Q: We entered into a lease purchase agreement. Two weeks after we moved in our Realtor called and told us there were leins.
Over one million dollars in leins on the property. He's refusing to return our $25,000 and moving cost. What are our options?
A:
First of all - you should always to a title report before entering into any contract to buy real estate whether it is straight out, on contract, or lease with an option to buy. You may have messed up by not taking these steps. But if you haven't run a title report yet, call a title company and run and pay for a pre-litagation title report. Then call an attorney and make an appointment to review the title report and figure out your options.
When people have liens worth more than the property these creditors usually realize that they can't get more than the property is worth if the owner sells the property so they may be negotiable on how much they will take as a payoff to release their liens on the property. Also the liens filed may not be accurate. You really need to contact and attorney and with the attorney investigate and analyze the situation and figure out the solution. You probably still have a right to buy the property at the agreed on price, just that it may be a bit messy to get a clear title.
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