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Councilwoman Zapf dodges financial hardship
Husband's Chapter 7 bankruptcy discharged following real estate deal
Eric Zapf, husband of councilwoman Lorie Zapf, has been discharged from a Chapter 7 liquidation bankruptcy he filed in May of this year.
In 2014, the Fourth District Court of Appeal found that Eric Zapf was liable for negligence in a Carlsbad real estate deal. Zapf and his associates were told to pay more than $1 million for their role in a transaction. The sellers of the property, but not Eric Zapf, were found liable for fraud in the deal.
On May 12 of this year, Eric Zapf filed for Chapter 7 liquidation bankruptcy. In the filing, Lorie Zapf was named as a co-debtor. On August 24, bankruptcy judge Laura Taylor lifted a lien against the Zapf home related to the 2014 judgment. The discharge of the Chapter 7 was dated August 15. The lien-holders did not show up in court.
On August 3 of this year, Eric Zapf filed a declaration with the bankruptcy court, stating that when he and Lorie bought a home at 4622 Lisann Street in the Palisades area, there was a 35-foot crack in the foundation that he discovered under a rug that he was removing. The sellers threatened to sue the Zapfs for working on the home before they had possession.
The sellers fixed the crack with epoxy resin, but the epoxy did not hold. Zapf told the court that he had sold five homes in the Palisades area and learned that homes there had been built on fill and cracks were common. As a result of the cracks in the home, the property would sell for $75,000 to $100,000 less than a broker price opinion. The judge took that into account in removing the lien.
Here's something you might be interested in.
Councilwoman Zapf dodges financial hardship
Husband's Chapter 7 bankruptcy discharged following real estate deal
Councilwoman Zapf dodges financial hardship
Husband's Chapter 7 bankruptcy discharged following real estate deal
Eric Zapf, husband of councilwoman Lorie Zapf, has been discharged from a Chapter 7 liquidation bankruptcy he filed in May of this year.
In 2014, the Fourth District Court of Appeal found that Eric Zapf was liable for negligence in a Carlsbad real estate deal. Zapf and his associates were told to pay more than $1 million for their role in a transaction. The sellers of the property, but not Eric Zapf, were found liable for fraud in the deal.
On May 12 of this year, Eric Zapf filed for Chapter 7 liquidation bankruptcy. In the filing, Lorie Zapf was named as a co-debtor. On August 24, bankruptcy judge Laura Taylor lifted a lien against the Zapf home related to the 2014 judgment. The discharge of the Chapter 7 was dated August 15. The lien-holders did not show up in court.
On August 3 of this year, Eric Zapf filed a declaration with the bankruptcy court, stating that when he and Lorie bought a home at 4622 Lisann Street in the Palisades area, there was a 35-foot crack in the foundation that he discovered under a rug that he was removing. The sellers threatened to sue the Zapfs for working on the home before they had possession.
The sellers fixed the crack with epoxy resin, but the epoxy did not hold. Zapf told the court that he had sold five homes in the Palisades area and learned that homes there had been built on fill and cracks were common. As a result of the cracks in the home, the property would sell for $75,000 to $100,000 less than a broker price opinion. The judge took that into account in removing the lien.
Comments
Crooks all around.
AlexClarke: There are several things that bother me about this judgment. Best, Don Bauder
This really is a story of fraud and deceit. You decide who the real perpetrators are. Could be anyone from A to Zapf.
JustWondering; You have a very creative way of stating things. Best, Don Bauder
I haven't looked at much of the state court file, so I will accept the statement in the Eric Zapf was not found liable for any fraud. I do know that Lori Zapf was not a defendant in that lawsuit and did not file for bankruptcy with her husband. Eric Zapf did not face any fraud accusation in connection with his bankruptcy either.
For disclosure purposes, I am a bankruptcy attorney in El Cajon. I have no connection to anybody involved in the bankruptcy or the state court lawsuit. I used to be a Republican, but I have not love for anybody on the San Diego City Council.
carlstarrett: The article clearly stated that Eric Zapf was not found liable for fraud. Lorraine Zapf was a codebtor in his Chapter 7 bankruptcy but she did not file for Chapter 7; he did. We have made that clear in our coverage of this matter. Best, Don Bauder
Mike Murphy: Lorraine Zapf is a politician, but she was not part of this matter, to my knowledge. However, there is a question whether the Zapfs have any equity in their home. Best, Don Bauder
And we all know husbands and wives never share any secrets, thoughts or troubles with each other. (Wink, wink) I'm sorry but in my opinion she knew about what was going on in both their lives and chose to remain silent. Unless, you want us to believe she is completely clueless. In which case, do I really want a person, who is completely clueless, or one who is unethical, representing the hundreds of thousands of people who live in District Two?
