ok so i bought a house clear of anything and at the closing it was made clear that all the homeowner dues were up to date, which they were but there was an upcoming court date for a judgement against the previous owner for some unpaid attorney fees(charged due to unpaid dues which were eventually paid).

so the case against the previous owner was dismissed without prejudice and I thought the whole thing was over until I got a new civil summons from the court explaining the entire situation

It has me as a co-defendant and says

Quote :

"Plaintiff is entitled, pursuant to the provisions of the declaration, the north carolina planned community act, and applicable law, to have the property sold, free and clear of any interest by (me) to satisfy the claim of lien and to pay the costs (of all this)... "

they're asking the court to
1.get the money they are owed from the previous owner
2."that the court order the property to be sold to satisfy the claim of the lien"

in the homeowners association covenant i found this

Quote :

"the personal obligation for the delinquent assessments shall not pass to his successors in title unless expressly assumed by them"

The new court day is a long time away and I'm still deciding on a lawyer to go with but Is there any way court can make me pay these fees or foreclose my house even when there were no liens on the property when I purchased it? I've heard many lawyers tell me they really can't do anything to me or the property at this point they can only force the previous owner to pay them but a lawyer I spoke with today said they can foreclose and keep the house. Every different lawyer seems to say something completely different and conflicting.

8/28/2007 7:43:21 PM

Quote :

"i bought a house clear of anything"

Quote :

"to satisfy the claim of lien"

does not compute

8/28/2007 7:56:08 PM

Your title insurance company should handle any issues like this. Contact them ASAP, either directly or through an attorney.

Our builder skipped town without paying a bunch of his subs, and half the neighborhood ended up with liens. The title insurance co. went to court and settled for everyone, none of the homeowners had to pay a dime.

8/28/2007 8:01:57 PM

^^ I'm pretty sure that second quote is from the new summons that hasn't been to court yet. Its the proposed lien.

^I think the title insurance is the 3rd defendant.

The seller and I agreed with the closing attorney that he wouldn't be held responsible for the upcoming judgment. It was later dismissed from court so does that void this waiver? Would that waiver keep me from being able to use the title insurance?

8/28/2007 8:13:04 PM

Quote :

"The seller and I agreed with the closing attorney that he wouldn't be held responsible for the upcoming judgment. "

sounds like you got screwed

8/28/2007 8:19:58 PM

sounds like you had a bad closing attorney.

i'm thankful mine was good, she found all sorts of little discrepencies with the title/deed on my house and some random outstanding balance on something from 2 owners ago. my house has been through a foreclosure, and apparently a lot of stuff got screwed up during that.

8/28/2007 8:42:41 PM

I agree with scottncst8. Someone should have caught it if there was a lien on the house.

8/28/2007 10:25:07 PM

I think you need to immediately see a lawyer. This sort of question is a bit too complicated for TWW.

8/28/2007 11:55:28 PM

Quote :

"The seller and I agreed with the closing attorney that he wouldn't be held responsible for the upcoming judgment."

yeah that was really dumb.

8/28/2007 11:56:32 PM

Quote :

"I think you need to immediately see a lawyer."

x2

8/29/2007 12:05:36 AM

"call a lawyer"

legal services can help you out. we don't know shit here.

8/29/2007 12:47:38 AM

NC State legal services won't help you in this case other then giving you advice and telling you to get an attorney.

8/29/2007 1:28:31 AM

Poetrickster is clearly a study in intelligence.

8/29/2007 5:36:56 AM

Ok. I am not getting all of this, but as someone said before, this is why you have title insurance. it is to insure you in the case of outstanding liens, and should insulate you from the matter (they should pick up the bill). What have they said, and how much money are we talking about?

8/29/2007 9:43:49 AM

i hope, for your sake, that you have adequate documentation of all these agreements you and the seller came to.
And hopefully they're signed by both parties. Handshake agreements dont cut it anymore

8/29/2007 9:45:11 AM

Quote :

"Handshake agreements dont cut it anymore"

even when buying a house?

8/30/2007 2:05:58 PM

Call your title insurance company, promptly mail them copies of everything you have received, keep copies for yourself. They have lawyers that will handle this because they are an insurance company, and the insurance you bought from them was designed for this exact situation.

8/30/2007 2:14:43 PM

As everyone else has said...this is exactly why we have title insurance. Most/all lenders require title insurance when you get a loan. FYI, if you ever buy with cash, make sure you still obtain title insurance for these types of issues. Good luck, I hope it all works out.


http://www.HouriganTeam.com
Class of 2005

9/1/2007 12:42:20 AM

that is why I refuse to duy a house if an HOA is involved.

9/1/2007 11:21:56 AM

Did you even read the thread? The lien could have been placed on the house by anyone...

9/1/2007 12:25:10 PM

HOA's, at least any HOA worth a damn is good for property value. They maintain common areas, subdivision signs, regulate the overall feel of the neighborhood. Sometimes if you buy a home in a subdivision with no HOA to regulate the restrictive covenants, you end up having a neighbor with an RV in the front yard or something else that ultimately brings down the value of your home.


HouriganTeam.com
Class of 2005

9/1/2007 4:44:28 PM

http://www.HouriganTeam.com -- we're dumb as hell

9/1/2007 5:01:57 PM

What's your problem?

9/1/2007 5:02:35 PM