What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? PA
I am a scatter lot builder who bot a lot in a private lane from the developer who is also the owner of the plan, and started construction of a home. at the foundation stage i sold the home to a doctor. all customers,home plans, colors, mailbox locations, driveways locations and dimensions in this lane were provided and dictated by the developer/owner. the developer/owner lives next door. the developer/owner also was the real estate listing agent. this is the third house I built in this plan. I was told by the developer et al that I had to pay both agents full commissions and development fees at the closing on the lot when house was only in foundation stage and I did, which I find out now is unethical in the real estate industry. albeit,when house was completed i hired an asphalt company to meet with the developer et al to install the asphalt in the doctors driveway and the entire lane (due to trucks damaging lane) and i paid the bill. i was not on site that day. The developer dictated the location of the drive and lane as he has done for all the other homes in the plan. A site plan is in my possession dated years before I met this developer showing driveway in exact location as it stands now. Developer had every intention to make it as it is now.
the closing for the bank loan took place at this time and both agents and closing attorney opted to detach my foundation survey from my contract and attach it to the bank loan to use for the doctors closing on the loan and home. the doctor was advised by the bank to obtain his own survey after completion of the house and finalizing the loan, but never did – he used the one I attached to the contract (foundation survey). A final survey would have brought to lite this encroachment years ago.
5 years go by and doctor wants to sell home as he has moved into a larger home and has argument with developer et al who is his next door neighbor and calls the developer et al a cruel name. developer et al makes statement "now you are going to pay". vindictive developer et al sends letter next day to doctor stating that 200 sq. ft of his driveway is encroaching onto his land and he wont be able to sell his home because of title defect. Doctor hires a contractor to do some remodeling. This contractor states that developer made comment one year earlier (when HE was trying to sell his house) that “if you buy my house, you will own half of this doctors driveway and you can rip it out or do put a fence up on it.”Developer et al wants paid an horrendous amount of money to sign an easement agreement and or give up title to land. doctor cant list his house for sale. doctor is suing me/builder cuz he bot the home from me and has no relationship with the developer et al for damages i.e. mortgage payments, utilities etc..in excess of $400,000 as the lawsuit has progressed two years now. i have made developer et al added defendant.
when the encroachment was discovered, i immediately went to site and told doctor who is my customer that i would cut off the encroachment which would involve about 2 hours and cost of pennies which I will gladly do for him as he was my customer. doctor says he doesnt want it cut off as he thinks it would devalue his house and says it cant be done but hasn’t provided proof his opinion only. i hired an outside engineer to file report that it could be done and is on the witness list. Developer et al wont give access to me to the property to cut it off as he now says that he wants money no matter who he gets it from.
i have a lawyer but am very disheartened as how this has progressed. only one week before trial all lawyers are waiting for me to make a monetary offer which would avoid this going to trial.im not really sure that it was ever intended to go to trial. i was told that i was under a gross misrepresentation and this trial is not about guilt or innocence but damages. i have about $10,000 in legal fees to date but have made another last compromise to either fix the problem or I have made an additional offer of $5,000 to the developer to release the land to the doctor, my customer. the only reason i did this is to end the stress this is having on my wife and me as I am now retired. A judgement of this caliber at age 73 would be debilitating. i have found out that the doctor is now looking into my personal assets. i horrendously found out that at trial it cannot be brought out that i made 3 attempts to correct the problem and all were refused. and, i now find out that i AM going to be made responsible because the doctor bot the house from me which makes me automatically responsible. The fact that im innocent of this encroachment doesn’t matter. seems clear to me that these two neighbors think they are expecting a windfall and they want it from me.
my question is: In a society of frivolous lawsuits, if a defendant proposes to correct a defect and the plaintiff refuses, not mitigating his damages, therefore allowing damages to accrue, what criteria would the judge use to determine the amount of damages, especially if the effort to correct and solve the problem is not allowed to be brought up or exposed at trial and why? question #2 how on earth is the builder negligent in this matter. Question #3 would it be expensive to change lawyers before the new trial date as I don’t think our lawyer has our best interest if she is continually trying to get us to pay to make it go away. Question #5 our lawyer says an appeal will not be an option so a judgement against me will be final – why.What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)?What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)?
