# Michigan land contract question



## Yoopergirl58 (May 12, 2018)

December of 2017 we agreed to do a land contract with someone 
Well, we are beginning the process of eviction. Yeah...I know
At first it was to buy 1 acre of land. 2 weeks later he asked about our older camper. If we would be interested in selling it. He would put it on the acre so he and his 3 year old son could stay there and make happy memories together. Sure, ok we wanted to sell it anyway. He put down 300.00 on the property & 100.00 on the camper. Selling together under LC agreement. Set monthly payments and April 28th he would pay the balance off. Well that never happened. He promised this & that but it was all fluff. He's behind 3 going on 4 months. Thankfully I have all of his messages. 2 weeks ago he asked if we would wait a bit because ha has a big job coming up and he would pay us what he made. We heard this song and dance 1 too many times and fell for his sob stories way too many times. We said no. He told us he would have his contents removed last Sunday. Nope it was too hot. Then he started saying you know I could make this hard for you & tie it up in court. But I won't I'm not that way. Well come to find out he is that way. He also told us we should give him the camper so he doesn't lose out. He lives about 80 miles from the property only comes up occasionally. Now my question if any has an answer...We want to sell this property & camper. Can I legally list it for sale or do I wait until the eviction process is over? Live and learn the hard way.


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## GTX63 (Dec 13, 2016)

Not a resident of Michigan but I'll try and ask a few general questions to get a hold on this.
Did you file your contract with the county?
Do you have a judgement for eviction or still in the courts?
Who has the title to the camper?
Follow up, if he is not living there I believe it is a foreclosure rather than eviction.

I've had a lot of history with tenants and in court. On a rural property when I float money to a buyer who then lies, avoids me, lies some more and then tells me they could make it hard on me, well...there are laws and then there are laws.


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## Mickie3 (Aug 28, 2010)

If I understand the facts correctly, buyer has defaulted on contract. You will need to foreclose on properties and then sell the properties. You will not have clear title until finished with foreclosure is over and be able to sell.


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## Yoopergirl58 (May 12, 2018)

GTX63 said:


> Not a resident of Michigan but I'll try and ask a few general questions to get a hold on this.
> Did you file your contract with the county? No
> Do you have a judgement for eviction or still in the courts? Just starting. Paper is filled out now I have to serve him.
> Who has the title to the camper? We do
> ...


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## Yoopergirl58 (May 12, 2018)

Mickie3 said:


> If I understand the facts correctly, buyer has defaulted on contract. You will need to foreclose on properties and then sell the properties. You will not have clear title until finished with foreclosure is over and be able to sell.


The district court gave me a forfeiture notice for land contract. This I filled out & tomorrow I will send it to him.


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## Yoopergirl58 (May 12, 2018)

Mickie3 said:


> If I understand the facts correctly, buyer has defaulted on contract. You will need to foreclose on properties and then sell the properties. You will not have clear title until finished with foreclosure is over and be able to sell.


The land contract hasn't been filed with the court. Once it was paid in full we would transfer title.


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## GTX63 (Dec 13, 2016)

Well, since you didn't not file your documents/contract then there is no legal record of the transaction. I'll take it that your buyer does have paperwork that was at least signed between the two of you. Depending on your general personality and disposition you have some options but I am not a lawyer and I won't advise you what your options are outside of the law. The first thing that strikes me is that if this guy is not living on site it is not considered his residence. I'll assume there is no mail, no trash/utility in his name?
It if were me, I would padlock the gates, the doors to the camper and remove it and post trespassing notices. The guy can't pay his rent I doubt he can hire someone smart enough to go to court for him. When he calls I would refuse to meet with him unless he has cash in hand. There will be plenty of folks who disagree; I'm only speaking from personal experience with layabouts and liars that look for nice people to rent and steal from.


