What recourse do I have for rent that was paid on a house that was already foreclosed on?

Question

I lease a house in Texas from a leasing company. Yesterday I found out that the house I am leasing was foreclosed on and sold at auction on 7/1/08. I, of course, have already paid July's rent. I contacted the leasing company and they said they had know idea that the house had been foreclosed on. They told me to bring some proof from the court. I took the foreclosure notice as well as the sale info that I obtained from the courthouse. The leasing company said they would refund my deposit (which they did immediately), but that they were not responsible to refund July's rent. They said that was between me and their client (the old owner). I have been contacted by the new owner (who bought it out of foreclosure) and he wants the rent payment for July (since he bought it on 7/1/08). Does anyone have any information on what my rights are and who if anyone owes me money for July's rent? Will this require some type of civil suit against the old owner of leasing company?

Answer 1

they are b s ing you . that's fraud . contact state attorney general . press charges .

Answer 2

You can sue the previous owner.  The leasing company doesn't have your money, and it's probably true that they had no idea that the house was being taken in foreclosure.  The new owner should be VERY happy if you simply let him have the house at the end of the month without trashing it - and he should not charge you any rent.  When a house is bought at the courthouse steps sight unseen, the new owner often has to go through the legal battle of eviction of the previous owner, taking months and resulting in a trashed house.  Some investors will actually give money to the current occupant to please not trash the house and a little bit for moving expenses.

Answer 3

well, obviously the leasing company already sent the rent to the old owner - if you didn't actually move in YOU should get it back, not the new owner-if you are already in the house, then the new owner has to deal with the old owner

Answer 4

Are you still living in the property? If so, your rent is paid and you should move by the end of the month. If you have moved out and are paying rent elsewhere, you could file small claims against the management company for the July rent payment you made.

The new owner should be contacting the leasing company as they were responsible for collecting the rents (and forwarding them to the defaulted owner.) As long as you believe that you paid the rent in good faith to the proper entity - you should not have a problem. The new owner probably bought it  "as is". The mortgage company that foreclosed and sold the property probably had the right to collect the rents per the Deed of Trust, but believed the property was "owner occupied". So, the prior owner is now out of the picture, having lied to the lender. I am amazed at how unaware the lenders are of this practice. It happens a lot!

Hope this helps.