| Fear & foreclosure in Las Vegas |
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Page 5 of 7 Stolworthy’s goal was to net $10,000 to pay off other debts. In the end, he says, the money went to Grimm’s fees, and he got nothing. They fought in court for six years, and Stolworthy spent $30,000 on legal fees before Grimm agreed to pay about $5,000 in a settlement, Stolworthy says.Grimm told Stolworthy he was from Iowa. Cathy Rojas, a former employee at Distinctive Real Estate, says Grimm claims to have been a US Navy SEAL. She saw him often at Mazzarella’s office, decked out in expensive cowboy boots and cabana shirts. He was an avid hunter and drove a Hummer and a jacked-up pick-up truck with enormous tires. “He liked to show off what he had,” Rojas, 50, says. In addition to selling real estate, Grimm ran a trucking business, Rojas says. He often parked a trailer for hauling earthmoving equipment in the cul-de-sac outside his house, according to neighbors. It said “Patriot Transport” on the side. In 1997, Grimm helped an elderly ceramics teacher named Norma Hayward refinance her single-story house on a sun-baked block about 13 kilometers north of the Strip. He told her she reminded him of his mother. Hayward, now 79, took out a new mortgage for $50,000, enough to pay for a new roof. She found out later it was an adjustable rate. Grimm assured her she could refinance again before it started ticking up. She called him when it did in 2001. Grimm helped her refinance again that December, telling Hayward he would take care of all the paperwork. He then borrowed $96,000 without telling her the amount, she says, and her payments rose to $800 a month from about $550. “I came unglued,” Hayward says. Grimm said he would cover the difference if Hayward kept paying the $550, sending it to him. She agreed. Then, in 2005, he asked her to send her checks to a woman named LaTasha O’Quinn. Hayward had a stroke shortly after, prompting her daughter Patti to research property records. She discovered that her mother no longer owned her house. Worse, Grimm had transferred it four times without her knowledge, once to O’Quinn, one of his straw buyers. “I never knew it,” Hayward says. “I trusted him.” GreenPoint Mortgage Funding Inc. foreclosed on O’Quinn, who couldn’t be reached for comment. The loan, now in default, was for $203,000. To stay in her house, Hayward would have had to buy it from GreenPoint at that price. Eric Dobberstein, a lawyer working pro bono, got GreenPoint to cut the amount owed to $153,000. That was still more than Hayward could afford. Then a well-to-do ceramics student of Hayward’s agreed to buy the house and let her live in it. Holding her tan-and-white Pomeranian dog, Sammie, the otherwise cheerful Hayward seethes when the subject turns to Grimm. “I hope they put him so far back in jail that he never sees the light of day,” she says. Mazzarella met Grimm when she worked at Liberty Realty in Henderson. She went to his office on business, and he asked her to lunch, Mazzarella told Rojas, her former employee. Records show that Mazzarella worked at Liberty from March 2002 until December 2003, when she left to start Distinctive Real Estate. Mazzarella marketed the new company with an online brochure featuring a head shot that looked worthy of Hollywood, her hair shimmering and her teeth snow-white. |
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Las Vegas is a unique city. As you plan your move to Las Vegas be sure to plan your routes wisely to avoid traffic and lights. Also, be sure to have your real estate agent involved so that he can guide you in your schedule and overall move. A good agent can refer you to good moving and travel companies. They have seen many people relocate and have experience in smoothing out the bumps. Moving is an exciting time. Make sure your team is in place so you can enjoy the wonderful culture Las Vegas has to offer. Welcome to Las Vegas!