DAYTON — A Florida judge has issued an injunction blocking a company that has been the focus of a series of News Center 7 I-Team investigations from enforcing its controversial 40-year listing agreement in that state.
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MV Realty’s controversial Homeowner Benefit Agreements have been the focus of I-Team reports for more than two years. The new ruling barred the company from enforcing those agreements and placing liens on homes in Florida.
As reported on News Center 7 at 5:30, the decision also says MV Realty cannot collect any money from Florida homeowners under contract with them.
This comes in connection with the Florida Attorney General’s Office lawsuit against the realty company.
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Court documents obtained by the I-Team show roughly a third of the company’s contracts around the country are in Florida, where MV Realty is headquartered.
“This ruling is absolutely an important and positive step forward in getting relief for any consumers that were harmed by MV Realty,” Sarah Mancini, a lawyer with the National Consumer Law Center, said.
Mancini has been following MV Realty’s case and said it’s important to keep in mind that this ruling only applies to Florida properties.
“However, the reasoning of the judge’s ruling is very persuasive,” she told the I-Team. “And the same types of laws are being raised in other states, unfair and deceptive practices. So, I do think this ruling could be very persuasive to judges in other states.”
Since our I-Team’s investigations, 12 state attorneys general, including Ohio AG Dave Yost, have sued the realty company.
Twenty-nine states, including Ohio, have also enacted new laws targeting the company’s business practices.
The I-Team reached out to Yost’s office to see if they’ll ask a judge for something similar to the Florida ruling in their lawsuit. We have not received a response at the time of this report.
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