B
brp rider
Guest
Recently purchased a house (in california) built in the 60's. The house sits on top of a hill, with the back property line touching a 20+ degree slope. The slope is owned by the city. The previous owner had the back slope wash out on him during a rainstorm three years ago. It took appx 3ft of the back yard. He rebuilt the back 3 ft and added 4 retaining walls on the city's slope. There was no permit issued. I learned this after taking ownership of the house, though I could see the retaining walls prior to purchase.
The recent rains have cause the retraining walls to fail miserably and take app 6ft of the backyard down the slope. Neighbors are having the same problem (though not nearly as bad) and say it's been going on since the homes were built.
1. The city claims 0 liability and will not help to keep the hill from it's continued slide nor repair the damage. They claim that since the hill was not touched by them in any way, that they bear no responsibility for it's failure. They also say that they have been dealing with this since at least 72 and that this has been their policy the entire time.
2. The previous owner did not disclose the problem in our paperwork.
Am I stuck with what will probably be a 20k (I've been making phone calls) repair on property that I've owned for less than a year?
Thanks.
BRP Rider.
The recent rains have cause the retraining walls to fail miserably and take app 6ft of the backyard down the slope. Neighbors are having the same problem (though not nearly as bad) and say it's been going on since the homes were built.
1. The city claims 0 liability and will not help to keep the hill from it's continued slide nor repair the damage. They claim that since the hill was not touched by them in any way, that they bear no responsibility for it's failure. They also say that they have been dealing with this since at least 72 and that this has been their policy the entire time.
2. The previous owner did not disclose the problem in our paperwork.
Am I stuck with what will probably be a 20k (I've been making phone calls) repair on property that I've owned for less than a year?
Thanks.
BRP Rider.