For Immediate Release
ALTA, AARP Applaud North Carolina AG on Consumer Exploitation Lawsuit
Washington, DC, March 28, 2023 — The American Land Title Association (ALTA), AARP, the North Carolina Land Title Association and AARP North Carolina applaud North Carolina Attorney General Josh Stein for his efforts to combat unfair and deceptive practices in the North Carolina real estate market by filing a complaint against Florida-based real estate brokerage MV Realty.
ALTA advocates for state laws and regulations preventing the enforcement of Non-Title Recorded Agreements for Personal Services (NTRAPS). ALTA has worked with national stakeholders to design model legislation to make these types of unfair agreements unenforceable, prevent the recording of the agreements in land records and provide consumers with options for seeking damages. Bills have been introduced in the North Carolina House and Senate that follow this model legislation.
“The property rights of American homebuyers must be protected,” said ALTA Vice President of Government Affairs Elizabeth Blosser. “A home often is a consumer’s largest investment, and the best way to support the certainty of landownership is through public policy. We have to ensure that there are no unreasonable restraints on a homebuyer’s future ability to sell or refinance their property due to unwarranted transactional costs.”
“Legislative solutions by the North Carolina legislature and legal solutions by Attorney General Stein are a great example of how the legislature and judiciary can come together to protect homeowners and their rights,” said AARP Government Affairs Director Samar Jha. “We hope other states will follow the example of North Carolina, Pennsylvania and Florida to work out legislative and legal remedies to counter predatory housing practices.”
“We would like to thank North Carolina Attorney General Josh Stein for prioritizing North Carolinians’ consumer and property rights,” said Lisa Riegel, Manager Advocacy & Livable Communities, AARP North Carolina. “We are hopeful that along with Attorney General Stein’s action and the introduction of legislative efforts in both the North Carolina House and Senate, we will be able to stop the practice of unfair service agreements.”
Attorney General Stein is the fifth attorney general to sue MV Realty over its right-to-list agreements. Four other attorneys general filed lawsuits, including Florida Attorney General Ashley Moody, Massachusetts Attorney General Maura Healey, Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost and Pennsylvania Attorney General Josh Shapiro. The lawsuits allege MV Realty misled consumers regarding the terms of the company’s “Homeowner Benefit Program.” Earlier this month, Utah became the first state to pass legislation protecting homeowners from the predatory practice of filing of unfair real estate fee agreements in property records, with Colorado, Georgia and North Dakota quickly following.
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About ALTA
The American Land Title Association, founded in 1907, is a national trade association representing more than 6,500 title insurance companies, title and settlement agents, independent abstracters, title searchers and real estate attorneys. ALTA members conduct title searches, examinations, closings and issue title insurance that protects real property owners and mortgage lenders against losses from defects in titles.
Contact: Megan Hernandez
Office: 202-261-0315
Email: mhernandez@alta.org