The disclosure process when purchasing a home can sometimes be one of those necessary evils, expecially if the home you are trying to buy has a lot of problems that need attending to before you move in. But the need of a roof replacement seems minimal when some Michigan residents compare it to the ordeal an Oregon family went through when they bought their first home recently.
Besides being a foreclosure, nothing appeared to be out of the ordinary with the home. So the couple put down the $36,500 payment and took the keys to their 850-square-foot home. But just weeks into the renovation of the home, the couple began experiencing extreme headaches and their son became incredibly ill. The events that followed eventially led to a real estate lawsuit against Freddie Mac which had sold them the home.
It wasn’t until speaking with neighbors that the couple learned that the home may have been used as a meth lab. The couple had the home tested; and much to their horror, the tests confirmed the neighbors’ suspicions. When the couple tried to confront Freddie Mac about their failure to disclose the house’s history, a representative of the company told them that because the state police had not reported any drug-related incidents at the residence, Freddie Mac did not have anything to disclose to the family.
The couple sued and recently reached a settlement with Freddie Mac and has since moved out of the home. They are now reaching out to politicians to push legislation that would require foreclosed and auctioned homes to be tested for methamphetamine exposure and post the risks for potential homebuyers to see.
Source: ABC News, “Oregon Meth House Onwers Settle With Freddie Mac,” Susanna Kim, May 2, 2013
