San Francisco’s rent control ordinance limits rent increases to tenants in occupancy. In this case, the son of parents who years ago rented a unit in the landlord’s building and who, along with his parents, was an original occupant, remained in the unit after his parents left it. At that point, the landlord attempted to […]
Nominal Damages Did Not Support Award Of Attorney Fees In Real Property Dispute.
This case involves a vineyard versus winery boundary dispute. After a bench trial, the court ruled in favor of the vineyard, quieted title, granted injunctive relief, awarded $1 in damages for past trespass and awarded the vineyard $117,000 in attorney fees under CCP § 1021.9, which provides: “In any action to recover damages to personal […]
Deed Altered, Omitting Plaintiff’s Name, But She Still Loses Quiet Title Action.
In her quiet title action, plaintiff alleges she pooled her $150,000 with two entities in partnership for the purchase of a residential property at a foreclosure auction for the purchase price of $250,000. In the original version of the trustee’s deed, it stated that one of the entities had a 75 percent and the other […]
Quitclaim Deed To Caregiver Was A Donative Transfer.
A husband and wife had a caretaker. After the wife died, the husband quitclaimed a house to the caretaker. The couple’s daughter brought action against the caretaker, contending the quitclaim deed was invalid. In her deposition, the caretaker admitted the only consideration she gave for the quitclaim consisted of one dollar and her friendship. She […]
Clerk Of The Court To Execute Escrow Documents.
After the parties agreed to a property purchase, the seller/defendant refused to complete the sale and returned the money the buyer/plaintiff placed in escrow. The buyer brought this action for specific performance. The parties thereafter settled the matter, but once again the seller failed to comply by withholding signature from necessary documents. The trial court […]
Rent Control.
A landlord converted a rent-controlled apartment building to condominiums, obtained a new certificate of occupancy in 2009 based on the change in use, and raised the rent. When a tenant objected, the landlord sought a declaration from the court that the unit was exempt from local rent control ordinances under the Costa-Hawkins Rental Housing Act […]
Buyer Of Real Property May Not Rely On Appraisal Ordered By Lender.
Plaintiff entered into a written contract to buy vacant land. His lender hired a real estate appraiser to perform an appraisal of the property. Upon determining the property he purchased was unsuitable for his purposes, plaintiff brought an action against the appraiser for negligent misrepresentation, alleging the property value in the appraisal was in excess […]
“A Successful Lawsuit Is One Worn By A Policeman,” Robert Frost.
In March 2004, a real estate broker signed an exclusive listing agreement with the seller of acreage. In September 2004, a potential buyer extended an offer directly to the seller. Meanwhile, as the seller negotiated with the potential buyer, plaintiff continued to market the property. The sale of the property closed in July 2005 with […]
Mechanic’s Liens – An Attorney’s Perspective
Whether you are a property owner or a contractor trying to get paid for a project, you want to pay particular attention to the statutory framework governing mechanic’s lien law in California. If contractors do not comply, enforcing a mechanics lien can be difficult and this has important ramifications for both the property owner and […]
The Foreclosure Run-Around.
The first paragraph of the appellate opinion best describes why the appellate court reversed the grant of defendant bank’s demurrer and remanded the matter to the trial court for further proceedings: “This appeal represents another example of what is becoming a well-established and predictable pattern. A homeowner in distress because of the meltdown of the […]
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