holding a contract and wishing to sell or close?
Timing is everything, and to create further turmoil in the real estate market by hypothisis, rumours, speculation, incomplete information is exactly what you did.
In my opinion you represent the profile of a small percentage of bloggers who act unresponsibly as though on a power trip (see someone’s posting above “bloggers unit”, who don’t listen to reason (or warnings) and think they are above the law. Many bloggers have terrible verbal communication skills and person to person skills, outside of their blog. Because of the enormous time and effort put into blogging they can lose these other skills. In my opinion your a classic example.
My own opinion is you should remain a blogger and get out of the real estate market completely.You have already done enough damage. It appears you spend so much free time on your hands blogging, I certainly question how many customers you have.
Further, if you want to be totally impartial in your analysis of the market you should just be selling information, and not real estate. There is a definate conflict of interest there. There are responsible people who do this, Lew Goodkin is one, John McCabe is another. They also talk about how down the market is, but they completely level headed and unemotional about presenting the facts and they paint a true picture of the market. They talk in a responsible manner without offending so many. You candidly could learn learn a lot from them.
That is a long shot though, you have obviously burned lots of bridges out there and run your blog like you have a chip on your shoulder or an axe to grind.
My own opinion is that there are more lawsuits coming from other developers, buyers, current contract holders, real estate agents and condo associations down the road, $25 million will look like a down right bargain down the road.
I want to thank everyone for your continued support. I appreciate it immensely. This blog isn’t going anywhere. I will continue to share my opinion, thoughts and stats with you.
The “Tortuous Interference Is What You Have Done” post is just nonsense meant to cause alarm. Are real estate prices really that fragile that a little criticism must be silenced. The market is what it is and a blog or two can’t change it……I say sue the people who hyped the market instead. I hope the anal lawyers examine the Opera purchase agreements to get people out of those contracts. Remember Hollo, don’t throw stones if you live in a glass house. Let the lawyers apply the same tactics to get the buyers out! Pointing out that a price is too high is not a tort. Obviously the above “smarty pants” is too narrowly focused on the “law” to have any common sense, fortunately jurors see through this nonsense.
To “Tortuous Interference” guy above me… Let me guess, your legal background comprises of LA Law reruns and lots of wikipedia searches? I’m right, aren’t I. Yehp, I knew it.
Basically, this is all you need to know.
“Nova Southeastern University professor of constitutional law and ethics Robert Jarvis said that courts see blogs as, “written in unedited, unvetted fashion,” and doubted Hollo would win the case.”
Basically, when you get a law prof giving a strong opinion like that in a public forum, it’s a no brainer. Let me give you an inbetween the lines translation… Hollo has a snowball’s chance in Hell.
The funny thing is, when all is said and done, Lucas will come out looking like a star while Hollo just digs himself and his condos a bigger grave. Hollo needs to know that this ain’t the old days where you can be on the wrong side of the issue and bully somebody with a lawyer. Thanks to the internet, Hollo probably has damaged what was left of his reputation and the reputation of his condos more than any one blogger could ever do. Ironically, I think Hollo will need to apologize to Lucas first, if not, him and his properties will remain an online punching bag from Miami to Poland. Ain’t the internet grand if you’re the little guy?
For the Opera, the fat lady has already sung.
The comments on this blog aren’t any different than say the customer comments on Amazon, Best Buy, etc…..hardly a tort.
To “Tortuous Interference” guy again:
“There are buyers at Opera Tower whose investments were trashed by you. How do you think they feel holding a contract and wishing to sell or close?”
Saying that 1 realtor can really sway the market for a complete condo with 635 units shows COMPLETE ignorance.
Also, what is your solution? Instead of criticizing bad buildings, would you prefer to make it easier for out-of-state condo flippers to sell their units at Opera at inflated prices so that somebody else gets left holding the bag? That’s just brilliant. You should apply for a position at EWM. I hear they have a new opening for a cheerleader, err sorry I meant a realtor.
I am saying stick to the facts. To hold oneself out as an expert (which Lechuga is not) and make predictions by trashing a project before or during the closing process takes place, is completely inappropriate. I know of several buyers who until reading Lechugas’ blog had no intention of walking away, but now don’t want to close. You can magnify that many fold.
I am not saying the market is not bad, I am saying don’t run down each project during the closing process. Let the buyers decide without creating hysteria and false hyperbole commentary. Lucas is 29 years old and has a lot to learn. There are ways of presenting information correctly, bad or good. Lew Goodkin is an example of a class guy who is respected and reports bad news accurately. He would never stoop to making predictions right during the closing process and making statements that a building is in trouble.
Further posting damaging out of date information on a project is an injustice, particuarly when you get the whole offering wrong as Lucas has done on another very high end project in Bal Harbour.
