Merry Christmas Costs $18,000

The Onheiser Ground Rent Ejectement Case has come to an end. The Ohneiser family will not lose their home, but they have still been saddled with $18,000 in fees and interest on property taxes. This certainly isn't the best outcome, but the attorney's for the ironically named "Neighbor Saver LCC" who brought the nefarious ejectment suit don't seem to think so.

"Heidi met with her clients who are investors in ground rent, and theydecided to do this as a Christmas gift to the Onheiser family," said John H. Denick, an attorney who has also represented Neighbor Saver and spoke yesterday for Kenny.

Excuse me while I laugh out loud. A Christmas present? This guy could give Scrooge lessons in heartlessness.

"I hope that the Onheisers have a merry Christmas and a happy new year, and that they appreciate that they have the house," Denick said.

The case shows how rapidly fees can increase. Kenny's bill lists legal fees of $1,200 for herself and $3,000 for Denick, who helped to negotiate the settlement.

The bill also includes $12,854.61 that Neighbor Saver said it was owed in property taxes for 2004 and 2005. Under state law, those who buy property tax liens from the city are entitled to charge homeowners 18 percent interest, which can quickly add up. City records show that the Onheiser rowhouse's total tax bill for both years was less than $4,000. The bill submitted by Kenny doesn't say how the property tax amount was computed.

This is nauseating. Mr. Denick and Ms. Kenny should be ashamed of themselves. Councilman James P. Kraft misses the point completely.

"I have to give credit where credit is due," Kraft said yesterday. "Regardless of the problems that Ms. Kenny has elsewhere, she could have fought this. She could have thrown them out that morning, and she didn't. It's nice when you have a situation where people make certain representations and then they do what they say they're going to do."

Ms. Kenny could have done a lot of things. She could have set their house on fire or murdered the Onheisers in their sleep. She could have showered them with $100 bills and sung Christmas carols outside of their home. Its not about what Ms. Kenny and her predatory company didn't do. It is about what they did do. What Ms. Kenny, Mr. Denick and Neighbor Saver did was disturbingly wrong and most likely it should be illegal. Lets hope Frank Conaway can wake them up and force them to feel at least 1% of the suffering they have inflicted on so many homeowners in our State.