7 replies to this topic

[Envelope]

I am renting/buying a house from my landlord. I have the money to buy the house and have sent my landlord a letter explaining that I am ready to buy her out. She was married when we signed the paperwork but is now divorced and all our agreements have both her and her ex husbands name on them. She is now sending us letters that state her name and her ex husbands name but under that it has "in care of" and her maiden name. Do we have to track her ex husband down to sign the paperwork or does that "in care of" mean she has the legal right to sign for him? Thank you

[Fallen]

You can't expect strangers to know what's what from here based on what you have posted. If I were you, I'd contact the relevant divorce/family court and get copies of the decree and any property/marital settlement agreement mentioned in it. (You should have been following along that divorce when you learned of it, btw. So long as this property has this guy's name on it, unless you personally verify certain things with him, you don't take her word for anything even if she produces an original power of attorney he supposedly signed giving her authority to address this on his behalf.)

Get a real estate attorney (esp. if you never bothered to consult one before entering into this rent-to-own agreement).

[Envelope]

Unfortunately I have no clue where or when she got divorced. She has moved 6 or 7 times, in and out of state since we signed the papers. We didn't find out she had been divorced til she got remarried
Right now we're sending the rent/mortgage payments to a P.O. box out of state.
Thank you for your help

[Fallen]

"Unfortunately I have no clue where or when she got divorced."

Then, uhm, search public records/pay an online service people search database for same (on husband and her) that includes divorce record info. At any rate, you need to get counsel. For all I know, you've been making a mistake and not making payments to both of them all this time and only making them to her.

[Envelope]

That's what I'm afraid of

Thank you so much!

[FindLaw_AHK]

As the previous poster stated, you may want to discuss this issue with a local Real Estate Lawyer before proceeding with such a transaction.

[adjusterjack]

Since you obviously know where the property is located I suggest you check your county recorder and get a copy of the deed and any other recorded documents pertaining to the owners.

Right now we're sending the rent/mortgage payments

"Rent/mortgage payments"?

Do you have a land contract or contract for deed?

If you do I suspect that you are in for a real bruising when you find out all the money you put into the house and the payments were wasted if she can't sell it.

And by the way, a deed signed by her with power of attorney from her ex might be defective without his actual notarized signature.

I'm guessing that you didn't have a lawyer when you got into this deal. You certainly need one now.

[pg1067]

I am renting/buying a house from my landlord. I have the money to buy the house and have sent my landlord a letter explaining that I am ready to buy her out. She was married when we signed the paperwork but is now divorced and all our agreements have both her and her ex husbands name on them.

Then I'm curious why you refer only to her as your landlord. It sounds like both of them are your landlords.

Do we have to track her ex husband down to sign the paperwork

Depends on what "paperwork" you're talking about. Certainly, if both of them own the property, both of them will have to execute any deed transferring the property to you. Whether you have to "track [him] down" is something we obviously cannot know, but I would have to assume the woman knows how to locate her ex-husband.

does that "in care of" mean she has the legal right to sign for him?

No.

By the way, I disagree with a number of "Fallen's" comments. As long as you were complying with the terms of your lease/contract, it was up to your landlords to advise you regarding any changes that might have been necessitated by the divorce.