Ghostly real estate transactions.

[StevieB]

My girlfriend is a real estate agent - in Kingston, Ontario - she once related a story to me she came across in a training course early in her career. The story involves the sale of an alleged hunted house and the buyers subsequent legal action against the seller for non-disclosure of this preexisting condition.

I've always assumed that the story was an urban myth as she could never give me details as to date and location. Apparently I was wrong.

Stambovsky v. Ackley is a case from the New York state Appellate court, (1991), in which the plaintiff was granted the remedy of rescission in part because, "...the seller not only takes unfair advantage of the buyer's ignorance but has created and perpetuated a condition about which he is unlikely to even inquire..."

Ackley had created the condition in part by a story she had written entitled, "Our Haunted House on the Hudson", which appeared in the May 1977 edition of the Reader's Digest.

I could never understand how a court could rescind a contract because of poltergeist. Although it certainly makes sense if you consider the seller has created a condition that could adversely affect the value of the property.
Regardless of the condition.

Extreme cases may make bad law but they are damned interesting.

 

[Biscuit]

I use to be in real estate and had not heard that story. I do recall that you were not required to disclose any deaths that have occurred and could not disclose if someone had died of aids.

Never dealt with any hauntings.

 

[rjh01]

Here is a link to the case http://www.lawnix.com/cases/stambovsky-ackley.html

In this case, Ackley deliberately publicized that her house was haunted. Having informed the public at large that the house was haunted, she owned no less a duty to the buyer. Ackley was estopped from denying the existence of ghosts and poltergeists and as a matter of law, the house was haunted.

The fact that ghosts do not exist is not important.

 

[StevieB]

I use to be in real estate and had not heard that story. I do recall that you were not required to disclose any deaths that have occurred and could not disclose if someone had died of aids.

Never dealt with any hauntings.

It was the only documented case I could find through my search. I wonder though, if this was mostly a case of buyers remorse more than being bothered by a spectre?

 

[Aepervius]

It was the only documented case I could find through my search. I wonder though, if this was mostly a case of buyers remorse more than being bothered by a spectre?

Sound more of a case of a previous fault introduced by the previous proprietor but not Disclosed to the buyer. After all introducing story of ghost hunting may make the house unpallatable to certain person, devalutating the house.

It would have been the same if the previous proprietor said that hell's angel biker like to camp in the wood behind. It might not be true but it would certainly devalue strongly the property. And not disclosing you spread the rumor before selling would be bad.