Flower Mound, Texas- A man who gained notoriety for his $16 house has said he will leave the residence without a fight after a court ruling today.

Ken Robinson became somewhat of a celebrity after using adverse possession laws to (at least temporarily) score a $340,000 house in Flower Mound, Texas, even setting up a website and doing some publicity when the story got legs. Home vacancies and a floundering real estate market in the US have been a big point of economic contention for years, and the fact that Robinson seemed to be gaming the very banks that caused the meltdown and the resultant pain experienced by so many Americans made him a bit of a folk hero to some- but others didn’t admire his actions as much.

In a lengthy earlier article about the scheme, Robinson preached to $16 house hopefuls about the process of getting a McMansion nearly for free, explaining how he treated skeptical neighbors after he ‘moved in’ to the property:

“I told them I have as much right to this house as you have to yours. I said, ‘You know, you wouldn’t want me to come to your house and tell you you’ve got to get out,’” Robinson replied. “This is my domicile, this is where I live. … This is my intent, to be the owner of record. … If that’s not your intent — to go in and improve upon the property — leave it alone. Otherwise you’ll probably end up locked up.”

Ultimately, a judge ruled today that Robinson must appear in court or vacate the home by Monday, and he has chosen the latter. When asked if he plans to attempt the stunt again, this time with less publicity, he declined to say. Would you try to get a $16 house through adverse possession laws?

$16 House ‘Owner’ Leaving Without a Fight After Judge’s Ruling is a post from: The Inquisitr

As the housing crisis wears on, lots of discussion on how to manage the glut of impending foreclosures seems to rely on modifying existing and troubled loans to enable strapped borrowers to make payments.

And while the tactic seems to work in most cases, a recent report indicates that about one in five of those modified mortgages are back in crisis mode within a year. Within the year, to be precise, 20% of the modified mortgages were in excess of 90 days delinquent as per the US Comptroller’s “Mortgage Metrics” report.

In a statement addressing the findings, the government body indicated more to come:

“Foreclosures may continue to increase in future quarters as a large number of foreclosures work through the process and alternatives to foreclosure are exhausted,” the Comptroller, a division of the U.S. Treasury Department, said in a statement.

In August, delinquency notices jumped up 33% over the previous month as growth stagnates and the ‘jobless recovery’ continues to feed a roughly 9% rate of unemployment across America.

In the second quarter, “total loan modifications and alternative payment plans for delinquent borrowers” moved down to just over 456,000, a 19% decrease over the same quarter in the year prior, according to the mortgage report from the Comptroller’s office. The Home Affordable Modification Program granted 70,000 new payment plans during the same quarter, down 35% over the same period last year.

The decreased number of modifications in the quarter still outnumbered the 121,000 completed foreclosures, and lenders seized fewer homes during the period. Total forfeiture of homes- foreclosures, deeds in lieu of foreclosure and short sales included- fell 22% to about 180,000.

Modified Loans Default Again 20% of the Time, Says Comptroller is a post from: The Inquisitr

Charlie Sheen has put his Beverly Hills home on the open market. Better known as his “Sober Valley Ranch” a term Sheen created himself, the home is on the open market for $7.2 million.

For that price the new buyer will receive a 7,924 square foot house with five bedrooms and seven baths that is located in an exclusive gated community.

According to the homes listing:

“This custom-built Mediterranean in Mulholland Estates is an entertainer’s dream with spacious public rooms, most of which open to a beautifully landscaped yard featuring a professional outdoor kitchen with dining area, pool and spa.” The listing also mentions, “Other features include a screening room and top-of-the-line appliances and finishes.”

Sheen paid ex-wife Brooke Mueller $1 million during their divorce so he could take sole possession of the home.

Charlie Sheen Is Selling His “Sober Valley Ranch” Home is a post from: The Inquisitr

RealtyTrac is out with a new report on the number of foreclosures in the U.S. and rather than just doll out the dry numbers that no-one will really read Business Insider translated those numbers to dots on Google Maps of cities around the U.S.

