Legal Question in Real Estate Law in California
Real Estate disclosure
I am a licenced Realtor in Ca. I purchased my home from sellers that had a friend/RE broker represent them. I was aware that there were minor electrical,plumbing issues & that the decks needed replacing but the sellers never disclosed to me that the home was infested with bats. The smell is intolerable in the summer. I was not aware of the problem right away because the sellers did a rent back for 6 months and I moved in the following winter. The problem did not present itself until summer when the smell was unbearable. I called a co.that specializes in this problem & they were able to seal most of the house but the bats still get in due to the roof line being unsealable (log home,metal roof) Also, there is no way to remove the urine,feces as the attics are inaccessible. I was never told anything about this problem by the seller and neither was their agent. Do I have any recourse 2 years later as the problem just keeps getting worse & I can not afford to rip my whole roof off. Also prob #2 that was never disclosed is the well water. They told me that they had hard water but never anything about the horrible rotten egg smell. I had to install a costly water softening system immediately & have to treat my well with chlorine every mo
2 Answers from Attorneys
Re: Real Estate disclosure
You may have an issue with the statute of limitations, which is fairly short on most claims of failure to disclose. You are charged with discovery when the "reasonable person" would have discovered the problem, even if you didn't discover it until later. That means that you could be time-barred from pursuing the claims even if you just found them. I agree with Attorney Nelson, if you have any hope of pursuing these, you need to immediately contact an attorney in your area who specializes in real estate law and litigation. One additional point - as a licensed real estate person, you are going to take a further hit on all of this, which is that you will be pressumed to have more sophisticated knowledge of real estate than the average person, and so questions of were you "dupped" by the seller are often going to go against you.
On the water, you may well be out of luck. The sulfer smell could have been determined by a thorough inspection pre-purchase, and you will be charged with having the opportunity to do that inspection even if you did not, so the claim may have been waived by going forward with the purchase. Again, review the specific facts with a qualified attorney in your area. Good luck.
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Re: Real Estate disclosure
Consult a local RE and contract attorney to discuss bringing breach and fraud claims. The longer you wait, the more likely to be time barred. Either do it or move on with your life.
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