Legal Question in Real Estate Law in Virginia
Agreement of Sale
My husband recently signed an ''agreement of sale'' for a parcel of land (owner financed). He signed this with the assurance by the seller/owner that some improvements would be made before closing. Closing is approaching and no improvements. Unfortunately, these improvements are not mentioned in the agreement of sale, is there any recourse for us?
I feel my husband was taken advantage of because of his obvious lack of property buying experience ( there are several other 'happenings' that make me wary of this deal). What are our rights? Is there any legal way for us to back out and still receive our deposit back. Nothing has been notarized or any third parties involved.
Also, if we follow through on the purchase do we have any say in the actual sales contract or must we accept whatever he provides? Could he spring a 'land contract for deed' on us (heard bad stories about that kind of agreement)
I want to add that although I have been refering to ''we'', I have not been asked to sign anything, and was not consulted by anyone (including my husband, grrrr). Could this become MY responsibility should something (god forbid) happen to my husband either physically or financially? Please excuse our stupidity....we can't help it.
2 Answers from Attorneys
Re: Agreement of Sale
As a general rule, when you sign a purchase contract, the parties are bound by that contract and its terms. Failure to follow through may leave you exposed to a lawsuit, which if successful, would force you to purchase the property. Land sale contracts typically explain that the seller will execute a general warranty deed or a special warranty deed, etc. I would suggest that you take the documents your husband signed to a real estate attorney. Your description of the events seems a bit too complex to handle here in this forum.
Re: Agreement of Sale
You and your husband would seem well advised to arrange for an attorney experienced with contracts and real estate transactions to review this "agreement of sale" and the relevant facts surrounding its making in order to determine whether he may have a basis to rescind or avoid this agreement without penalty or whether in fact he may be inextricably bound to it by what the law calls the Parol Evidence Rule (The lawyer should be able to further explain this legal rule to you and how it may apply to your case situation as well as to address your other issues related to this pending transaction.)
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