House of pain
I wanted to share my story. I know real estate sales can have some twists, but I wanted to know if anybody has heard of something like this before: Almost a year ago I bought a Brownstone through a shortsale. My lawyer warned me that this can get complicated sometimes, but I have a thick…
I wanted to share my story. I know real estate sales can have some twists, but I wanted to know if anybody has heard of something like this before:
Almost a year ago I bought a Brownstone through a shortsale. My lawyer warned me that this can get complicated sometimes, but I have a thick skin and I was up for the adventure.
In a short sale there is not always a lot of information, and shortly before closing it turned out that the last guy living in the house was not a tenant like he had said himself at inspection, but a previous owner.
After speaking to the seller it also turned out that he hasn´t paid rent the last 10 years.
The house has been mostly vacant for the last decade. Property Taxes have not been paid since 5 years at least and were satisfied by the bank as part of the short sale deal.
Well, so far so good.
The guy insisted then towards the bank (who actually owned the house) that he had a contract with the owner which gave him a first buyer option. The bank didn´t believe it would be valid, but wanted to avoid later legal trouble and gave him 2 months to see if he would match my offer. He could not, and we proceeded to closing.
After the closing he sued the seller, some other person and me. He argues that the actual owner was a straw buyer and they set up a scheme that he would buy back the house later (he even uses the term scheme in his affidavit). The straw buyer supposedly defrauded him and that he was still the owner even though he didn´t show up in any paper because he has a mysterious contract.
It is absolutely ridiculous. But it is real, and it costs me a lot of money.
I have to pay property taxes and Fire insurance (which is about double from regular because the house is not occupied). And legal fees and loss of income come of top of course.
Now we are in supreme court and it is very slow.
The result is that I cannot access my own house while the Judge takes his time eating sandwiches or whatever my house continues to fall apart.
I am not even allowed to go in and do minor repairs or anything else until it is decided if the sale was “legal”.
Meanwhile the guy is living rent free and has a whole house to himself. Congratulations, it looks like he is the winner so far.
The injunction was removed, the case dismissed. Only the god of Justice knows why the judge took 5 months to look at the case!
Hi Slopefarm, can you please contact me: machinedrummer @ yahoo . de
The reason why I am stuck is probably because my lawyer is not aggressive enough.
Ok, Augustiner, I have a better picture. Total Alice in Wonderland situation. I know first hand taht it’s possible. Sorry you’re stuck in it. It does seem weird to me that if you’ve got a deed, and plaintiff can’t produce a contract, let alone any doc showing an ownership interest in the property, that you would still be stuck. I hope your lawyer is aggressive enough, although I know lawyer aggression costs money.
Good luck. I hope you will report back.
@serpentor: no, that´s not the one
@slick @mopar @lechacal: I wish it was that easy
@slopefarm:
1. There was one hearing, basically about the question if I am a bona fide buyer. Like I mentioned that was around 100 days ago. The court asked 60 days to decide, but no word yet. My lawyer says it is normal for the court to miss deadlines. About sharks: I said that because I am emotional about my house, I am not a real estate pro, and patience is not my strength. I like lawyers that have a personal interest and who love their job and their cases – like in any field, passion can be the best recipe for success.
2. Yes there is a court restraining order / preliminary injunction by the court
3. He is not actively destroying things. I think my lawyer wants to make a motion to require the plaintiff not to cause waste in the building to get things moving again
4. Yes, the counterclaims include the financial damage the plaintiff is causing. But the guy is close to bankrupt so he is playing without risk. Our points also include that the Plaintiff does not come to court with “clean hands”.
5. The sale was all clean between the sellers bank´s lawer and my lawyer. The bank owned the house, and the straw buyer was happy to get the weight of his shoulder and move on. My bet is that the Plaintiff uses this tactic to live rent free for as long as possible. His best bet is to keep the injunction active. He has no funds and no base to buy the house even in the unlikely case that the court would decide in his favor. The lawyer helps him to do stretch the court proceedings for as long as possible. I don´t know what kind of deal they have. Maybe that´s a regular proceeding for some, I call it dirty business.
6. There was one hearing on a motion my lawyer made, namely that the injunction gets removed. Unfortunately my lawyer is not a man of many words. I think the mysterios contract was not handed to the court, the Plaintiff just mentions it in his affidavit. There are 35 motions from their side – and I guess the judge fell asleep after 2 or 3. I have no experience with court proceedings.
7. I think that is the motion the last hearing was about. And our point is that I am a bona fide buyer and that I am not part of any claims the Plaintiff might have against the seller.
I hope I could clarify things a bit more.
^^^^^^^^^^^
That’s practical advice, not legal advice.
My instinct is that you closed, you own it, go on in. Bring some muscle.
The puzzle pieces are not yet fitting for me. None of the following is legal advice, and consult with attorneys, etc., but:
1. You’ve already had a trial? So this has been in litigation for a couple of years? And you are just now looking for a shark who likes to win?
2. Is there an order or injunction preventing you from doing work? Or is that advice of counsel?
3. Is the current resident causing damage? Is there an injunction or order preventing him from doing so? Have you sought one? Have you tried to enforce it?
4. Has your lawyer counterclaimed? Tortious interference with contract? Fraud?
5. Any lawyers behaving badly during the deal? Referrals to disciplinary committee? What makes you say plaintiff’s lawyer is “dirty”?
6. Was this a trial? A hearing on a motion? What did you learn in discovery? Did plaintiff ever produce the alleged contract that he says gives him the right to purchase the property?
7. If he only had a contractual right to buy the property from the seller, and not an actual ownership interest in title, did your attorney move to have the lis pendens lifted? If you are right, it seems like this should merely be a money case between plaintiff and seller.
For my own reasons, I am strangely enthralled with weird doings in Brooklyn RE law, but so far I can’t quite make sense of the picture here.
Maybe you need a landlord attorney, a guy who will evict the illegal squatter. Since you are the owner.