I found a house and signed a purchase agreement and paid for certain pre-closing expenses but when the title was pulled it was discovered that the person selling the home was not the owner?
Get Legal Help Today
Compare Quotes From Top Companies and Save
Secured with SHA-256 Encryption
I found a house and signed a purchase agreement and paid for certain pre-closing expenses but when the title was pulled it was discovered that the person selling the home was not the owner?
I paid for a home inspection and an appraisal, I believe the seller agent was aware of this. I was unable to purchase the house because of this and lost the money I paid for the appraisal and home inspection. I contacted the seller agent broker and he stated by telephone that he would reimburse me, I never heard from him. I sent him an email explaining what we had discussed and the reply back was “I will discuss with the agentâ€Â. Still nothing, what legal actions can I take to get the money back I invested.
Asked on July 17, 2015 under Real Estate Law, Michigan
Answers:
SJZ, Member, New York Bar / FreeAdvice Contributing Attorney
Answered 8 years ago | Contributor
The legal action to take is to sue: you would sue the person who had claimed to have been the seller for his deliberate deceptive act (e.g. fraud) and you would sue the seller's agent for (in the alternative; you are allowed to bring or present alternate theories of liability) fraud (knowingly helping the "seller" to lie) and negligence (being unreasonably careless in terms of ascertaining right to sell, and so causing your loss). A lawsuit is the only way to get your money back, and you would sue the two parties who were, or at least may have been, at fault in causing your loss.
IMPORTANT NOTICE: The Answer(s) provided above are for general information only. The attorney providing the answer was not serving as the attorney for the person submitting the question or in any attorney-client relationship with such person. Laws may vary from state to state, and sometimes change. Tiny variations in the facts, or a fact not set forth in a question, often can change a legal outcome or an attorney's conclusion. Although AttorneyPages.com has verified the attorney was admitted to practice law in at least one jurisdiction, he or she may not be authorized to practice law in the jurisdiction referred to in the question, nor is he or she necessarily experienced in the area of the law involved. Unlike the information in the Answer(s) above, upon which you should NOT rely, for personal advice you can rely upon we suggest you retain an attorney to represent you.