Legal Question in Real Estate Law in Michigan
Fraudulent lien and conflict of interest
It is hard to give all the facts with so little room to write but here goes:1. parents died in 1991 left house and 40 acres to six children, joint tenancy reserving two of us a life estate. 2. December 2002 the five not living on property agree to a buy out. I mortgage the property to pay them off. 3. During the process a lien is discovered that is held by com. dev. the lien is 15k being prorated so I have to pay 11.5k to them. Terms of lien say parents may not sell or transfer property for four years after they receive the GRANT money and must use it to improve property. 4.We have no choice to pay it because lien holder hates me, is married to my sibling, and is director of com. dev. If I take com dev to court to get lien thrown out, this person wont sign off any spousal claims. 5. We get a copy of lien after and find that it is changed after parents die. Someone re recorde it without signatures and changed the amount by seven dollars. Also, looks like some wording on page two was altered. We think fraud, and want money back. Can we sue and how long do we have to do it.
1 Answer from Attorneys
Re: Fraudulent lien and conflict of interest
Indeed it is hard to gtive a fully developed answer without all the facts in detail. I suggest you seek the services of a local attorney to discuss the matter in detail. Several things stand out in what you have written. When did you discover the lien had been changed, prior to paying it off or after? If prior, you shouldn't have paid it off without seeking legal counsel first, if after then you may still have some legal options. You state the difference in cost is only $7.00 and some other language changes. How significant are the language changes? If very significant, then it is worth pursing, otherwise it may not be worth pursing. There is no dispute your parents borrowed the money and owed it back. The $7.00 diffence isn't worth a district court action, except a small claims action by you. The language changes may be worth pursuing if changed drastically. If the new lien is tossed out as fraudulent then the original lien will go back into effect. You will never acquire all the money you paid back, only the fraudulent diffence. However, there may be criminal avenues to pursue with the local prosecutor's office if changes were made after to look like they were made prior to your parent's deaths. Good luck!
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