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May 21, 2008 11:57 pm US/Pacific
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Congresswoman Defaults On Sacramento Home
Reporting
Anny Hong
SACRAMENTO (CBS13) ―
She helps make laws, but one California Congresswoman couldn't make her house payments. County records show that Congresswoman Laura Richardson defaulted on her Sacramento home.
Some neighbors were upset, arguing that she abandoned her home and didn't maintain it for several months. "It was pretty disheveled," said neighbor Rafael Burgos.
The Long Beach Democrat bought the three-bedroom home shortly after she was elected to the California State Assembly in November 2006. The following spring, she ran for Congress in a special election and ended up in Washington D.C.
Documents show she took out a $535,000 home loan and did not have a down payment.
"We finally [saw] a notice on the front door about two and a half months ago," Burgos said. "It was a bank repossession notice."
Congresswoman Richardson released a statement, saying, "I have worked with my lender to complete a loan modification and have renegotiated the terms of the agreement, with no special provisions. I fully intend to fulfill all financial obligations of the property."
However, county records show she no longer owns the home. It was sold at a public auction to Red Rock Mortgage for $388,000.
Either way, neighbors say Richardson should have known better and been more responsible.
"It comes back on us," Burgos said. "When it's around the back, when our mortgage rates go up or we can't get a loan."
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