Some New Jersey home buyers seek perfection in the house they hope to purchase. Others are hard-core realists, fully expecting to find a few things that will need to be updated or otherwise modified. Real estate participants obviously differ in their expectations and attitudes.
They certainly converge on one thing, though, and that is this: their belief that a seller has a firm duty to disclose any material defects that exist in a for-sale property. Coming clean on significant problems in a timely manner well before a closing date is an ethical imperative.
And, of course, it is a legal requirement. Courts in New Jersey and elsewhere understandably frown on bad faith in a home transaction, especially when a seller’s fraudulent omission concerning a major matter adversely affects a purchaser down the road.
Here’s a question that often spotlights a real estate-linked challenge in such a situation: How can it be determined whether a failure to disclose applies to something truly significant or, rather, an issue that arguably does not spell a tier-one concern?
And what do the facts suggest concerning a seller’s knowledge? Did that individual or family knowingly conceal a known defect, or was a subsequently revealed problem something latent and not reasonably apparent to any transacting party?
Buyers sometimes find that they have no legal recourse following discovery of a home-based issue they deem problematic. In other instances, though, they may be able to rescind a transaction or secure money damages via a filed lawsuit.
The likelihood of obtaining a positive outcome in a home-defect matter rises appreciably for a homeowner who timely seeks help from an experienced real estate attorney. We welcome contacts to the proven New Jersey Law Office of Rajeh A. Saadeh from buyers having questions or concerns linked with a realty transaction.
We duly note on our website that our experienced legal team diligently represents clients against “owners who were involved in fraud and other wrongdoing.”
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