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Zandalee · Oct 3, 2009, 10:54 PM

My husband and I bought a 3 bedroom house for 60k, with a huge crack in the basement for no money down from a couple who was friends with him and did not want to deal with the basement. This is in Kansas City, Missouri. We unfortunately used a contract for deed which of course was their idea. (Very Bad Idea) The payments were $425 a month and insurance and taxes were to be paid by them out of that payment. They kept raising it through the years and for last 10 years it has stayed at $600. We never asked them to prove or show how much insurance and taxes had gone up and let them claim house for taxes each year although we were supposed to according to contract. Two years ago basement wall caved in as we could never save up $15,000 to get it fixed. (It was a helluva crack). Insurance they carried but we paid for was canceled and they started trying to evict us. They wanted us to borrow and pay them $65,000 which we tried to get a loan but of course not with basement like that. However the mortgage guy got in touch with them and told them we were approved which was before he realized about the basement and how it would not pass inspection. This July they raised payment to $800 but we went back to paying them the original $425 because they would never send us documentation from gov't or insurance company showing amounts for taxes or insurance. We had hired an attorney but he was not a real estate attorney so that was $2500 we threw away as it was over his head. They took us to court in August and judge dismissed their case and I wrongly assumed that was end of it. They served us again, I went to get a continuance which we had never done before, it was denied, judge found for them as all they had to do to void contract for deed was send us a certified letter and now we have lost the house and everything we paid for it which is well over $100,000. Nothing I said about how we had had steel I beams put in and were repairing basement or anything else I said helped. The judge also said we are to pay them $2600 a month until we move out. He said we have 10 days to appeal and then he has the nerve to tell me good luck. How can this happen when we never missed not one single payment? How can we suddenly become tenants instead of buyers? I am scared out of my mind, my husband is in Sweden working at his job, and there is no way I can pack up 20 years worth of stuff and find a place to live in a month much less pay $2600. Is there anything at all that I can do? Do we have no rights whatsoever? Is there any point in even trying to appeal? Can't the judge just be facetious and deny it on a whim just like he did the continuance?

excon · Oct 4, 2009, 08:58 AM

Originally Posted by Zandalee

How can we suddenly become tenants instead of buyers? I am scared out of my mind, my husband is in Sweden working at his job, and there is no way I can pack up 20 years worth of stuff and find a place to live in a month much less pay $2600. Is there anything at all that I can do? Do we have no rights whatsoever? Is there any point in even trying to appeal?

Hello Z:

You were NEVER buyers. You were ALWAYS tenants. I know you didn't understand that. You should have had a lawyer...

IF you HAVE rights, and I'm not sure you don't, you need a lawyer NOW to secure them for you. Hopefully, the TIME for you to appeal has NOT expired. I know you hired the wrong lawyer... That only means the next time, you'd better hire the RIGHT one.

excon

ScottGem · Oct 4, 2009, 09:09 AM

You need to read the contract. The contract spells out your responsibilities and the sellers. A contract for deed is not necessarily a bad thing, but it generally works in favor of the seller.

If the contract permitted them to raise the monthly payment periodically, then it does not sound like a contract for sale. Generally a contract for sale has a fixed payment and a fixed term. Often a contract for sale is for a short term (less than 5 years) to give the buyer a chance to build up equity so they can get their own financing and pay a balloon payment at the end of the term. Some contracts will have a 20-30 year term, where the title is turned over at the end of the contract term.

If you signed a contract without knowing or understanding what the terms were, you were foolish (I'm sorry to say). Without knowing the terms and what grounds the judge used to rule against you, its hard for us to advise. I'm wondering if there was a clause in the contract requiring you to repair the crack. If so, your failure to do so could be a breach of contract. And that may be what the judge ruled on.