LA Times, Mortgage turmoil snares Ed McMahon, mold stygma house.

[Guest guest]

" When your family loses its health and your home is a wasteland, that's a

colossal disaster, " McMahon said at the time. "

" Another difficulty for the area has been a mold contamination that has

plagued a number of homes, including McMahon's and one purchased for the

director

of the Getty Museum.

McMahon won a $7.2-million insurance settlement after claiming that mold in

his house killed his dog Muffin and sickened him and his wife.

According to a lawsuit he filed, the trouble began when a pipe broke and

water flooded a den. Mold was later discovered throughout the house. McMahon

and

his wife, Pamela, blamed faulty cleanup.

Mortgage turmoil snares Ed McMahon

ny Carson's sidekick has defaulted on millions in home loans.

By Y. Hong, Los Angeles Times Staff Writer

June 4, 2008

Ed McMahon, the longtime sidekick to ny Carson on " The Tonight Show, " is

fighting to avoid foreclosure on his multimillion-dollar Beverly Hills

estate.

McMahon defaulted on $4.8 million in mortgage loans with a unit of

Countrywide Financial Corp., which filed a notice of default in March,

according to

ForeclosureRadar, a company that sells default data pulled from public records.

* _La Land blog: ny's old associate is facing foreclosure_

(http://www.latimes.com/business/la-fi-mcmahon4-lalandlink,0,5989330.storylink)

The 85-year-old pitchman for various products, including American Family

Publishers, is the highest-profile person to be caught up in the nationwide

real

estate downturn and mortgage crunch.

" He's not alone. There are plenty of people affected by the weak economy,

bad housing market or bad health, " McMahon's spokesman, Bragman, said

late Tuesday.

Bragman said McMahon fell and broke his neck about 18 months ago and has

been unable to work since.

" The ideal situation would be that he would be healthy and able to earn a

living to pay for his house, " Bragman said.

The six-bedroom, five-bath home on Crest Court is listed for sale at $6.25

million, said real estate agent of Estates, who has the

listing. It's been on the market for two years, he said.

It would seem to be an ideal home. The Hilton & Hyland luxury real estate

website described the home as a celebrity Mediterranean estate in the

prestigious Beverly Hills gated community of The Summit, which overlooks

Coldwater

Canyon and Mulholland Drive.

" This once-in-a-lifetime offering is full of charm and character. The

foreign imported doors and meticulously chosen fireplaces are unlike any

other, "

the website boasts. It also has a master suite with his-and-hers baths and

closets overlooking the yard and a sweeping canyon.

But said The Summit has been a difficult area to sell.

" In the midst of trying to sell this property, there were a lot of

distractions, " said, citing paparazzi who have converged around the

nearby home

of Britney Spears.

" When we were trying to sell the house one time, there were about 100

paparazzi there, " he said.

Another difficulty for the area has been a mold contamination that has

plagued a number of homes, including McMahon's and one purchased for the

director

of the Getty Museum.

McMahon won a $7.2-million insurance settlement after claiming that mold in

his house killed his dog Muffin and sickened him and his wife.

According to a lawsuit he filed, the trouble began when a pipe broke and

water flooded a den. Mold was later discovered throughout the house. McMahon

and

his wife, Pamela, blamed faulty cleanup.

" When your family loses its health and your home is a wasteland, that's a

colossal disaster, " McMahon said at the time.

Both the Hyland website and ChristiesGreatestEstates.com list the property,

built in 1989, at $5.75 million. said it was still priced at $6.25

million.

McMahon took out two loans on the property totaling $4.5 million and later

borrowed an additional $300,000 against the house, according to

ForeclosureRadar. The loans were obtained through Countrywide Home Loans Inc.

A Countrywide spokesman declined to comment, citing privacy concerns.

The Wall Street Journal first reported the story. Though McMahon was in

negotiations with Countrywide, the paper said it wasn't clear whether McMahon

and

his wife would be able to remain in the home.

McMahon was about $644,000 in arrears on the loan when the notice of default

was filed, the paper said.

Federal regulators have been urging lenders to ease loan terms, but it

wasn't clear if that would happen in McMahon's case.

_peter.hong@..._ (mailto:peter.hong@...)

Times staff writer E. Reckard contributed to this report.