Illegal duplex help
Member since 2022 · 6 posts · 2 votes
Hello friends.
New investor.
Bought a property in 2022 that was advertised as a duplex. There was a tenant living on one side and the other was vacant.
After living and remodeling the vacant side, I moved into the tenant occupied side (he moved out) to start the remodel process there.
After looking into permits to upgrade the electrical system, I ran across information about the property that revealed it to be a single family home.
The zoning for the property does not allow for multi families.
Am I able to sue the seller or the seller’s agent for misleading information/false advertising?
Any help is appreciated 🙏🏽
In DeKalb county.
Hi Diego, hate to hear that this happened to you. Unfortunately, the broker cannot be sued as they are relying on the seller to be honest and upfront with them. Sellers are required to disclose any hidden defects, such as a septic problem, but do not have to disclose anything that can be discovered in a normal inspection. Was it being marketed as a duplex? Did you do an inspection?
Hey John, thank you for responding.
Yes, the property was marketed as a duplex. Being my first property, I didn’t know to look into zoning and such.
I did have an inspection done, the inspection report even says the property is a duplex.
It wasn’t until I looked into getting an electrical permit that I found out the property wasn’t permitted as a duplex.
The fact that the appraiser didn’t catch the property’s status is what has me appalled.
That’s the part I’m wondering if I should sue…
In my experience, it comes down to how the property was originally deeded. Someone else mentioned that it may be grandfathered in as a duplex. That's kind of what I meant. The closing attorney who cleared the title should have seen how the property was deeded through title chain. I would reach out to them and see what they say. If it was originally deeded as a duplex, then hopefully you can get a variance. It's gonna be extremely difficult to sue someone over this.
Just saw the deed. It was for single family FHA... they got me. Oh well, I'll just finish this one up and move on to the next one *shrugs*
I'm sorry that happened to you! Sounds like you have a good plan though. Experience can be a hard teacher.
Congrats on getting started, you're doing a 100% better than most already!
Best to you!
Hi Diego, hate to hear that this happened to you. Unfortunately, the broker cannot be sued as they are relying on the seller to be honest and upfront with them. Sellers are required to disclose any hidden defects, such as a septic problem, but do not have to disclose anything that can be discovered in a normal inspection. Was it being marketed as a duplex? Did you do an inspection?
Hi Diego, hate to hear that this happened to you. Unfortunately, the broker cannot be sued as they are relying on the seller to be honest and upfront with them. Sellers are required to disclose any hidden defects, such as a septic problem, but do not have to disclose anything that can be discovered in a normal inspection. Was it being marketed as a duplex? Did you do an inspection?
Hey John, thank you for responding.
Yes, the property was marketed as a duplex. Being my first property, I didn’t know to look into zoning and such.
I did have an inspection done, the inspection report even says the property is a duplex.
It wasn’t until I looked into getting an electrical permit that I found out the property wasn’t permitted as a duplex.
The fact that the appraiser didn’t catch the property’s status is what has me appalled.
That’s the part I’m wondering if I should sue…
@Diego Saavedra what's the zoning designation on the property?
Hi Diego, hate to hear that this happened to you. Unfortunately, the broker cannot be sued as they are relying on the seller to be honest and upfront with them. Sellers are required to disclose any hidden defects, such as a septic problem, but do not have to disclose anything that can be discovered in a normal inspection. Was it being marketed as a duplex? Did you do an inspection?
Hey John, thank you for responding.
Yes, the property was marketed as a duplex. Being my first property, I didn’t know to look into zoning and such.
I did have an inspection done, the inspection report even says the property is a duplex.
It wasn’t until I looked into getting an electrical permit that I found out the property wasn’t permitted as a duplex.
The fact that the appraiser didn’t catch the property’s status is what has me appalled.
That’s the part I’m wondering if I should sue…
In my experience, it comes down to how the property was originally deeded. Someone else mentioned that it may be grandfathered in as a duplex. That's kind of what I meant. The closing attorney who cleared the title should have seen how the property was deeded through title chain. I would reach out to them and see what they say. If it was originally deeded as a duplex, then hopefully you can get a variance. It's gonna be extremely difficult to sue someone over this.
