Wednesday, August 18, 2010

Matt Falconer can't even remember who owns his house

Here's something peculiar...

As a candidate for Orange County Mayor, Matthew Falconer was required to file a document disclosing his financial status, assets and liabilities.  Here is the "Form 6" that Falconer filed on June 17, 2010:
Matthew Falconer Financial Disclosures

Note that this form states that Matthew Falconer's assets include a personal residence in Windermere, free and clear.  No mortgages or encumbrances are listed for the home.


However, the Orange County Public Records show that the ownership of the Falconer residence was transferred from "Matthew J. Falconer and Cheri C. Falconer" (Matthew Falconer's wife) to "Cheri C. Falconer" by virtue of a Warranty Deed in March 2009, which was recorded on September 29, 2009:

Matthew Falconer Warranty Deed

And here is the data from the Orange County Property Appraiser's website, confirming that the Falconer residence is owned by Cheri Falconer, and only Cheri Falconer:

Matthew Falconer Property Records

All this gives rise to several questions:   

Why did Falconer transfer the ownership of his house into his wife's name?  Florida has fairly broad protections for homestead property, so what is going on here that Falconer felt it was necessary to take this step?

Why was the deed dated in March 2009 but not recorded until six months later?  

If the property ownership was transferred in 2009, why did Falconer say he owned the residence on the Form 6 he signed on June 17, 2010, under oath?

Are there any other inaccuracies or misrepresentations on Falconer's Form 6?  What is the true state of his financial status?

Food for thought...

3 comments:

  1. So I just got an ugly profanity-laced tirade from yet another anonymous poster claiming I'm endangering Falconer's family by posting this information and the only reason for the transfer in ownership is because someone was posting Falconer's address and picture of his house all over the internet.

    First of all, anonymous posts get stricter scrutiny from me. And I am way less likely to approve a comment that is filled with profanity. Don't like it? I refer you to the "Policies" tab at the top of this page...this is my blog, go write whatever little nasty things you like on your corner of the internet. This is mine.

    Second of all, I don't buy that Falconer transferred the property to protect his family. Falconer's wife's name is well-known and the house address is still public record and easily found. Nothing was hidden by this move.

    The person who sent the profane anonymous comment thought they would be funny by posting a link to my house address. My address and phone number are public record. It's a risk I take blogging under my real name, something the vast majority of my attackers are unwilling to do. Anyone who looks up my address will see that I am definitely not living anywhere as fancy as Falconer's Windermere residence, but I like my little house and my neighborhood. Hopefully most people are mature enough to realize that stalking me does not help their political goals.

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  2. The level of personal safety of Matt's wife and 2 kids decreased because of you.
    You're just a thug.

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  3. Falconer's address has always been public record. Before AND after he transferred the property into Mrs. Falconer's name. There's not a single intelligent person who thinks that putting the house in Mrs. Falconer's name would "hide" the location from anyone. Get real.

    WFTV ran a story tonight asking questions about Falconer's finances, suggesting there may be misrepresentations. They link to his financial disclosure form, which includes his home address too. http://www.wftv.com/news/24691139/detail.html

    ReplyDelete

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