Virginia Residential Real Estate Legal Questions

It would be too risky for a buyer, and no lender would loan money for the purchase of the lot and an unbuilt home. You can sell the lot and the buyer can get their own construction loan. Alternatively, you can sign a contract to sell the lot and a house, as long as you have the funds to build the house before closing, your idea will work. A lender "might" lend you money to build if you have a firm binding contract with a good buyer but these types of loans are getting harder to get as banks tighten things up.... Read More

You can sue her  for her share of the expenses in District Court if its under $25,000. You should consider a partition suit to force a sale of the property as it doesn't sound like co-ownership with her is viable long term  The property would be sold, sales expenses paid from the proceeds, and each of you get your share of the funds. Either of you can bid at the sale, but would have to be ready to put down a deposit, the same as any other buyer.  Good luck, family disputes are the worst kind........ Read More

I don't think you can deduct them as "taxes", as they are considered a cost of selling or buying  property, but you can add them to your tax basis if you are the buyer, or use them as an expense of sale to reduce the amount realized if you are the seller.  I am not a tax lawyer but this is what I have been over the years.  Call the Virginia Department of Taxation and they should be able to give you the right answer.  ... Read More

Sorry to give a wishy-washy answer but it all depends upon how the contract is worded so you need to have an attorney review the contract, assuming it is fully signed.  If you are still in the negotiating stage, it sounds like you received a counter-offer, which serves to reject any offer previously made by you and you could simply reject the counter-offer. Let a lawyer read the documents to get an accurate answer. ... Read More

If the new tenant moved in on 9/30, yes the landlord can keep  the money to cover the one month notice period.  An old lawyer saying: "A contract is a contreact is a contract". You were obligated to give a full calendar month's notice and didn't. Had the new tenant moved in mid-way through September, you could get a pro-rated portion back but as you've described it, you're out the deposit.  Sorry.... Read More

You can't sue anyone to make them buy your house, but as long as the repairs are done properly, the County will do a final inspection to make sure everything meets the building code and you shouldn't have any issues.  You can mention it to purchasers if you want to and probably should-but they should take comfort that some parts of the house are now "new".  Keep a copy of the final inspection report from the County in case questions arise.   I would be surprised if this negatively affects your sale as long as the repairs are done properly.... Read More

If you signed the note at the closing, and you probably  did, yes, you could end up stuck with the balance. You said the "house" was modified-did you mean the "house loan"?   Either way, if you signed the original loan, and the bank didn't release you, yes you will be responsible. Hope and pray  that the property sells for enough to cover the debt-you might even consider bidding on it and buying it, depending upon your financial circumstances-better to buy it at a price a bit too high than to have someone buy at a bargain basement price and have you stuck owing the balance on the loan not covered by the sale. Good luck.... Read More

You can split off the acreage, if the county/town/city allows it under its zoning rules, but the bank will have a lien unless they sign a partial release for the lot you carve off. Talk to the bank and if you can split it off under the zoning laws, and if the 3.5 acres and house appraises well, you should be able to get a partial release, called a "Certificate of Partial Satisfaction" for the1acre portion, to be recorded in the clerk's office.    You will probably need a separate septic system unless you are on a central sewer system.  Good luck.... Read More

Not really. It is not unusual  for a lawyer to do both sides of a closing, but that is AFTER a contract is signed. While still negotiating the deal, it is pretty much impossible for the same lawyer to represent both sides. The potential for conflict is just too great. After the contract is signed, the same lawyer can handle both sides, if both sides consent, but if a conflict develops, then both sides need to get new counsel. I have done both sides many times, after the contract is signed, and the occasions where a conflict develops after the contract is signed are rare. ... Read More

Impossible to answer without reading the contract, but most likely the seller would have a chance to make a repair to avoid losing the sale. It will all depend on what the contract says. The normal VAR contract requires plumbing to be in "good working order", but there are lots of contract variations out there. ... Read More

For a written lease, the limit is 5 years from the date the breach of contract occurred.  Try to get a lawyer local to the tenant. Cases like this often aren't contested...but it's often the case that the tenant just fades away and you never get your money. Make sure it's worth the cost before jumping into a suit.   Almost any lawyer should be able to do this.... Read More

I would just keep making payments. If you have qualified as executor of your spouse's estate, send thelender a qualification certificate as getting information can be tricky, even though you own the property. Some lenders get hyper-technical about who they can talk with...but as long as you can keep making payments, and if the interest rate is acceptable, that's what I  would do.  ... Read More

Assuming your mother in law isn't on the title to the property, she owns nothing. She might have a claim for unjust enrichment if your give her the boot and if she could prove you promised to let her live there for a certain period of time. Any agreement that she can prove can be enforced but owning the property gives you the upper hand.   Family fights are pretty ugly in Court and can damage relations for a long time so it's a situation you want to work out privately if at all possible.... Read More

It could. That lien will have to be released to sell the property so contact the bonding company or Commonwealth's Attorney now, and try to work out a way to get it released if the property is sold. You don't want to wait until a contract comes in to find you have a problem.  If you are buying another house, the lien can likely just be transferred, but it will have to be recorded after any mortgage that you use to buy the next property.... Read More

You are in a tough situation. Virginia requires sellers to give buyers a disclaimer/disclosure form, which I am certain you received from the realtor probably before the contract was signed or at least at the same time, which told you basically this:"Check it out all you want but don't rely on me-you're on your own."       With that language, suing for fraud becomes very very difficult and there are cases out there that hold even when the  Seller knows of a problem, they still can't be successfully sued. Why? Because the buyer was warned to check it out as much as possible.   If a Seller deliberately conceals a problem, that might work but even that situation is somewhat iffy under the recent cases.   It is possible the seller really didn't know if the property was only owned for 3-4 years or so. Oddly enough, I have a house with a similar issue-it's only a problem when there are late winter super heavy rains, that fall upon semi-frozen ground, and we have sometimes gone 5-6 years between occasions when water caused a problem.     Even if successful, it's not a sure thing that you could recover your legal fees, so you could spend $10,000 or more in legal fees, to recover $11,000.   My advice is as much practical as legal: If you spend $11,000 and get the problem fixed, it's fixed. If you spend $10,000 or more in legal fees, maybe you win and maybe not, but you're out the legal fees so your net gain is minimal  if anything.   With interest rates at all time lows, I would explore a home equity loan for $11,000 to fix it. If you are upside down on your mortgage, or have little equity, check with the bank that has your first mortgage as they may be more flexible since your would be taking care of their collateral.  Good luck.     ... Read More