By the way your quoting one attorney who teaches law, Robert Jarvis. I know his work and there are plenty of attorney’s that would disagree with him and argue successfully against him. Case in point is the matter of ethics, and not letting a highly trafficed website interfere with the closing process. If I was a member of the homeowners association @ Opera I would sue along with Tibor for not giving Opera a fair chance by trashing the building during the closing process.
This guy sounds like Tibor Hollo himself. Lucas, if in fact he is Tibor, then he just made your case. He is saying that you AREN’T an expert. If you aren’t an expert in the Miami real estate market then why should you be accredited as being a respectful source and how could you possibly have any affect on the number of closings at Opera Tower. If this isn’t Tibor, then this just shows that the general public doesn’t view you as an accredited source of information. I know this may not sound favorable to you, but in the eyes of a jury this will look very favorable. I’m a big fan of yours and wish you all the best!
Look, if the buyers liked what they contracted to purchase they will close. It really is that simple. Had the market kept going up 20% each year than who wouldn’t close? Lucas comments are what they are, and if someone wants to use that as an excuse then that is far more flimsy of an excuse than what the developers are trying to do to make people close. The fact is, if the product is quality and the price is fair, people will close. If the building isn’t what it should be, then that is Hollo’s fault. To point blame IN THIS MARKET is utterly silly so there is no way Hollo can claim any “damage” was attributable to Lucas’ comments. It is absurd. Shame on Hollo, and I for one will not buy from such a developer, period.
EWM knew of the blog (google cache)”EWM is pleased to announce that Lucas Lechuga has joined the EWM Brickell Office. Lucas is best known for his all about Miami blog – Miami Condo Investments. He has been chronicling the condo story for about 7 months now and has become the “go to” source for great up to the minute info in the Miami Condo market.” Dec 18, 2007.
This is what Hollo and his cronies need to understand. If there is a concerted effort on Lucas’s part to denigrate Opera or One Bal Harbour, that is one thing, but when you try to single out a guy who covers the good and bad in a Real Estate market and tries to give out his opinions on all the condos that make up the market, guess what, he’s going to like some buildings and not like others! Did he break some Real Estate Secret code with this blog? Let me guess. Lucas should refer to Opera as a “Strong Buy”, and he could then refer to Continuum as a “Super Duper Strong Buy” and for his favorites, he could label them the most “Superest Duperest Strongest Buys”. Would that make Hollo and EWM feel better? Speak no evil… just call everything a strong buy or a stronger buy or a stronger stronger buy?
This is a blog, I don’t expect anybody to be 100% factually accurate… nobody does. Wikipedia is nowhere close to being 90% factually accurate, so would Hollo suggest we close that down? How about we close down all blogs and chat boards that have not been 100% accurate? This is the Internet, if you want 100% factual, you better turn off your PC or read everything with a grain of salt and take it upon yourself to fact check everything.
If Lucas honestly believes/believed Opera was a bad deal and believed that Hollo went bankrupt at one point, then I’m all for free Speech on a blog as long as he was not willfully targeting Hollo with information he believed to be false. The negative mentions on Opera are minute compared to the body of info on this blog, and I have no reason to believe Lucas made any willfully incorrect statements.
If Hollo wanted to act like a responsible normal citizen, he would have contacted Lucas first providing him with a chance to make corrections. Now if Hollo did that, and Lucas disregarded the correct information, then that would make it a completely different situation.
Hollo should understand the size 22 foot he’s inserting into his mouth right now. People are sick of lawyering to get what you want, and they are sick of Developers who under-delivered. All this internet exposure is going to focus more and more attention to the fact that Hollo is a guy who apparently under-delivered with his condos and believes in lawyering to bully somebody to take blame for his condo’s problems. Nice lesson for kids. If you screw up, go pass off your mistakes on a fall guy. Unfortunately for Hollo in this case, he chose to use a bully technique that worked pre-internet age, but whoops, this is post internet. Open mouth wide and insert size 22 foot. He needs to pray for blogger forgiveness before this lawsuit news gets translated into 30 different languages and rich Europeans/South Americans start looking through their contracts to see if Hollo or Florida East Coast Realty are on their condo contracts.
I need a realtor who will tell me the truth, esp. in this declining market! EWM has now proven it is NOT looking after the interests of the buyer. So, I will select another company. I will fire my EWM agent soon…..
Note to self: (1) Wake up in morning. (2) Shower. (3) Call lawyer to get out of Opera purchase agreement because of material misrepresentation. (4) Go to work. (5) Watch Opera fail.
let’s get our freak on
jl
YOU ROCK IT OUT!
I heard that Opera tower has structural issues.
