A HOMEOWNER allegedly lost the deed of her house after she received a knock on her door.

Tarsha Santiago, from Gibsonton, Florida, around 10 miles south of Tampa, said she nearly lost her home over a few hundred dollars.

The HOA resident said she had faced possible foreclosure on her home in 2017.

A HOA can put a lien on a home and foreclose on it if the owner does not pay their association fees

The association can give the title of the home to a person who bids the highest amount that would cover the unpaid fees and other costs.

This means they can rent the home out until the bank forecloses on the property and it is sold.

Santiago’s attorney said two men named Jimmy Dean and Michael Chancey visited the homeowner while she was facing her problem, according to the Tampa Bay Times.

“She said they knocked on her door more than once, and she was facing a number of things that were weighing on her mind plus facing foreclosure,” attorney Pamela Jo Hatley said.

The men reportedly used to go to HOA auctions but decided to go straight to people’s homes instead.

“They kept coming by and telling her they could help her with an attorney, they would help her avoid foreclosure, she could stay in her home and they talked her into doing this deal with them,” Jo Hatley said.

Santiago had reportedly signed over the deed of her four-bed home to a company connected to these men for a few hundred dollars.

Hatley claimed that the Chancey’s promised the foreclosure would go away if the homeowner signed the quitclaim deed.

The homeowner however would still have to pay the mortgage and could face a deficiency judgment if the bank was unable to sell the home for more than the amount owed.

This company connected to the Chanceys would supposedly attempt to delay the sale of the home through filing motions and using agents at auctions to raise the bidding price and later not pay, according to the Tampa Bay Times.

A complaint against the Chancey’s and their supposed business practice has been raised in a complaint that was filed by the Florida Attorney General Pam Bondi’s office.

“Any successful HOA foreclosure sale prevents (the Chanceys) from successfully renting the properties on a long-term basis because once a property is sold, ownership changes hands and there is no legal basis for continuing to collect rents,” the complaint wrote.

The court entered a consent decree in 2023 where the Chanceys agreed to a variety of terms, including that they would not represent homeowners and that they would provide mortgage rescue or foreclosure defense services, according to court documents from Hillsborough County Clerk of Courts.

Tenants like Santiago were supposedly left in the dark about the foreclosures.

Santiago’s home was saved because of her husband’s actions.

WHAT IS A FORECLOSURE?

Foreclosures can take place when lenders take control of a property after borrowers have failed to make their repayments.

Homeowners or borrowers will receive a Notice of Default by their lender triggering the foreclosure process.

Those in HOA communities can also see their homes foreclosed by their HOA for falling behind on fees meaning that even if you keep up on mortgage payments, you can still lose your home.

Before foreclosure, a HOA will put a lien on your property which then allows them to auction it to reclaim unpaid funds.

The sale price of the property can often be much less than they are worth as it only needs to be enough to cover the debts to the HOA or lender and is sold via auction to the highest bidder.

Her husband was a co-owner and he did not sign the quitclaim deed so they were able to get their title back.

The U.S. Sun was unable to reach Jimmy Dean and Michael Chancey for comment.

Other homeowners within different HOAs have shared how they were kicked out of their homes despite paying their mortgage, The U.S. Sun has previously reported.

Miesha Ross said she was unexpectedly handed an eviction notice.

The single mother said she had paid her HOA dues late a few times.

“I can understand if I wasn’t making any payments at all and just refused to pay,” Ross said.