Luxury condo complex spawns lawsuit
From today’s SFGate,
The builders, owners, operators and homeowners association of a luxury condominium complex across from AT&T Park have been sued for allegedly misrepresenting the size of the units in two buildings and for not repairing a series of defects.The class-action lawsuit was filed Friday against virtually everyone associated with the Beacon, a 595-unit complex on 250 and 260 King St., in San Francisco’s Mission Bay.
The suit, on behalf of the 450 residents, claims the square footage of many units does not match what was advertised to buyers. Representatives of the complex denied the allegation, saying all square footages were clearly listed as approximations.
“We measured one unit out of each plan, and every unit we measured is undervalued,” said Patrick Catalano, the lawyer who filed the suit in San Francisco Superior Court. “I think they misrepresented the square footage deliberately. You don’t sell over 500 units and not know what the square footages are.”
The suit accuses Catellus Commercial Development Corp., Centurion Real Estate Partners, Mission Place LLC, the Beacon Homeowners Association and myriad investors of fraud, negligent representation, breach of contract and breach of warranty, among other things. [more...]
The first thing we all learn as real estate agents is to NEVER quote square footages, and for this very reason. Unhappy buyers are always looking for angles to come back and argue with a seller or developer, and the Beacon appears to have left themselves wide open on this one.
For those that haven’t been through a purchase before, it’s very common for the tax records, the condo map, and an appraiser’s measurement to all be different (depending on their method of measurement). Hence the volatility of ever discussing or quoting square footage. Typically I only use square footage figures in my listings that are quoted in the tax records or on a written appraisal report from a licensed appraiser.
Luxury condo complex spawns lawsuit [SFGate]
The rule of condo economics: What you get, you gotta pay for [SFHomeBlog]
Home Valuation as a function of Buyer Profile [SFHomeBlog]
That is a huge liability for any realtor. I am like you. I rely heavily on public records for square footage or something that I can turn to as evidence. I’m in Naples Florida real estate where there are quite a number of condominiums and the square footage is generally spelled out clearly in the condo docs.
Anonymous at August 21st, 2006 at 9:05 pm ( )This is where I think the whole business of real estate seems shoddy. Why can’t smart people come up with a universally accepted way of measuring square footage? Isn’t this an important piece of information, that shouldn’t be left to “oh approximately”. Attorneys must love these loopholes.
QandA at August 21st, 2006 at 11:17 pm ( )I live at the Beacon and I think this lawsuite is completely bogus. Yes, this building isn’t built to the quality of the Brannan or Watermark but it wasn’t designed that way. This building started off as an apartment complex then converted into a condo so the quality reflects that past.
AndrewH at August 23rd, 2006 at 7:14 pm ( )In addition, as a resident, I don’t think this is the way to approach the problem even if his claim is legitimate. I don’t remember him raising his concerns in any of the owner meetings. In addition, sueing the HOA in conjunction with the builders is just going to raise the HOA fees.
I agree with the square footage argument. SOMEONE needs to take responsibility for correct numbers, whether it be the builder, the realtor, or even the buyer’s appraiser. I’d be interested in knowing exactly how “undervalued” the units really are based on square footage. 1 foot squared vs. 100 foot squared can truly make a difference.
Anonymous at August 23rd, 2006 at 9:06 pm ( )The chances that overestimating square footage at all 500 homes was not deliberate is 1 in 2^500. Those are astronomical odds.
Philip at August 23rd, 2006 at 9:52 pm ( )It looks like Patrick Catalano is trying to extort as much money as possible out of everyone. I see the square footage is a problem. But does he really need to sue everyone including the non-profit HOA that represents the victims?
Anonymous at August 25th, 2006 at 8:52 pm ( )I also own a condo at the Beacon and I can barely afford the mortgage and homeowner’s. Now, it seems as if I’ve been dragged into a lawsuit against my will. I was thinking we should get together and sue Catalano.
Anonymous at October 1st, 2006 at 9:16 pm ( )