JustWondering: She had to know of the appellate court decision that led to his big debt, and she had to know of the Chapter 7 bankruptcy. Best, Don Bauder
One seemingly insignificant elephant in the room here is the crack in the slab.
"Structural" fill slopes should be outlawed. If one reads a geotechnical report even casually (but attentively) one will find that they are festooned with qualifiers, such as "guaranteeing" the stability of the fill at the moment it passes inspection, but not one second afterward (and the inspections are a joke--very few samples are tested and quality control is, shall we say, "highly variable?") There have been notable (yet un-noted) failures that have been explained away by "experts" that are questionable but go unquestioned. Soledad Mountain? (Even the natural geology there is not unquestionably safe.) The legal costs and judgments come out of your pocket and mine, but the politicians who approve and the agency attorneys who defend such cases not only don't have to pay, they get rich. The real creators of the problem and those who approve of the "structural" fills never have to pay (but boy, do they PROFIT!), usually being long gone or long dead by the time the failure is dramatic enough to get anyone's attention. The time line could be decades or even centuries, but more likely closer to the former.
Structural fills are not designed for leaky pipes, irrigation, precipitation, overland flow, or any combination thereof (they are prohibited) that causes an accumulation of water in the fill, from which there is only one escape--sliding down. The vertical displacement is the vertical (settling) component, and the size (width) of the crack is the lateral movement component. For those whose houses (or any part thereof) are built on "structural" fills, I would pray for you if I thought it would do any good, and that goes for the sequence of buyers until and including the time when that Giant Crackin' Sound is heard. I'd put my bed and anything else I treasure upslope from the fill. If there is no natural ground under it and it is entirely on fill, that Giant Crackin' Sound might not be heard until the structure is at the bottom of the hill, canyon, or mountain.
A lot of structural fill slopes that are now very old now exist. Depending upon how much water has accumulated, the time will come when the "tipping point" is reached. But you'd rather not think about it, no?
Flapper: Eric Zapf claims he did not know about the crack until he lifted up the rug and saw it. But the sellers threatened to sue him alleging that Zapf family work was being done before it had full ownership of the home. So under threat of being sued, says Eric Zapf, he bought the house. Then, as a real estate salesman, he sold five homes in the same area, so he knew that cracks were common because of the fill. Best, Don Bauder
add on typical real estate sales person
General category: License to steal.
Flapper: Many agree with that sentiment. Best, Don Bauder
Murphyjunk: Yes, real estate salespersons are held in low esteem by the public. In most cases, this is justified. Best, Don Bauder
One little trick those agents have is doing most of the sales pitches verbally, and always prefacing their remarks with "I think." Ask one about the house or vacant property next door, and you'll hear what you want to hear, with the words "I think". If you don't insist that the agent research the matter and show you the printed info, you'll likely be misled. Years ago we were considering a house that was next to an open parcel of a number of acres. In response to my query the agent told me that the parcel was (he "thought" of course) designated as open space. We didn't buy the home, and within about a year, that parcel sprouted two-story attached homes. One of the buildings was within 50 feet of the home we viewed, and overlooked it. So much for asking and settling for something the agent "thinks" is true.
Exactly where is the location being referenced?
From a paragraph above: "On August 3 of this year, Eric Zapf filed a declaration with the bankruptcy court, stating that when he and Lorie bought a home at 4622 Lisann Street in the Palisades area, there was a 35-foot crack in the foundation that he discovered under a rug that he was removing. The sellers threatened to sue the Zapfs for working on the home before they had possession."
4622 Lisann Street is in Clairemont ... North of the Morena Blvd Costco, sometimes referred to as the original Price Club site.
Flapper: Palisades. Best, Don Bauder
JustWondering: Eric Zapf says the home is in the Palisades area. Best, Don Bauder
I believe that neighborhood is called "Bay Ho Palisades"
Ponzi: Bay Ho Palisades? Maybe Heave Ho Palisades? Best, Don Bauder