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Home purchase/deed transfer from parents went very wrong!!!

Posted on: 22nd Feb, 2010 09:41 am
my wife and i wanted to purchase here family home from her parents. at the time we owned another home and couldnt purchase without selling first.

my parents offered to make a down payment and co-sign until we sold the other house and could refinance. the mortgage company did the loan in just my parents name without us knowing. they also did not add our name to the deed.

the deed for my inlaws house had 2 parts. the house was on one lot and they had bougth 1/2 lot on each side. a detatched garage was build on one side and a new addition went over onto the other side.

the mortgage company failed to transfer both deeds leaving the 1/2 lots in my in-laws name.

my wife and i want to fix everything and have it all in our name. my parents dont speak because of this issue and they want us to purchase/refi the mortage. they will not add out names to the deed.

is this mortgage/deed legal?
can my inlaws transfer there part to my wife and i to used as equity?
we need help!!!
you need legal help more than you need advice on this forum, i believe. the parcels have to be reattached in the land records, i presume, before you try to quit claim back and forth again.

i'm assuming that you've sold your previous home, and that qualifying now isn't an issue, like it was before.

nevetheless, engage the services of an attorney so that you'll know what you're doing and get it straight this time...please.
Posted on: 22nd Feb, 2010 09:46 am
We talked to one lawyer and he said the the contract was no good. He suggested to let it go into forclosure and buy it back for less $.

My wife and I have higher standards and refuse to go that route.
We are now seeking a different lawyer.

Oh yeah, we have sold the other house and should have no problem getting a new mortgage.

We would like to figure out a way to have equity to show since we have did major improvements to the house and lots. Not to mention all the mortgage payments we have made over the last few years.
Posted on: 22nd Feb, 2010 09:50 am
i think you're smart to have engaged a different attorney. regardless of a person's standards, that recommendation he made strikes me as absurd for anyone.
Posted on: 22nd Feb, 2010 09:54 am
What about the Mortgage companys mistake with the Deed?

Am I correct that the property could not be sold unless all parties signed?
Do my wife and I have any attactment to this property even though we have invested thousands into it?
Posted on: 22nd Feb, 2010 10:09 am
i think your other lawyer would be a better person to judge. your first lawyer noted the contract was invalid, but you have reason to suspect his judgment after all.

i'm no lawyer, and i certainly wouldn't be able to give you a reasoned opinion on what you own or don't own.

as for the lender, was there a lawyer who represented you and/or the lender at the closing? who handled all that? is there title insurance? honestly, there are too many legal questions here to be discussed with lay people.
Posted on: 22nd Feb, 2010 10:22 am
A lawyer was presant to do the deed through the mortgage company. No title insurance was taken because all parties were family. My wifes parents bought the house new over 25 years ago.

We just need everyone to come together on the same page. A bank work with us on a mortgage, and be done with this head ace.

My parents could add me to the deed at anytime, but they think my wife and I changed everything at the mortgage company with the co-signing deal. Which we didnt.
Posted on: 22nd Feb, 2010 10:31 am
oh yeah, The mortgage company has tried to play every mistake on my wife and I. This has cause quite a bit of family problems.

The mortgage company said we could refinace in one year without penalties, but when time came, they said 3 years, then it became 5 years.
There interest rates are twice the price of a bank and we have gotten nowere on the loan.
Posted on: 22nd Feb, 2010 10:37 am
have you sounded out other lenders? that's your best bet, at least as far as a new loan. and another lender might have a competent lawyer, too, in the event you get stuck with a bozo.
Posted on: 22nd Feb, 2010 10:43 am
Yes, I have talked to one bank, but just over the phone.

I need to figure out if it has to be a purchase or a refi. The amout we want to borrow is only 80% or less than the appraised value. We really dont have any down payment, but can show receipts on the thousands we have invested. What would it take to make this a refi when our names are not on the deed or mortgage?
Posted on: 22nd Feb, 2010 10:48 am
i'm not sure of the particular benefits of it being a refinance, frankly; but if you have original documentation reflecting the deal as it was originally intended to be, i suppose a lender would be happy to consider them. that might work best in a purchase, though; your inlaws could "sell" the home to you with a gift of equity of that 20% - that's a typical type of deal.
Posted on: 22nd Feb, 2010 11:02 am
So if my wifes parents "which are not on the mortgage" sells there part "which wasnt transfered in the process" to us, we could use that as the 20% gift of equity? Does any money change hands or is it a $1 to family type transaction?

My parents on the other hand "mortage in there name" will not do anything except sign papers at a closing to get there inital down payment back and there names off the mortage. So I get no help from them.


We just want to do this legally and correct. The 20% gift of equity was what we had on our mind,. So a purchase would be the best way to go in that instant. Correct.

Can the bank or a lawyer draw up a purchase agreement and contact my parents? And do we all have to be in the same room during closing?
Posted on: 22nd Feb, 2010 11:08 am
i don't think i got that there were 2 sets of parents - you mean to say that your inlaws are obligated under the promissory note, yet your parents are the owners of the home? that's impossible! or maybe just ridiculous - i guess you really found a loser of a bank to do business with!

okay...yes, you could draw up the contract reflecting the purchase price of, say $100K, with a gift of equity of $20K and loan to be in the amount of $80K, with whoever owns it selling to you.

as far as closing, the only people required to attend a closing would be you and your wife and whoever the closing agent might be (lawyer, title agent, notary, etc.). sellers and other interested or uninterested parties need not attend - all their paperwork can be done outside of the closing - as long as it's done right.

i apologize for missing the two sets of parents - dunno how i did that...and i thought it was already bad enough!
Posted on: 22nd Feb, 2010 08:08 pm
Yes it is a very bad situation. My wifes parents are supportive and are even willing to co-sign if need be. We want to do this own our own.

We need 105k to clear everything. We owe my parents 38500 for the down payment and the balance of the loan is 54k. Plus a few extra thousand for other things. The house should appraise for $135k or better.

How should we write this up to get it to work?

Oh yeah, I dont know if I can tell the name of the lender we went through, but stay away from American General Finace.
Posted on: 23rd Feb, 2010 05:08 am
Oh yeah, My in-laws name were just left on one of the deeds. They have nothing to do with the mortgage. We beleive that since the lender failed to transfer both deeds, my in-laws technically still own a part of the property.

That part is what we want to make as a gift of equity to use as a down payment.

It has been a hard issue to deal with. We just want to get a mortgage, pay my parents the share and get on with life.

Our credit is good, and we make enough income to get the loan.

Anymore good advice. I appreciate the help.
Posted on: 23rd Feb, 2010 05:14 am
frankly, it's baffling to try to take in everything you've mentioned and process and spit it back out in any sensible manner. i really think your best bet at this time is to hire yourselves a good lawyer - one whose specialty is real estate (and real estate only), who can comb through all this information, figure out what may have gone wrong, rectify those things and get you back on track so that a prudent and satisfactory lender can find a way to provide the financing you require.

truthfully, i feel a bit overwhelmed at this point, and i hesitate to try to advise you further. i'm far away, and this is really a convoluted situation that needs the hands of an expert who can literally as well as figuratively grasp it all.

as for american general, i seem to remember some commentaries on them on this site, but of course, no lender can be in business for long without criticism. i don't have any comment in that regard.

with good credit, good income and, apparently, sufficient equity in this property, you ought to be able to accomplish what you desire and give up the cross you've been bearing.
Posted on: 23rd Feb, 2010 08:53 am
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