Donald Gupton (Henderson, North Carolina) and his three mobile home sales businesses, Dynasty Homes, Creative Real Estate and Superior Housing, agreed to a consent judgment in a lawsuit filed by Attorney General Roy Cooper in Wake County North Carolina Superior Court. Under the agreement, the state will be reimbursed $75,000 and the defendants will abide by fair trade practices. A confidential settlement was also entered in a private lawsuit by about 65 would be customers for an undisclosed settlement amount.

The lawsuit, filed in January 2003, alleged, in substance, that advertisements by defendants promised that consumers with poor credit could obtain homes for $500 per month. Upon closing, the consumers learned that the costs and payments would be higher than represented. The complaint also alleged that defendants inflated sale prices and property values.

The consent judgment prohibits Gupton and his firms from:

Selling mobile homes to consumers whom the company knows can't keep up with payments;

Deceiving customers about the costs of homes or property, monthly payments or the possibility of refinancing at lower rates;

Falsifying loan applications;

Soliciting false gift letters from customers to secure financing;

Failing to make proper disclosures to customers as required by law about the sales of manufactured homes;

Misrepresenting the value or source of down payments or trades-in;

Encouraging inflated appraisals of homes and land sold to consumers;

Failing to make proper disclosures about the sales of manufactured homes to customers as required by law; and

Using false or misleading representations to sell mobile homes and land.

The Daily Dispatch has followed this matter diligently since its inception and further articles and information can be found at http://www.hendersondispatch.com/news/#~foreclosed!