But first just a few dry facts from RealyTrac about the foreclosure hell in the U.S.

California, Florida, Nevada and Arizona cities accounted for 19 of the top 20  metro foreclosure rates, with Boise City-Nampa, Idaho the lone exception at No.  20. Boise also was one of only three metros in the top 20 where foreclosure  activity increased from 2009, along with the Florida metro areas of Deltona-Daytona Beach-Ormond Beach at No. 13 and Tampa-St.  Petersburg-Clearwater at No. 17.

“Foreclosure floodwaters receded somewhat in 2010  in the nation’s hardest-hit housing markets,” said James J. Saccacio, chief  executive officer of RealtyTrac. “Even so, foreclosure levels remained five to 10  times higher than historic norms in most of those hard-hit markets, where deep  faultlines of risk remain and could potentially trigger more waves of  foreclosure activity in 2011 and beyond. Meanwhile foreclosures became more  widespread in 2010 as high unemployment drove activity up in 72 percent of the  nation’s metro areas — many of which were relatively insulated from the initial  foreclosure tsunami.

Now from Business Insider here are some maps of your favorite U.S. cities populated with foreclosure map pins.

First up Lakeland Florida:

Boise Idaho

Reno Nevada

Phoenix Arizona

The mapping of foreclosure hell is a post from: The Inquisitr

Animal rights activists PETA have expressed interest in leasing the famed ‘Amityville Horror House,’ which hit the Long Island real estate market last week.

PETA members, who are apparently smoking crack, seem to think that residents south of Montauk Highway will allow a slaughterhouse-like exhibit on the premises. (As a local resident, I can attest that generally, residents don’t allow two week breaks between grass cuts.) Says PETA vice-president Tracy Reiman:

“In our horror house, the sound of slaughterhouse blades whirring while animals scream for their lives would play over loudspeakers.” Tracy Reiman, vice-president of PETA wrote to the present owners of the Long Island home.

“Visitors would be able to see animatronic hens struggling for space inside tiny battery cages and lifelike “fish” gasping for air as they slowly suffocate on the deck of a fishing boat.”

Reiman also says the planned exhibit would include instruments of animal torture, and a Cruelty-Free Cafe offering meat-free ribs and chicken-free chicken. Also suggested is a souvenir of a knife-wielding, “crazed” Ronald McDonald figurine. Of course, the venture isn’t entirely PETA-centric- the letter of interest suggests that the spectacle would attract buyers to the house.

PETA wants to lease ‘Amityville Horror’ house is a post from: The Inquisitr

Interesting fun fact: I’m currently typing this a five minute walk away from 108 Ocean Avenue.

Local kids like me ‘know’ that the homeowners who take up residence at the famed “Amityville Horror House” are never amused by the interest in the home, but it might come in handy now that the famous house is up for sale. If you’re unfamiliar with the local (and then national) lore, a mentally disturbed young man killed his entire family in the house back in 1977. Ronald DeFeo Jr. murdered six of his family members in the home, and is currently serving 25 to life at Green Haven for the crime.

The house itself became a nationwide point of interest after a heavily dramatized movie detailed the 28 days George and Kathleen Lutz lived there before fleeing and selling their story. After the Lutzes’ tale of woe, no subsequent owners reported any paranormal annoyances, breathing doors or viciously slamming windows. (The claims have been widely debunked in intervening years.) Despite the dubious nature of the story, it has maintained a place in the public consciousness, so much so that its impending sale has made international news.

Perhaps the scariest part of the listing is that the home price has jumped from $310,000 in 1997 to $1.15m in 2010.

‘Amityville Horror’ house hits market on Long Island is a post from: The Inquisitr

Be grateful, rest of the country, that you do not live in such a stupid real estate market.

