There are some laws that seem to be well defined, or “black letter” law. For example, California Business and Professions Code Section 7159 requires that residential home improvement contracts must be in writing. This applies to any proposed repair or remodel contract where the work will exceed $500. However, in some cases, the California courts [...]
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There has a been a recent flurry of cases in California courts awarding homeowners disgorgement of all fees paid to general contractors (under B&P Section 7031). In cases like White v. Cridlebaugh, 175 Cal. App. 4th 1535 – 2009 and Oceguera v. Cohen, there were technical defects with the general contractor's license–ie, the general contractor had been licensed at [...]
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In California, sellers have a legal obligation to disclose any material facts affecting the desirability of the property. This duty is not only rooted in the common law, but statute as well, codified by California Civil Code Section 1102 et seq. The sellers must complete the Transfer Disclosure Statement (“TDS”) and certify the information in [...]
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Sometimes when lawyers talk amongst themselves, they will refer to certain real estate cases as "bad house" cases. What they are talking about is a dispute between buyer and seller over the FAILURE TO DISCLOSE material defects in the home. These are perhaps the most common disputes in residential real estate. The Transfer Disclosure Statement [...]
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Today, guest blogger Eric discusses the ramifications of new construction warranties in California, under California Civil Code §§ 895 through 945.5 – specifically, remediating construction problems in newly constructed homes. The Code actually gives a complete, verbatim list of actionable construction defects is located in Section 896. The list includes water intrusion, structural (cracks in [...]
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