Legal Question in Real Estate Law in California
i was behind about 5 months on my mortgage when a real estate agent knocked on my door and said i was in foreclosure. indeed i received default notices (1st and 2nd mortgages). he listed my house but showed it only twice in 4 months. i then received substitution of trustee notices. the realtor kept telling me i had to get out or i would be evicted, finally coming down to telling me i had only a few days left. he offered me $1000.00 and had me sign a stack of papers which i did. i moved.
is it possible to sign your house away this easily?
the realtor bought the house ( i'm not sure if it went to auction) for $185.000 and the banks were paid off in the amount of $160,000. i obviously signed under duress. is this legal or at least unethical? am i entitled to anything?
thank you galen garcia
san diego calif.
2 Answers from Attorneys
It's not "obvious" from your question that you signed "under duress." If you had consulted a lawyer before "signing away your house," or back when you started receiving default notices, maybe the result would have been different. Next time someone asks you to sign something, consult a lawyer before, not after. Good luck.
You need to contact a lawyer in person. Most likely what the real estate agent did was very illegal, but there is no way to tell for sure via the internet.