Organised Mortgage Fraud and Caixabank threatening legal action despite knowing this!

Hi All,

I have been through negotiations with the solicitor, mortgage broker and valuer in the UK because the Statute of Limitations had passed....the negotiations were successful and I sold the property at auction. The mortgage was interest only and 102k GBP. The property was sold for 40k GBP. 

The same thing happened in Puerto de Mazarron in 2005 - the conveyancing solicitor had a Power of Attorney that covered the whole of Spain (I later cancelled this at the notary). The purchase was misrepresented from the beginning by the English estate agents (Sunsea - Alan Hall, who later became the builders son in law ). I am not aware of how or who employs the valuer but the photo I saw was not of my apartment and the valuation was grossly over the true figure - these flats were typically 'local Spanish' in design. 

The mortgage was a 30 yr one, and the payments kept going up every so many months. The English who purchased these apartments were told that rent would cover the mortgage, which of course was a lie. Gradually many owners stopped paying the mortgage. In my case there was a bad leak above the bathroom ceiling (the loo above was leaking) and I asked about the mortgage insurance and builders 10 yr guarantee but NO ONE wanted to know!

I had spent a lot of time and money making the apartment nice, hoping that I could at least cover some costs but the above meant that it wasn't rentable due to the sanitation - which was a health hazard.

Caixabank are now chasing me 12 yrs on but it seems solicitors in Spain have no appetite for organised mortgage fraud!

I also was never asked to provide proof of income - and I notice that foreigners were only ever entitled to 70% of the valuation mortgages....my mortgage was 100% so that explains why the valuation was falsified.

Someone else now has a mortgage on my old apartment, and I am able to get in touch with other duped English purchasers who mostly did the same as I did - out of frustration.

Any Spanish solicitor interested in this case I would be grateful to hear from you, as I believe the Statute of Limitations is 20 years. 

Hello gill_malouf

Just few questions that most legal representatives would ask.

Where are you resident and where are your assets if you have any?

What has a story about a UK property got to do with Caixabank Spain?

What relevance has Alan Hall marital relationship?

Why did you take out a mortgage on a valuation photograph you knew was false?

Where you given a rent guarantee contract by the developer?

Why did you not get a tradesman to fix your leak?

Have you tried all the ‘no win no fee’ solicitors/lawyers ‘any nationality’ and what is their response.

Good luck

Hello,

I am resident in the UK, and always have been. I only saw the photo a few years AFTER  the purchase, as a Power of Attorney was used I didn't see sight of any valuation. As I kept flying over to Murcia I was reliant on English expats living in Puerto de Mazarron, and discovered most of these people were not honest or trustworthy!

Caixabank were the bank who provided a mortgage. The relevance about Alan Halls relationship is that he sold most of the building to English buyers and lied because of his relationship with the builder, the solicitor (they 'directed' clients so there was definitely a conflict of interest). He also got his staff to take me to Caixabank to open a current account. The bank knew the apartments because it is such a large block of apartments - the estate agents sold the apartments by introducing purchasers to either Caixabank & CAM. 

The estate agent, Alan Hall, gave a verbal guarantee and this resulted in the first tenant subletting the apartment. This was heartbreaking and this was the first time I saw the estate agents true colours. They really didn't want to know & they cannot have done any checks on the tenant.

It seems that most Spanish solicitors don't understand about mortgage fraud - and this was a 30 yr mortgage where the interest kept going up every quarter. I last tried to get a solicitor to look at the file in 2013. 

I trusted that the conveyancers were acting in my best interest and quite honestly they didn't (and the other purchasers will say the same). I went to their offices after a couple years demanding to see my file because I grew suspicious and discovered the incorrect valuation photo at that point in time ...with an over the top valuation. The solicitors also threatened to call the police to remove me!  

Hello gill_malouf

You missed a few of the questions.

Are you saying you bought a property blind and most English expats are dishonest?

Have you reported Alan Hill to the Spanish police for criminal activities and what action have they taken?

I can assure you Spanish lawyers do understand fraud and many are experts.

Were you arrested for causing a breach of the peace at the lawyer’s office?

