United States v. Jason Morrison, 2013 U.S. App. LEXIS 6843

Morrison and Rosenberger formed Vanguard Properties to flip foreclosed homes in Midland, TX.
They concealed transfers to buyers and instructed sellers not to notify lenders, avoiding due-on-sale effects.
Buyers often financed via owner financing with three-year balloon payments and later traditional loans.
Lenders’ records showed no timely application of Buyers’ payments to mortgages; some funds were diverted for personal use.
Defendants pursued loan modifications and delays (including HAMP avenues) to delay foreclosures and extend receipt of Buyer's payments.
District court calculated loss at $769,365 but ultimately applied other calculations; Morrison was sentenced to 87 months with restitution and supervised release.

Issue	Plaintiff's Argument	Defendant's Argument	Held
Loss calculation method and collateral deduction	U.S.S.G. 2B1.1 app. n.3(E) should apply	Collateral value should be deducted from loan totals	Intended loss control; collateral deduction rejected as inappropriate here
Mass-marketing enhancement application	Ads reached a large number of potential buyers	Eight-nine properties with separate sales do not show mass-marketing	Enhancement affirmed based on Magnuson reasoning that ads reach many persons

Wimbish, 980 F.2d 312 (5th Cir. 1992) (intended loss supported when defendant acted with conscious indifference to losses)
Morrow, 177 F.3d 272 (5th Cir. 1999) (intended loss appropriate where defendant could not ensure repayment)
Tedder, 81 F.3d 549 (5th Cir. 1996) (intent to repay governs loss basis; no repayment means full intended loss)
Goss, 549 F.3d 1013 (5th Cir. 2008) (collateral deduction depends on facts; not automatic; real-property caveats)
Magnuson, 307 F.3d 333 (5th Cir. 2002) (mass-marketing requires advertising reaching a large number of persons)
United States v. Ibarra-Luna, 628 F.3d 712 (5th Cir. 2010) (harmless error standard in sentencing)