Regions Bank seeks foreclosure of three projects
South Florida Business Journal - by Brian Bandell
Regions Bank is seeking foreclosures on three South Florida projects – one a condo conversion, the other a town home development and the third a waterfront development in Dania Beach made up of single-family homes and townhomes.
The Birmingham, Ala.-based bank filed a notification of the pending foreclosure action on Nov. 6 against developer First West Cutler Gardens, of Cutler Bay, and manager Julio A. Lago.
The action is against 150 unsold units in the West Cutler Gardens condo conversion project in southern Miami-Dade County. However, it excluded 49 units that were sold in the project, at 11120 S.W. 196th St., in the Perrine area where Florida’s Turnpike crosses U.S. 1.
Regions Bank wrote the developer an $11 million mortgage in March 2007 to convert the apartment complex, which was built in 1973, to condos.
Marlene Silverman, the Greenberg Traurig attorney in Miami who represents Regions Bank, did not immediately return a call for comment.
And, in what appears to be the first major foreclosure against the Cornerstone Group, Regions filed against the Solabella townhome project in Miami Gardens.
The notification of the pending foreclosure action was filed against Legacy Pointe, a subsidiary of Coral Gables-based Cornerstone, on Oct. 30.
It named the 45 unsold units, but excluded 75 units that were sold to buyers.
Cornerstone has built more than 16,000 homes since it started in 1993.
Lenny Wolfe, president of Legacy Pointe, said he plans to dispute the foreclosure action against SolaBella, arguing they were current on principal and interest payments and had dozens of pending sales. However, he said, the full loan came due and the bank wouldn't renew it to give them more time.
"The object for the bank is to get paid back and it's hard to pay them back if they do this kind of thing," Wolfe said. "Some banks are working with cooperative borrowers and trying to sell units and pay down the loan and other banks aren't."
The Solabella project is at 17355 N.W. Seventh Ave., in northern Miami-Dade County.
AmSouth Bank, which Regions Bank later acquired, wrote the developer a $29.1 million mortgage for the project in February 2006. The complaint against says that Legacy Pointe owes Regions Bank $14 million in principal on the mortgage. The bank requested that a receiver be appointed.
Orlando-based attorney Timothy Kiley, who represents Regions Bank in the lawsuit, declined comment. Cornerstone officials did not respond to a phone message and an e-mail.
The third foreclosure was filed against a new waterfront development in Dania Beach.
Regions filed the notice of foreclosure on Oct. 24 in Broward County Circuit Court against Amas Development-Hidden Harbour, an affiliate of Fort Lauderdale-based Michael A. Shiff Associates. It named 45 of the 55 units in The Oaks at Hidden Harbour.
The mix of townhomes and single-family homes sits along the Dania Cutoff Canal at the northeast corner of Southest 30th Avenue and Southwest 45th Street.
When the bank modified the mortgage in October 2007, the developer owed $14 million, which was due on Sept. 5.
Michael Shiff, who heads developer Amas, said he hopes to work out something with Regions so he can close out the project. He said 14 units have closed and a couple more could close soon. Shiff believes the bank filed for foreclosure because the loan was past due.
“It’s the first time that’s ever happened to me in the 12 years I’m doing development work,” Shiff said. “I’m not taking it personally but obvious there is a lot of sadness involved.”
In Regions’ third quarter earnings, it said that 14.8 percent of its $1.3 billion portfolio of Florida homebuilder loans were at least 60 days past due with no payments being made.
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