Real estate agents in the Gulf Coast area are not happy with Ken Feinberg's BP Gulf Oil claim rules which may exclude them from the $20 billion settlement fund. However, a separate settlement may address their concerns.
Gulf Coast Settlement May Exclude Realtors
According to Ken Feinberg, the attorney who took over the Gulf Coast oil spill claims process from British Petroleum, realtors will be excluded from the $20 billion settlement funds. However, there is going to be a separate $60 million fund for realtors. The reason for this is that Feinberg doesn't believe that they have a claim under the law as it is; it's more of a remedy in equity.
Representatives from the five realtor associations in Louisiana, Florida, Alabama, Mississippi and Texas have negotiated a separate settlement and have contracted with NCA (National Catastrophe Adjusters), an Indiana-based national claims adjustment firm, to handle the claims. Though the claims will ultimately be processed with the Gulf Coast Claims Facility (GCCF), NCA is handling the submission and initial review process. It is also important to note that government claims are also going to be handled outside of the GCCF, as it stands now. Both realtors and government entities are two categories of claimants that would be well-served by speaking to a lawyer prior to selecting which avenue for compensation is most appropriate.
What Constitutes A Gulf Oil Spill Real Estate Claim?
According to environmental lawyers, there's a lot of ambiguity in the law, so the answer to that probably depends upon whom you ask. The way it is right now is that if you don't live directly on the water, don't derive your income directly through use of natural resources and are not dependent on those for subsistence or your livelihood, then you probably don't have a clear claim. In these instances, we're talking about injury to real property.
Businesses that depend on real property transactions are an entirely different matter when it comes to oil spill compensation. With real estate agents, they're obviously not selling seafood, they're not brokering seafood and they're not selling boats. So, it's hard for them to make a case that they're dependent on the Gulf for their business – although a real estate agent is not going to agree with that.
However, if tourists aren't coming here, there are significant ripple effects and the regional economy suffers. That has an effect on the real estate market. If there's a stigma associated with pollution and contamination of the Gulf and people aren't coming to Gulf Coast communities to buy property – that's going to affect the bottom line for all real estate agents.