Company tied to ex-broker accused of fake home sales
A company linked to a disgraced former real estate broker collected $14,000 by twice selling a Milwaukee home that it had no ownership stake in or right to sell, a lawsuit by the property owner charges.
“It was a shock. I didn’t know something like this could happen to me,” Robert Yorker said of the day he was told he could not sell his house because records showed it had already been sold twice by Inner City Development Project Inc., a one-time nonprofit that had its IRS standing as a charitable group revoked for failing to file financial documents.
Yorker purchased the home for $112,000 in 2003, records in the Milwaukee County Register of Deeds office show. He had rented to relatives , but he said it then was vacant for about two years. He was in the process of selling it for about $40,000.
The lawsuit, which was filed earlier this month, said the man who signed the deeds for Inner City Development was Gathan Anderson, who gave up his real estate broker license three years ago when he was under investigation by state regulators. As part of his deal with regulators, Anderson agreed that he would never receive a Wisconsin broker’s license again.
Inner City Development has roots going back to 1969, according to Department of Financial Institutions records. Anderson is listed as an officer for the group in a report filed with the state last year. The group described its business as “community growth” in the report.
Yorker said he learned about the so-called sales by Inner City Development from his real estate agent when he was trying to sell his property in a short-sale — a deal where a person sells a property for less than the amount owed on the mortgage.
That’s when he and Mary Armstrong, a family friend, learned that people were living in Yorker’s property without his knowledge. The occupantseven painted portions of the house and cleaned the gutters, Armstrong said.
“They cut down all of her trees and all of her flowers,” Armstrong said, referring to the landscaping that her sister and Yorker’s longtime partner had planted. The sister, Bettye Jones, died in early August.
In mid-August, Armstrong and Yorker sent a letter “to all occupants” demanding that they vacate the home.
Anderson called Armstrong about two weeks later and the two had a testy exchange.
“I said, ‘You’re the one who sold the property,’ “Armstrong said, adding that Anderson responded, “Ma’am, the property was donated to me.”
Later, Armstrong said, Anderson contended Yorker made the donation.
“I asked, ‘What does Robert Yorker look like?’ “she said. “He couldn’t tell me.”
Records show that Anderson’s signature appears on two quitclaim deeds as the “ICDP Authorized Agent” selling the property for $7,000 each time. The first sale was in May; the property was deeded over to someone else the following month.
The deeds were drafted by Anderson, records show.
In a quitclaim transaction, the seller agrees to sell any interest he may or may not have in a property.
Anderson did not return calls for comment or a message left at his home.
Yorker, who is represented by Legal Action of Wisconsin attorney April Hartman, is asking the court to rule that he is the sole owner of the property. He is also asking for actual and punitive damages from Anderson and the two people who bought the property.
The suit says Yorker’s belongings are missing from the property, including a central air conditioning unit, tools and furniture. Armstrong said a washer, dryer and refrigerator are also missing.
Armstrong said they reported the matter to police but were told it was a civil matter. Police also suggested they report the matter to state consumer protection officials, she said.
Hartman, who works with Legal Action’s Elder Rights Project, said Legal Action is also hearing complaints of bogus landlords renting out properties they don’t own.
“I know that recently it has become more common in our world . ... We’re seeing more cases” with bogus landlords, Hartman said.
She added that Yorker’s case is a somewhat unique since it alleges an “owner had the house sold out from under them.”