Land for new Patterson court caught in mortgage mess

PATTERSON - A former Patterson couple are struggling to satisfy the town, their mortgage holder and their pocketbook when it comes to the disposition of their property behind Town Hall. Officials are moving ahead with plans to seize the land, which is in foreclosure and which is where the town wants to build a courthouse.

But the property’s owners said they feel squeezed between the town and its eminent domain proceedings and the lack of response from their mortgage holder, which is caught up in the subprime lending crisis. “In my opinion, both sides are creating, for whatever reason, this stalemate situation,” said Linda Jeanniton, who, with her husband, owns three parcels totaling about an acre behind Town Hall.

The couple lived in one of the homes on the properties for five years before moving to North Carolina. They bought the land in 2002 and refinanced their mortgages on two parcels in 2004. The refinancing was done with Option One, a subprime lender owned by H&R Block. The income tax preparation company last week said it was shutting the lending business after an attempt to sell it collapsed. H&R Block is also laying off some 600 employees and selling its loan servicing business.

Only in recent weeks, Jeanniton said, has Option One agreed to accept $267,000 on 20 Leibell Place, money the couple would get from the town and hand over to the mortgage company. Option One has rejected the $198,000 offered on 16-18 Leibell Place. The town appraised the two main parcels at $460,000 and agreed to pay an additional $5,000 for a smaller parcel that it considers unbuildable. Jeanniton said the appraisal is less than the properties’ assessed value of $627,900.