I am a scatter lot builder who bot a lot in a private lane from the developer who is also the owner of the plan, and started construction of a home. at the foundation stage i sold the home to a doctor. all customers,home plans, colors, mailbox locations, driveways locations and dimensions in this lane were provided and dictated by the developer/owner. the developer/owner lives next door. the developer/owner also was the real estate listing agent. this is the third house I built in this plan. I was told by the developer et al that I had to pay both agents full commissions and development fees at the closing on the lot when house was only in foundation stage and I did, which I find out now is unethical in the real estate industry. albeit,when house was completed i hired an asphalt company to meet with the developer et al to install the asphalt in the doctors driveway and the entire lane (due to trucks damaging lane) and i paid the bill. i was not on site that day. The developer dictated the location of the drive and lane as he has done for all the other homes in the plan. A site plan is in my possession dated years before I met this developer showing driveway in exact location as it stands now. Developer had every intention to make it as it is now.
the closing for the bank loan took place at this time and both agents and closing attorney opted to detach my foundation survey from my contract and attach it to the bank loan to use for the doctors closing on the loan and home. the doctor was advised by the bank to obtain his own survey after completion of the house and finalizing the loan, but never did – he used the one I attached to the contract (foundation survey). A final survey would have brought to lite this encroachment years ago.
5 years go by and doctor wants to sell home as he has moved into a larger home and has argument with developer et al who is his next door neighbor and calls the developer et al a cruel name. developer et al makes statement "now you are going to pay". vindictive developer et al sends letter next day to doctor stating that 200 sq. ft of his driveway is encroaching onto his land and he wont be able to sell his home because of title defect. Doctor hires a contractor to do some remodeling. This contractor states that developer made comment one year earlier (when HE was trying to sell his house) that “if you buy my house, you will own half of this doctors driveway and you can rip it out or do put a fence up on it.”Developer et al wants paid an horrendous amount of money to sign an easement agreement and or give up title to land. doctor cant list his house for sale. doctor is suing me/builder cuz he bot the home from me and has no relationship with the developer et al for damages i.e. mortgage payments, utilities etc..in excess of $400,000 as the lawsuit has progressed two years now. i have made developer et al added defendant.
when the encroachment was discovered, i immediately went to site and told doctor who is my customer that i would cut off the encroachment which would involve about 2 hours and cost of pennies which I will gladly do for him as he was my customer. doctor says he doesnt want it cut off as he thinks it would devalue his house and says it cant be done but hasn’t provided proof his opinion only. i hired an outside engineer to file report that it could be done and is on the witness list. Developer et al wont give access to me to the property to cut it off as he now says that he wants money no matter who he gets it from.
i have a lawyer but am very disheartened as how this has progressed. only one week before trial all lawyers are waiting for me to make a monetary offer which would avoid this going to trial.im not really sure that it was ever intended to go to trial. i was told that i was under a gross misrepresentation and this trial is not about guilt or innocence but damages. i have about $10,000 in legal fees to date but have made another last compromise to either fix the problem or I have made an additional offer of $5,000 to the developer to release the land to the doctor, my customer. the only reason i did this is to end the stress this is having on my wife and me as I am now retired. A judgement of this caliber at age 73 would be debilitating. i have found out that the doctor is now looking into my personal assets. i horrendously found out that at trial it cannot be brought out that i made 3 attempts to correct the problem and all were refused. and, i now find out that i AM going to be made responsible because the doctor bot the house from me which makes me automatically responsible. The fact that im innocent of this encroachment doesn’t matter. seems clear to me that these two neighbors think they are expecting a windfall and they want it from me.
my question is: In a society of frivolous lawsuits, if a defendant proposes to correct a defect and the plaintiff refuses, not mitigating his damages, therefore allowing damages to accrue, what criteria would the judge use to determine the amount of damages, especially if the effort to correct and solve the problem is not allowed to be brought up or exposed at trial and why? question #2 how on earth is the builder negligent in this matter. Question #3 would it be expensive to change lawyers before the new trial date as I don’t think our lawyer has our best interest if she is continually trying to get us to pay to make it go away. Question #5 our lawyer says an appeal will not be an option so a judgement against me will be final – why.What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)?What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)?