I may know a lawyer who can help you, what is your budget for this whole case?

Hello Kavanagh,

There was an agent locally promoting the apartments, and a golf course was allegedly being built etc etc. I went to look at the apartment and was put up at a local (only) hotel. I was directed to the notary with someone who worked for the solicitor.

I was too trusting and my background can be proved (childhood trauma) - individuals such as myself can be easily manipulated because trust is actually sought. 

I am not saying most English expats are dihonest, but the ones I connected with in Puerto de Mazarron were leaches ie one woman and her husband were set up as a letting agency - the husband did the maintenance and the wife let the properties. My apartment was let out to a Polish prostitute who had supposedly had a local guarantor....this situation was unbelievable!

Alan Hall seemed to disappear, as the estate agent business closed down shortly after the apartments were purchased.

When you live in the UK and fly over to deal with things (no car and virtually all your funds being used to keep the apartment in good condition.

The police in Puerto de Mazarron were not bothered about helping foreigners - in fact I hoped the police would come when I was in the conveyancing solicitors office.

My present solicitor was handed the file in 2013 and didn't want to know. No I was not arrested - they didn't call the police because they would have had a job explaining why they felt my presence warrented police presence. 

THe past decade has not been easy for me, I am a survivor of multiple frauds due to my background (see Malouf v MBNA on Google as an example).I don't have money to throw away, however Caixabank have recently had an Appeal dismissed and hopefully I will receive funds from them in around 4 to 12 months time. I am 64 and have major health issues. BTW did I say that the mortgage was a 30 yr one that started in 2005 (meaning that i would have been 79 when the mortgage finished.

I mainly want to expose the scam as others had the same experience, and I can provide details. I was seen as a mug because of my trust issues - and I can prove that I am an honest person with an excellent credit score despite having a low income. I do not see why these awful people should get away with this crime, especially if Caixabank think they can now scare me. I believe the bank were also involved.

Thank you for your response.

Please answer

‘’Any Spanish solicitor interested in this case I would be grateful to hear from you, as I believe the Statute of Limitations is 20 years’’ 

I may know a lawyer who can help you, what is your budget for this whole case?

Hello again Kavanagh,

The 'negotiation' in the UK was done on a 'no win no fee' basis - and the solicitors claimed over 32k GBP for their services. I had to sign a NDO against my better judgment - all the other flat purchasers were then approached! (It was a Victorian semi in the Wirral that a developer tore apart for profit!

Providing I successfully receive the Court Judgment amount I will be able to pay a decent amount. I will PM you later to illustrate just how trusting I used to be, but am no longer.

Just to illustrate the blocks of apartments and the over valuing aspect, my 2 bed apartment was 'valued' at over 180k Euro! This example is of a 3 bedroomed apartment (there are many 2 bed apartments in the complex currently for sale for around 77k Euros. The price I paid was 142k Euro and was provided with a 100% mortgage. One of the ex-employees of Sunsea Properties (Alan Halls company) offered to help me 12 years ago and they are very visible because they now own a furniture store in Puerto de Mazarron.

https://www.kyero.com/en/property/6775368-apartment-for-sale-puerto-de-mazarron

Hello gill_malouf

I believe throughout your postings on here you have established your superior legal knowledge and expertise required to make a successful claim yourself against Caixabank Spain in the Spanish courts, even the Supreme Court if necessary.

Just go for it.

Dear Kavanagh,

I am not sure if your serious about me representing myself or simply expressing your cynical opinion on my situation. 

Going through my emails between myself and the solicitor, agent & bank I can  show evidence that I behaved responsibly and attempted to resolve the matters before the frustration of everything affected my physical & mental health. 

My language skills would not be accepted for a start!

I will be able to contact other purchasers who will back up my 'story' as theirs would be similar - in fact one couple had mould growing on their own apartment.

Just discovered this old article about another Caixa mortgage!

I was never asked to provide proof of income. No one disussed the actual mortgage term etc either.

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2012/oct/26/spanish-royal-couple-mortgage-leak

Sorry forgot to paste it!

I find it interesting that NO solicitor has responded to this???