Posted by JohnBoy on January 09, 2005 at 15:45:38:
How do you have a mortgage and promissory note on a property you are leasing with an option to buy? Under a lease with an option to purchase you only have a lease with an option to buy agreement. There is no mortgage or promsissory note. A mortgage and promissory note is used when you are buying a property. Not leasing with an option to purchase.
If the seller tried ejecting you from the property through filing an eviction, the reason the case was dissmissed is because judges hearing eviction cases only deal with leases. They don’t hear cases that involve foreclosures. If you have a mortgage and promissory note the seller would have to file a foreclosure lawsuit, not an eviction.
Why did the buyer file a lawsuit to evict you from the property? Were you not paying the rent or mortgage payment?
As far as a good next step, if you are looking at numerous repairs, do you still want the property? Why? How much are the repairs going to cost you? How much are you paying for the property? What is the property worth? What would it be worth after the repairs are made?
If you don’t want to pay for the repairs then I assume you really don’t want to keep the property. The seller seems to want you out. So a good next step may be to let the seller have his property back in exchange for refunding any money you paid as a down payment or option money, whatever it was your contract actually is, and everyone go their separate ways.
If you want the property, then make your payments on time and fix it up the way you want. It may also be a good idea to refinance and pay the seller off to get him completely out of the deal.
Why do you suspect the seller isn’t paying his mortgage? Have you paying him as agreed? If he has money to sue you to get you out then why wouldn’t he be making his payments on his mortgage? Unless he depends on your payments to cover his payments where you haven’t been paying him as agreed. Something here doesn’t sound right. Your post is a bit confusing. You say have a lease with a purchase option, yet you say you have a mortgage and promissory note. Neither has anything to do with each other. You say the property needs numerous repairs and the seller wants you out, yet you defend the right to stay and keep the property.
Does this involve a case where you are using the fact the property needs repairs, so you refused to pay your rent/mortgage to the seller and the seller filed eviction to get you out since you haven’t paid as agreed?