75 1/2 Bedford Street (yes, it doesn’t even warrant its own whole house number) is in the news today after hitting the market at $2.7m. At 990 square feet (and three floors) that’s $2,777 per square foot. The house sold in 1994 for $270,000, and that owner did about $200K worth of renovations. It sold again in 2000 for $1.6m, but has location, location, location appreciated that much?

Selling points include being (only in New York) the narrowest house in Manhattan and former tenants including Edna St. Vincent Millay. The house also boasts a shared backyard and a skylight. And each floor has a whole nine feet of width to sprawl out in- luxurious by NYC standards.

Recent estimates place the house’s value at $2.5m, but the market has been soft since then. Still, Corcoran broker Alex Nicholas is confident the house will fetch the hefty price tag. Nicholas says:

“It’s a unique space – one of a kind.”

75 Bedford St. hallway with a window will cost you $2.7m is a post from: The Inquisitr

Meanest widow ever, Elsie Poncher, is moving her late husband’s remains and peddling his final resting place, located directly above Marilyn Monroe’s, to the highest bidder.

Elsie, who is in her 70s, was widowed 23 years ago. She hopes that the sale of the crypt will help pay off her $1.6m mortgage so she can give the house to her kids “free and clear.” She plans to start the bidding at a cool $500K on eBay.

Mrs. Poncher tells the LA Times that when her husband purchased the plot from Joe DiMaggio during his divorce from Monroe in 1954, Marilyn was alive and kicking. (The actress died in 1962.) Elsie says he had no idea how much of a cultural icon Monroe would become. Of her husband, Elsie described him and their lifestyle as outrageous, and said he “knew all the gangsters.”

For her part, Elsie did accomodate his final wishes when he was interred. Of his burial, she says:

When he was dying, Elsie said, her husband approached her with a request. “He said, ‘If I croak, if you don’t put me upside down over Marilyn, I’ll haunt you the rest of my life.’ ”

Right after the funeral, Elsie said, she told the funeral director of her husband’s wish. “I was standing right there, and he turned him over,” she said.

Wanna spend your afterlife on top of Marilyn Monroe? is a post from: The Inquisitr

The 1330 Avenue of the Americas building sold for close to $500 million three years ago but was auctioned off in April for $100,000 to a Canadian pension fund after owner Harry Macklowe defaulted on a $130 million loan.

The 40 story skyscraper, located just steps from the Museum of modern art and a short walk from both Rockefeller Center and Central Park, was unloaded at the ridiculously low price on the conditions that the new owners take on the enormous debt associated with the property.

The loan was sold to Cadim, Canada’s largest pension fund, and was then transferred to it’s subsidiary, Otera Capital. Otera took over responsibility for the loan and the tower’s $240 million mortgage. The building is two-thirds leased and currently its most prominent tenant is the Financial Times newspaper that has installed a pink ‘FT’ logo on its rooftop.

$500,000,000 Skyscraper in heart of NYC Sells for $100,000 is a post from: The Inquisitr

Roost lets you search by city for homes on the market, then view photos and detailed info about each entry. It pulls its information from a network of Internet Data Exchange sites that conform to an industry-wide data sharing standard. Roost also has partnerships with dozens of individual real estate brokers across the country to enrich the database-based listings.

As part of this week’s announcement, Roost has begun featuring a database of foreclosed homes now up for grabs as well. That comes thanks to a new partnership with First American CoreLogic.

Roost has been around since 2007. Its site launched publicly in beta earlier this year.

Roost Snags Cash For Real Estate Search Engine is a post from: The Inquisitr

Trulia is expected to use this additional fund to further its development of new products and services for homebuyers, agents, brokers and advertisers and to expand their advertising services for the recently launched Trulia Advertising Network and Trulia Pro, its self-service offering.

Trulia.com has so far raised a total of $33 million in venture capital.

Trulia Secures $15 Million Funding for New Products and Services is a post from: The Inquisitr