Family can't move into house they bought

[tyecopeland]

Story involves covid eviction issue and California law so might end up in dc.

https://www.foxla.com/news/couple-bu...orium-loophole

Added article in spoiler for those who don't like clicking links.

Spoiler!

RIVERSIDE, Calif. - When Tracie and Myles Albert purchased a beautiful four bedroom house in Riverside, California they never realized that at the end of escrow the seller would suddenly refuse to give up the keys and leave.

"It’s just draining, emotionally and financially," says Tracie. On January 31, 2020, the couple purchased the home. More than a year later, they still haven’t been able get inside their property. Chris Taylor is the Real Estate Agent who sold the house to the Alberts from a man who wanted to sell immediately.

"He needed $560,000 from the sale of his house in two weeks and he called me on a Sunday, so in traditional real estate there's no way of doing that unless the buyer’s a cash buyer," says Taylor.

Since the house was free and clear and worth more than $560,000 the Alberts felt it was a great deal.


"It took us scrambling to get everything we had, our life savings put together and a hard money loan on top of it to make that happen," Myles stated.



During escrow they discovered there was a $30,000 tax lien on the house which slowed things down, but in the end, all parties signed on the dotted line and the sale was completed.

"We own the house, outright. That's our house and it's all in a contract, written, legal, done. He's been paid the money in his account. How could we have no rights to go into our home," asked Myles.

FOX 11 News tried to speak with the seller but when reporter Gina Silva knocked and announced herself, no one came to the door.

Taylor says, "It’s genuinely unfathomable to me that we live in a state where something like this is even possible. They closed escrow on this home January 31, 2020." The Alberts and Taylor have contacted authorities and tried to get the seller evicted but because of the pandemic, they’ve gotten nowhere.

"They have this case under a COVID tenant situation, of no evictions when it doesn't fall under that at all. This transaction went through in January 2020 before any of that, it isn't a renter who was getting thrown out. It's the guy who collected all of this money," stated Myles.


Eviction Attorney Dennis Block says, "This year alone, we’ve handled at least 7 maybe 8 cases of this exact type of situation."

He says people purchasing homes need to be extremely cautious, especially if they notice any red flags during the process. Block says what’s happening to the Alberts could happen to anyone.

"This person is not a tenant, it’s a previous owner who is enjoying the benefits of the money that was transferred to his account but of course doesn’t want to move out of the premises that he no longer owns," Block stated.

The Alberts filed an unlawful detainer but because of the California eviction moratorium, the case has been stalled. Time is simply passing by and the immaculate house they fell in love with is now becoming an eyesore.

Tracie says, "I tried watering the lawn one time and he came out and ripped my sprinkler lines, ripped all the wires. The Palm trees are dying, everything was beautiful and everything is dying."

Her frustrated husband says when he contacted law enforcement, they told him, "If you were in Arizona, if you were in Nevada, this wouldn't be a problem, you would just go take your house back. But in California, like our hands are tied, even though we're on your side, there's nothing we can do."

[htismaqe]

Originally Posted by dmahurin

I got really lucky recently. Got my pre-approval letter on a Thursday. Looked at 2 houses on Saturday, 2 on Sunday, made on offer on the second one for 5k over asking, it was accepted within 2 hours. Everything is good to go and I close on april 15th. It went surprisingly smooth and easy with all the horror stories of the market right now.

Are you buying in the same market in which you live now?

[cooper barrett]

Have you been to a full service building center recently? Can’t buy shit. Can’t manufacture it no employees to make them.

[dmahurin]

Originally Posted by htismaqe

Are you buying in the same market in which you live now?

I am. I was able to see homes. I wasn't the first viewer of the one I bought but I was the first offer. Kind of a perfect storm. They were 'desperate' to sell so they could move on to their new purchase. My realtor and their realtor work in the same office, so had an inside track on ease of discussion and a good working relationship between our respective realtors.

[TLO]

[Chief Pagan]

Originally Posted by DaneMcCloud

In most cases, the real estate prices in California (outside of the $2+ million homes) aren't reflective of the quality or size of the home at all. You're paying for the "privilege" of living in California or in simple terms, the land.

My home is worth 2-3 times that of family that lives in Leawood but our home is nowhere near 2-3 times as nice or even "nicer" at all, nor do we have an HOA nor modern conveniences of those that live in that area.

I've never understood why people that don't need to live in California, live in California. There's a freaking surcharge for every aspect of life on top of the highest taxes in the union. And while sure, Disneyland and the beach are great, unless you can afford to live at the beach, it means nothing. The nearest beach is 45 minutes from my home and I'm lucky if I make it down there 4 times a year and many years, that number has been zero.

I guess a lot of it all depends on your particular situation and what you are looking for. So I live in a modest 3 bed/2 bath house that would sell for well north of a half million. Yes, most of that is the lot. That really hit home when I found out my home owners replacement policy only covers ~$150k or so for the house because you don't have to rebuild the lot if everything burns down in a fire.

Sure, I could probably buy something twice as big in KC, but what would I do with that? I'm not sure I need twice as nice either. And I don't want a HOA.

I'm not sure what modern convenience I'm missing.

