OLDSMAR - At a glance, the condominium looked cluttered, but good.

A couch and some draperies had been arranged in front of what appeared to be a window. Although the unit had wall-to-wall carpeting, there were a lot of throw rugs around.

It was only later that buyer Fred Grove learned that the condo for which he paid $63,900 had big problems, authorities said. The couch had not been in front of a window, but a sliding glass door that was jammed shut. The carpet had water stains.

This week, officials charged the seller, 61-year-old Judith Ann Terwilliger of Tarpon Springs, with grand theft. An investigator said in a sworn statement that Terwilliger hid signs of serious water damage and never told Grove that the condo association was going to assess all condo owners a repair bill of several thousand dollars.

Terwilliger was booked into the Pinellas County Jail and released Tuesday on $15,000 bail. Contacted Wednesday night, she referred all questions to her attorney, who could not be reached for comment.

The condominium in question was at the Gardens of Forest Lakes, where water damage on some units is so bad that signs warn residents to stay off their balconies. 

The complex, north of Tampa Road and west of Forest Lakes Boulevard, was completed in phases from 1985 to 1987 and consists of 160 two-bedroom, two-bath units. Earlier this year, property managers estimated that it could cost more than $5-million to repair. Repairs are expected to cost each owner in the complex thousands of dollars.

Grove would not discuss the transaction, but many details are laid out in a four-page affidavit from Richard K. Adkins, an investigator with the Pinellas County Department of Justice and Consumer Services.

Adkins said Grove contacted a real estate agent in January 2002 about buying a condominium. The agent found about six, one of which was Terwilliger's unit at 140 Hunter Lake Drive, Unit E, in the Gardens of Forest Lakes.

Terwilliger had listed her condo through an agent with an office in Largo. Because it was inconvenient for the agent to show the condo, Terwilliger said she could show the unit without the agent having to be present, Adkins said.

During Grove's first visit to the condo, Terwilliger told him she had performed "thousands of dollars worth of renovations" to the unit and there were no problems with the place, Adkins said in the affidavit. She did not say an inspection the previous year had turned up serious structural problems throughout the complex, nor that all of the owners would have to pay several thousand dollars in repair bills.

Grove later told investigator he never would have bought the place if he had known that.

Grove's real estate agent, Kirk Budd, also told investigators that a couch and draperies had been arranged along one wall to make it appear that there was a window behind the couch, according to Adkins' statement.

When Grove asked if the window was a slider, Terwilliger said, "it doesn't go anywhere." A few weeks after buying the condo, Grove tried to open the door, which led onto the balcony. He also noticed that the header over the door appeared to be sagging. Terwilliger wouldn't talk to him, and it wasn't until he contacted the condominium association that he learned of the problems.

Terwilliger's agent, Rita Shepard, said Wednesday night that she felt Terwilliger tricked her into listing the condo.

"She knew exactly what she was doing," Shepard said.

She told Adkins that she didn't understand why a condominium owner in Oldsmar would want an agent in Largo to list the property. It was no problem that it was inconvenient for Shepard to give prospective buyers a tour.

Terwilliger "insisted that she show the property," Shepard said.

Terwilliger also told Shepard the place had been extensively remodeled and there were no special assessments coming up, Adkins said. During Shepard's initial visit, she tried to look out what appeared to be a window, but Terwilliger wouldn't let her, saying it would "mess up the draperies."

When Shepard tried to go over the seller's disclosure form and ask Terwilliger specific questions, Terwilliger got annoyed and said, "Let me just fill it out," Shepard said.

Terwilliger did, except for the section about structural damage.

That, Adkins said, was left blank.