[…] de cazul bloggerului din State acuzat de defaimare, iata cea mai buna analiza a cazului pe care am gasit-o pana […]
YOUR FIRED…………a friend of LUCAS’S …talking about EMW.
YOUR FIRED…………a friend of LUCAS’S …talking about EMW.
I wonder what THE DONALD has to say about all this B.S.
…maybe some of the individuals here who posted reasonings through their interpretation of the law should first read the constitution…start with the 1st amendment…freedom of speech, remember that one?
if lucas represented that he believes this or that could happen…he is entitled to it – it’s his opinion!!
so whoever ‘tortuous interference’ is … before you try to appear as if you are an attorney, supposedly well versed in corporate/tort law, you should first improve your own grammar (as you insulted others who just jot all over blogs). start with “unresponsibly” and “your” (…it’s “irresponsibly” and “you’re”). not sure where you went to law school…JD from Tinbuktoo U. ? please…
[…] blog that started it all…. Lucas Lechuga’s Miami Blog – Opera Tower, LLC & Tibor Hollo Sues Me for $25M It’s not the blog post that started it all… that’s back in […]
uggh… Please, before you start quoting the elements of a tort, LEARN HOW TO FRIGGIN’ SPELL!!! There’s nothing that undermines your argument more than your inability to use phrases correctly. Now, to comment on the underlying substantive argument that you flung out there like so much rotten turd on the wall…. First, Hollo did not bring suit for tortious interference of contract, he sued LL for defamation. Second, to even suggest that LL has impacted the market through (let’s say for the sake of argument) false claim of Hollo going bankrupt; even then, why would a buyer back out at that point? In other words, are you suggesting that after a $100K down payment, and due diligence that comes with a six-figure, out of pocket deposit, that the decision to forego that $100K will depend on a blog…. a friggin’ one-man-show internet diary? You sir, are a MORON. Please stick to your ranting and raving in front of Judge Alex’ or whoever your legal tele-tutor may be, and for the love of God, LEARN HOW TO SPELLCHECK!
P.S.: Lew Goodkin and Jack McCabe as unbiased founts of real-estate information? Both of these individuals have long-standing relationships to vulture capital funds that seek out real-estate bargains in Florida — they’ve disclosed as much. As oft-quoted as they are, do you really suggest that they have nothing to gain with touting pessimistic conditions?
Lucas, I managed to get the news story uploaded onto youtube.
you can see it on my blog housingfear.blogspot.com.
Housingpanic.blogspot.com is also running a story supporting you.
Lucas I am a big fan of your blog and support you 100%. I am a long time Miami resident and it is fairly obvious that many condo developers are about to lose their shirts including Opera tower. It is pretty pathetic that Hollo is taking out his frustration at the market on you for expressing your OPINION. I commend you for being honest and forthcoming about the market down here.
Lucas,
Good luck with the lawsuit. It seems like a shame that EWM wouldn’t support an agent/contractor such as yourself who tries to communicate honestly over the internet- But then again a lack of honesty is a big part of the reason that the housing market is currently in the state that it is. Keep up the good work.
Lucas,
I just saw a link to your blog on another blog. Fight the good fight Lucas. These people need to be exposed. Anyways, I can’t understand why so many people think Miami is so great. Personally, I think it’s a complete sh*thole with some nice ocean views. I wouldn’t live in that third world dump for anything. Good luck.
BUYER 2, I think the reason you are mad at your Realtor is that fact maybe you did not ask the right questions before hiring him. Buying is always good…Long term in this case and in this market. If you are a seller than realize that the profits will fly the longer you hold on to your un-real sale price in this market. As for Buyers, do buy in Miami, you can still get good prices from sellers who really want to sell and hold at least 3-5 years, maybe longer if need be.
Lucas, dont worry you have all the Realtors behind you!!!!
The developers are the main reasons we are in this slowing down market but also included are the rich investors who would pay any price just to get into a hot market which you can blame. Survival of the fittest I guess…
They jacked up the prices and un-educated buyers and investors bought into it. Now both parties are in panic mode unfornately.
IF a buyer is not going to close because of Lucas’s opinions…Then that buyer was not told the truth and the buyer SHOULD do more research before they close. What is wrong? You hate for a Customer not to close because they know the truth now??? For the person who is writing the long posts with no real name. Just go away now. Your long azz posts are doing nothing, but making people laugh.
http://www.digg.com/business_finance/Miami_blogger_is_being_sued_for_25_million/who
Dugg!
http://blog.ewm.com/2007/12/18/ewm-welcomes-lucas-lechuga/
I guess I thought I had seen it all in my lifetime but this lawsuit is second only to the judge that sued the immigrant owners of the laundry company for $100MM that lost his pants.
Filing the lawsuit (and the following news publications) calls more attention to the public about this troubled project than the little know BLOG did.