I've been through something similar and, unfortunately, at the bottom of everything the seller provides is a line to the effect of "buyer to verify any information deemed important". I lost over well over $30k... Bought a house that was sold as a 3/2. Seller signed that the septic was up to code on the disclosure. Turns out the septic wasn't even on file. Lot was too small to redo the septic. Both RE lawyers I consulted with said, "Read the fine print. It says buyer to verify.".
I hope you have a better outcome! Unfortunately the buyer is the one that takes on all the risk and the "professionals" (RE agents, inspectors, etc) make their money regardless of what happens after the sale. I'll continue to use the above, it just really opened my eyes to how little some "professionals" are worth. Others are worth their weight in gold! Having the right people is critical to success.
@Diego Saavedra what's the zoning designation on the property?
R75 in DeKalb county, Ga
Hi Diego, hate to hear that this happened to you. Unfortunately, the broker cannot be sued as they are relying on the seller to be honest and upfront with them. Sellers are required to disclose any hidden defects, such as a septic problem, but do not have to disclose anything that can be discovered in a normal inspection. Was it being marketed as a duplex? Did you do an inspection?
Hey John, thank you for responding.
Yes, the property was marketed as a duplex. Being my first property, I didn’t know to look into zoning and such.
I did have an inspection done, the inspection report even says the property is a duplex.
It wasn’t until I looked into getting an electrical permit that I found out the property wasn’t permitted as a duplex.
The fact that the appraiser didn’t catch the property’s status is what has me appalled.
That’s the part I’m wondering if I should sue…
In my experience, it comes down to how the property was originally deeded. Someone else mentioned that it may be grandfathered in as a duplex. That's kind of what I meant. The closing attorney who cleared the title should have seen how the property was deeded through title chain. I would reach out to them and see what they say. If it was originally deeded as a duplex, then hopefully you can get a variance. It's gonna be extremely difficult to sue someone over this.
Just saw the deed. It was for single family FHA... they got me. Oh well, I'll just finish this one up and move on to the next one *shrugs*
Hi Diego, hate to hear that this happened to you. Unfortunately, the broker cannot be sued as they are relying on the seller to be honest and upfront with them. Sellers are required to disclose any hidden defects, such as a septic problem, but do not have to disclose anything that can be discovered in a normal inspection. Was it being marketed as a duplex? Did you do an inspection?
Hey John, thank you for responding.
Yes, the property was marketed as a duplex. Being my first property, I didn’t know to look into zoning and such.
I did have an inspection done, the inspection report even says the property is a duplex.
It wasn’t until I looked into getting an electrical permit that I found out the property wasn’t permitted as a duplex.
The fact that the appraiser didn’t catch the property’s status is what has me appalled.
That’s the part I’m wondering if I should sue…
In my experience, it comes down to how the property was originally deeded. Someone else mentioned that it may be grandfathered in as a duplex. That's kind of what I meant. The closing attorney who cleared the title should have seen how the property was deeded through title chain. I would reach out to them and see what they say. If it was originally deeded as a duplex, then hopefully you can get a variance. It's gonna be extremely difficult to sue someone over this.
Just saw the deed. It was for single family FHA... they got me. Oh well, I'll just finish this one up and move on to the next one *shrugs*
I'm sorry that happened to you! Sounds like you have a good plan though. Experience can be a hard teacher.
Congrats on getting started, you're doing a 100% better than most already!
Best to you!
You have 3 options:
a. Continue to run improperly zoned duplex and hope you don't get caught,
b. Contact a real estate attorney and attempt to rezone,
c. Sell it.
I would at least get an estimate from the attorney and see how difficult the rezone would be. If there are lots of rentals and/or other duplexes in the neighborhood, you may be able to rezone fairly easily.
Michael
PS. You can't sue a real estate agent in Georgia for anything under agency law, they owe you almost no duty of honesty or work quality.