Selling your home for a high price is wonderful. However
some sellers end up in lawsuits involving their home sale
transaction. One way to avoid a lawsuit is to learn from other's
mistakes. Here
are some problems you can easily avoid.
It's a good idea to spruce your home up before putting it on the
market. But, if the cosmetic enhancements disguise property defects,
be sure that you disclose those defects to prospective buyers.
Although disclosure laws vary from one state to another, the trend
is toward requiring sellers to disclose material facts about a
property
when they sell. A material fact is something
that would affect the buyers' decision to buy, or the price they'd
be willing to pay.
Sellers who disclose material facts are less likely to be sued
for lack of disclosure or concealment later. For instance, let's
say that your roof leaked and stained the living room ceiling.
To cover the eyesore, you painted the ceiling before marketing
the property. If you disclose this upfront, the buyer has the opportunity
to investigate the problem before closing the sale. This way, he
can make an informed decision with full knowledge of the situation.
Sellers are prone to overestimating the size of their home. And,
in most cases, bigger means more money when you sell. However,
misrepresenting the square footage of your home or the land on
which it stands can get you into hot water.
Sellers told their real estate agent that their house
had almost 5,000 square feet. An appraiser's report on the property
indicated the square footage was little more than half this amount.
The sellers insisted on going with the higher figure because they
had renovated a basement area, which accounted for the extra square
footage. But this work was done without building permits and was,
therefore, not legal living space. The buyer, who purchased the
property, sued the seller and won. The jury found that the sellers
and their real agent were guilty
of false advertisement and fraudulent inducement, for which punitive
damages were awarded.
