Courts Protect Indiana Landowners

Courts Protect Indiana Landowners

Courts Protect Indiana Landowners

Several years ago, a couple purchased 40 acres of land that had beautiful hills, lush trees, and two pastures perfect for building a home. To get to the top pasture, there was a winding driveway partly gravel, partly packed dirt that went for about of a mile through some woods along the top of a hill. At the bottom of the hill was an old creek bed that had historically been a part of the old Vincennes Trail that led from Chicago to Vincennes, Indiana, then on to Louisville, Kentucky. The trail was used by settlers as they pushed west, expanding their presence across the nation.

This 40-acre tract of real estate belonged to my parents after my grandfather passed away. He had originally bought it from his wife's inheritance back in a time when men women did not have a say in how their money was spent. My grandmother never did care for the land, but she might have had spent some time in the peaceful surroundings.

When my parents realized they would not retire on this beautiful acreage, they offered it for sale and accepted a real estate land contract where the buyer was to make monthly payments, essentially deferring the final purchase until all payments were made in full. At that point, the deed of trust would be transferred to the buyer.

After the paperwork had been signed, the first payment was received but then they stopped. After a month, they received a phone call from a thankfully curious neighbor, "Did you know there are logging trucks pulling down trees?"

My parents were able to get an emergency injunction against the logging company to stop all work. The logging company had already paid the buyer in full - over $30,000 for the beautiful trees and they had only taken about a third of them.

The courts further ruled that the buyer had committed a felony and a warrant was issued for his arrest, but on behalf of my parents who lost the beautiful trees and for the logging company out about $20,000 for the trees they never cut. But the buyer had fled with the money to Florida and as of now 20 years later no arrest has been made.

There are times when a court does need to get involved in a real estate transaction, and they will rule in favor of the contract. When you buy or sell real estate, be sure that a qualified real estate agent reviews it. If it is a transaction outside their normal area of expertise (like a land contract v. outright purchase), always have an attorney review the document before signing. The Indiana attorney that my parents used thought to have the no-logging clause placed and the Indiana courts upheld the letter of the contract.

Indiana courts have long protected the rights of consumers in a fair and equitable way, especially regarding real estate transactions.

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