How long after purchasing a property can you sue the realtor for misrepresenting a disclosure leadinganeighbor suing me?
Get Legal Help Today
Compare Quotes From Top Companies and Save
Secured with SHA-256 Encryption
How long after purchasing a property can you sue the realtor for misrepresenting a disclosure leadinganeighbor suing me?
A realtor representing the seller and me, the buyer, on the disclosure checked no shared fences but there was an encroachment. The neighbor’s house was over the property line onto the parcel for sale. I was OK with that. An hour before closing on the final walk-through he mentioned that I may have a problem with a small metal shed in the middle of the parcel. He said there is a “prescriptive easement” (that he never before mentioned). The neighbor sued me a 1-1/2 years later after I removed the shed.
Asked on November 7, 2010 under Real Estate Law, California
Answers:
SJZ, Member, New York Bar / FreeAdvice Contributing Attorney
Answered 14 years ago | Contributor
I believe that the statute of limitations for fraud--the most likely basis in which you'd potentially sue--in California is 3 years. However, note that to make out a case for fraud, you need to show knowing misrepresention, made with an intention that you rely on it--i.e. you need to show that the realtor essentially lied deliberately to you. So an oversight is not necessarily fraud. However, there are other, larger issues to consider anyway: 1) why didn't the easement show on your title search or deed? 2) if the easement is valid, do you have recourse to your title insurane--the title search *should* have found it; and 3) or is it the case that the easement is not valid and you should be able to overturn or eliminate it? In addition to possibly speaking to a personal injury attorney to sue, you should speak to a real estate lawyer about the easement itself.
IMPORTANT NOTICE: The Answer(s) provided above are for general information only. The attorney providing the answer was not serving as the attorney for the person submitting the question or in any attorney-client relationship with such person. Laws may vary from state to state, and sometimes change. Tiny variations in the facts, or a fact not set forth in a question, often can change a legal outcome or an attorney's conclusion. Although AttorneyPages.com has verified the attorney was admitted to practice law in at least one jurisdiction, he or she may not be authorized to practice law in the jurisdiction referred to in the question, nor is he or she necessarily experienced in the area of the law involved. Unlike the information in the Answer(s) above, upon which you should NOT rely, for personal advice you can rely upon we suggest you retain an attorney to represent you.