Neighbors flip out over "Flipping Out" star's behavior

Los Angeles real estate reality television star Jeff Lewis, who is known for his cocksure, confrontational style, has made the neighbors of one of his projects very afraid, they said, and they want a restraining order to keep him at bay. Lewis is the star of "Flipping Out," a Bravo channel show that follows him as he buys, renovates and resells homes.

Terence Beesley and Ashley Jensen, who live next door to a house Lewis is improving on Valley Oak Drive in Los Feliz, said in a lawsuit filed Wednesday that the developer constructed a deck at the house that encroached on their property. When they became aware of the encroachment earlier this year, Lewis offered them $10,000 to buy an easement, but their real estate experts concluded the easement was worth $100,000, they said.

Lewis countered during an unexpected nighttime visit to their house with an offer of $30,000 and threatened to make their lives miserable by casting them in a negative light in front of 3 million television viewers, they said in their complaint. Named in the suit is Lewis' partner, Ryan Brown, who the neighbors described as Lewis' "supposedly relatively even-keeled" foil, and Lewis' company, Vicious Investments. It accuses the pair of trespassing, property damage and assault, and demands that the encroaching deck be removed. No financial damages were specified.

According to Beesley and Jensen, Lewis' actions at their home are in keeping with his TV persona. Their suit says the show "involves documenting the rude, outrageous, boorish, offensive, mean-spirited bullying by Jeff Lewis of anyone or anything in his way."

Mr. Lewis, if you care to comment we will post your response! (As long as it's not rude, outrageous, boorish, offensive, mean-spirited or bullying.) OK, maybe bullying.

--Roger Vincent

Comments

[farinhte_451]

The entertainment section is over there >

[TrojanDLA]

Watching even 5 minutes of these sort of reality shows makes me want to gouge my eyes out.

[Ken P.]

Jeff Lewis, don't change. I hope this is a run up to the next season of flipping out. Sorry neighbors -- the price you pay for living in La La land.

[Wooster]

Don't watch the show, but $100,000 for such an easment is straight up extortion. Their "experts" must be friends who think that, because of the show, they will get any price. That said, what professinal real estate investor doesn't work off an accurate survey with repeatedly checked plans?

[dudueman1961]

Where/when was the survey?
Where's the CA licensed surveyor (LS)?

If the land is theirs, make 'em tear it down. If TV boy built it based upon a bad survey, the LS is liable for either incompetence or fraud, or both.

All I can think is that any deck would degrade the property value by having someone above snooping on the property below, how gross. But apparently that's L.A.- gross

[Enlightenment]

Give them $100K, or tear it down. It is their fault for building where they shouldn't and that is why we have easement laws.

\I've heard of stories in the USA where people where forced to tear down something because of building on easement, so it is time to learn an expensive leason you big mouth tv fool!