Legal Question in Real Estate Law in California
Failure to disclose existing condition
We have owned our home for almost 10 years. We recently discovered that there is a second septic tank serving our drain water that was not disclosed. We were told that the entire house was served by a septic tank in the front of our property. When seepage and overflow of sewage began, in our back yard patio, we were forced to remove concrete and discovered that the leak was not broken pipes, but a full up septic tank. The previous owners installed the patio, and did all the add on work to the house at which time we now presume the septic tank was installed. Since they knowingly covered it up, and failed to disclose it, we were un aware of it at the time the house was purchased. There is a history when we bought the house of several other non disclosed items, which we were able to get repaired after contacting an attorney. Do we still have any legal right to go after the former owners, listing realtors? The owners now live out of state.
2 Answers from Attorneys
Re: Failure to disclose existing condition
You say you "presume" the septic tank was installed at that time. That means you don't know it was-- it is possible the sellers did not know of the second tank. (Are they the original owners? Even if so, did they build the home themselves as opposed to buying it from a developer or contractor?) You might not have a statute of limitations problem because you only recently discovered the alleged fraud. You will have a difficult time marshalling evidence, however, given that almost 10 years have elapsed. Do you still have the purchase contract and disclosure forms? Finally, if you had a previous dispute with the sellers, and that dispute was resolved by settlement, that settlement agreement must be examined carefully by an attorney to make sure it did not release future, unknown causes of action, including any cause of action you may have related to the septic tank.
Re: Failure to disclose existing condition
I believe you have run the statute of limitations for
misrepresentation under California law. If so, it plays as an affirmative defense if you file, assuming you can find any attorney who would be willing to file on it.
Good Luck
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