I live in a pleasant University town and work ten minutes from my office when I'm not working remotely. It has nice parks, nice green belts, nice schools, no crime.

No snow, no ice. Nine months of constant sunshine. The town is surrounded by farmland so I'm at minimal risk of the fires, although it was pretty smoky last fall.

Yes, the cost of living is higher. If I was struggling to raise a family living paycheck to paycheck, I would certainly be looking for some place cheaper.

Before a bad back sidelined me, I spent a huge number of hours rock climbing in Yosemite and other locations in northern California. No McMansion in Leawood/Overland park is going to make up for that, for me. I was also fortunate to have a flexible schedule so I mostly avoided weekend traffic.

And again before I slowed down, I enjoyed that I could drive down to SF in only 90 minutes (if I left in the afternoon), have dinner, have a couple of cocktails, see a live show, and then make it back home in 90 minutes. SF is a really cool place to visit.

Your mileage may vary.

[Cntrygal]

Well... they finally got in. I still think that they should have offered up the house has a temporary meeting place for their local Hells Angels Chapter.

Link

[Halfcan]

Originally Posted by dmahurin

I am. I was able to see homes. I wasn't the first viewer of the one I bought but I was the first offer. Kind of a perfect storm. They were 'desperate' to sell so they could move on to their new purchase. My realtor and their realtor work in the same office, so had an inside track on ease of discussion and a good working relationship between our respective realtors.

If they were desperate to sell- why did you pay 5 k over list?

[Halfcan]

Originally Posted by Cntrygal

Well... they finally got in. I still think that they should have offered up the house has a temporary meeting place for their local Hells Angels Chapter.

Link

How is this pos fraudster not in jail?

[T-post Tom]

Originally Posted by Cntrygal

Well... they finally got in. I still think that they should have offered up the house has a temporary meeting place for their local Hells Angels Chapter.

Link

That house needs to be inspected thoroughly from top to bottom. No telling what the squatters did before they left. Looks like the squatter has a history with the legal system: tax evasion and assault.

[tredadda]

Originally Posted by DaneMcCloud

In most cases, the real estate prices in California (outside of the $2+ million homes) aren't reflective of the quality or size of the home at all. You're paying for the "privilege" of living in California or in simple terms, the land.

My home is worth 2-3 times that of family that lives in Leawood but our home is nowhere near 2-3 times as nice or even "nicer" at all, nor do we have an HOA nor modern conveniences of those that live in that area.

I've never understood why people that don't need to live in California, live in California. There's a freaking surcharge for every aspect of life on top of the highest taxes in the union. And while sure, Disneyland and the beach are great, unless you can afford to live at the beach, it means nothing. The nearest beach is 45 minutes from my home and I'm lucky if I make it down there 4 times a year and many years, that number has been zero.



There are houses in my neighborhood and others that are going same-day for $100k over asking price. It's insanity right now because investors are looking to take advantage of these super-low interest rates before they disappear.



Cash deals are extremely common in California. I had a friend that was looking recently that lost out on more than a dozen homes that were $1+ million because buyers stepped in with cash.

This is having effects across the country. Those who can't afford to stay in California or are tired of it are cashing out and moving eastward causing housing and cost of living to skyrocket in places like Oregon, Montana, Idaho, and Utah to name a few. I am a part of that Nextdoor app for my area and I swear almost daily someone introduces themselves and mentions how they just moved from California. They aren't moving into smaller, older homes either. They are moving into new ones in new developments that "start" at $500K and up.

[cooper barrett]

I can see them buying nice houses as CA houses sell for alot but the cost of living? Did your gas bill go up because a couple moved from Compton?

Originally Posted by tredadda

This is having effects across the country. Those who can't afford to stay in California or are tired of it are cashing out and moving eastward causing housing and cost of living to skyrocket in places like Oregon, Montana, Idaho, and Utah to name a few. I am a part of that Nextdoor app for my area and I swear almost daily someone introduces themselves and mentions how they just moved from California. They aren't moving into smaller, older homes either. They are moving into new ones in new developments that "start" at $500K and up.

[neech]

Originally Posted by Halfcan

If they were desperate to sell- why did you pay 5 k over list?

Because he was desperate.

[tredadda]

Originally Posted by cooper barrett

I can see them buying nice houses as CA houses sell for alot but the cost of living? Did your gas bill go up because a couple moved from Compton?

Property taxes are a part of it, but overall the cost of goods and services are going up rapidly as the population explodes in the area. This also puts more demand on the existing power grid which forces prices up. Fortunately our utilities are not as high as other places I have lived.

[dmahurin]

Originally Posted by Halfcan

If they were desperate to sell- why did you pay 5 k over list?

Not necessarily desperate, as I had it in quotes. They were buying another house and needed to sell this one to afford the new one. The market being crazy, we wanted to make sure out offer was accepted and 5k over asking is nothing compared to the 20k+ I have heard about other people paying. The appraisal came back and I still got a good deal even paying slightly over asking.

[cooper barrett]

bullshit, cough, BULLSHIT

Originally Posted by tredadda

Property taxes are a part of it, but overall the cost of goods and services are going up rapidly as the population explodes in the area. This also puts more demand on the existing power grid which forces prices up. Fortunately our utilities are not as high as other places I have lived.