“Black” Marin, California USA Homeowner Sued “White” Appraiser for Devaluing Their Home By $487,500 Because They are Black

Is this a case of racial discrimination nearly 158 years after the proclamation of emancipation by President Abraham Lincoln?

Is this the case of disenfranchisement and racial segregation after over 53 years of the Civil Rights movement to which Martin Luther King lost his life?

The Real Estate Appraiser

Paul Austin and Tenisha Tate-Austin are black homeowners in Marin City. They bought their home back in 2016 for $550,000; according to Austin; they spent close to $400,000 doing expansions and renovations of their home. which means they spent $990,000 on their home already; trying to bring it up to taste.

In January 2020, 4 years after Paul Austin and Tenisha Tate-Austin bought their home; they invited one Janette Miller; a real estate appraiser to help value their home. She valued their home for $995,000.

What!!!

This came as a shock to them because they had earlier on March 2019; 10 months ago valued the same home for around $1,400,000; getting devalued was very disturbing; considering that Janette Miller was a Big name; she owns her firm Miller and Perotti Real Estate Appraisers Inc. She knows what she was doing very well and she understands her practice.

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Marin City’s location is about 5 miles north of San Francisco’s Golden Gate Bridge and very close to downtown Sausalito at about 1.5 miles. These areas can still be classified as the San Francisco Bay Area; which has a very high standard of living; especially housing.

Owning a house in the San Francisco Bay Area is a worthy investment; because it sure will appreciate with time; especially if you bought your house at a lower price some 10 years ago. I must add that there are lots of black neighborhoods in Marine City.

Whitewashing

The black couple Paul Austin and Tenisha Tate-Austin set up their home for another appraiser by removing every trace of being black from their home; their pictures and other black stuff were removed; they “whitewashed” their home and planted their good friend Jan who was white as the owner of the home.

This happened in February 2020; a month after the first appraisal by Janette Miller; the result was disturbing because that same white appraiser; Janette Miller; having found that the house was owned by a white owner; suddenly said that the house was now worth $1,482,500

What will you do with $487,500? Buy a house, buy some average cars, pay off your student loans, go back to school, take care of your old parents and family, start a new business, get into investments, make some huge donations? you can do a lot with $487,500 either you live in the United States or you live abroad.

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Lawsuit

This is no longer a case of mistaken real estate appraisal; it is a case of racial discrimination, disenfranchisement, and racial segregation. This week, the black couple homeowner Paul Austin and Tenisha Tate-Austin filed a fair housing lawsuit in federal district court against Janette Miller, her firm Miller, and Perotti Real Estate Appraisers Inc., and AMC Links LLC.

Austin said, “We believe the white lady wanted to devalue our property because we are in a Black neighborhood, and the home belonged to a Black family.”. Do you think he is right?

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