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## Yoopergirl58 (May 12, 2018)

GTX63 said:


> Well, since you didn't not file your documents/contract then there is no legal record of the transaction. I'll take it that your buyer does have paperwork that was at least signed between the two of you. Depending on your general personality and disposition you have some options but I am not a lawyer and I won't advise you what your options are outside of the law. The first thing that strikes me is that if this guy is not living on site it is not considered his residence. I'll assume there is no mail, no trash/utility in his name?
> It if were me, I would padlock the gates, the doors to the camper and remove it and post trespassing notices. The guy can't pay his rent I doubt he can hire someone smart enough to go to court for him. When he calls I would refuse to meet with him unless he has cash in hand. There will be plenty of folks who disagree; I'm only speaking from personal experience with layabouts and liars that look for nice people to rent and steal from.


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## Yoopergirl58 (May 12, 2018)

It's going to take awhile & going to court. He has a history of this. Wish we would have checked him out before agreed. Hard lesson to learn. 
He told us that all of his belongings would be removed from the property & camper on Saturday the 14th. When I asked him if he was gone he told me his lawyer (??? He can't pay us but he can afford a lawyer???) Advised him not to remove anything or pay any money to us. This past Thursday I received a private message from him telling me he was cutting down trees from the property to sell for firewood. I called the Michigan State Police & explained our situation, I was going to the property and asked to have an officer accompany us. He didn't cut down any tree's and the officer asked him why he sent the message He told him that he was just mad but he could cut them down because there isn't anything in the land contract stating he can't. And there isn't. However the officer advised him not to. 
The initial eviction notice has been sent out & received. Now I go to file and set a hearing date. 
We're not the only one this person has scammed. But we should have checked first 
He's good at conning people.


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## 1948CaseVAI (May 12, 2014)

As stated by someone else, there are laws.... 

You coud wish for lightning to take care of the camper. You won't get the money but can get some satisfaction. Besides, it doesn't sound like he has the means to replace the camper so the land may lose its attraction as well.


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## haypoint (Oct 4, 2006)

I've had a few land contracts in the UP. Seems that I took them to the Register of Deeds office in the County building. Had them witness and sign and Notary stamp the contract. Might have added a note to the deed, so the land couldn't be resold.
Banks often won't finance bare land, so if you want to sell you need someone with a pile of cash or deal with a land contract. You get the possibility of added interest on your investment, but sometimes you get skunked. Sorry. I hate deadbeats.
A guy, down on his luck, needed a place to stay, so he moved into his step-mother's Motel. The plan was that he pay some rent and shovel snow. Didn't happen. So, after a few months, his Jeep blew a piston and he moved away. He agreed to give her the Jeep Cherokee in exchange for owed rent. He signed the title and gave it to her. She started looking for a buyer. I bought it as a project.
I hauled it home. Gutted the interior and replaced the carpet, repaired everything. Got the inside like new. I pulled the engine, cleaned the engine bay, Bought a rebuild kit, had the cylinders bored and a lot more. As I was working on this, the woman began looking for the title.
Well, when she gave up looking and her step son was no help, I started knocking on his door, to no avail. I had to go through the steps of Sheriff notifying him of the court date. The judge ordered him to sign over the title. But since he didn't have a car, I had to haul his worthless self up to the Secretary of State office to get the paperwork done.
I went home, prepped the Jeep for paint, put new tires on nice rims, had a friend paint it and drove it for several years. But the time spent chasing down the title is a waste, because I didn't act more carefully.


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## Yoopergirl58 (May 12, 2018)

1948CaseVAI said:


> As stated by someone else, there are laws....
> 
> You coud wish for lightning to take care of the camper. You won't get the money but can get some satisfaction. Besides, it doesn't sound like he has the means to replace the camper so the land may lose its attraction as well.



Thank you for your reply. I have parties asking to sell it without the camper and wanting it to stay.


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## Yoopergirl58 (May 12, 2018)

haypoint said:


> I've had a few land contracts in the UP. Seems that I took them to the Register of Deeds office in the County building. Had them witness and sign and Notary stamp the contract. Might have added a note to the deed, so the land couldn't be resold.
> Banks often won't finance bare land, so if you want to sell you need someone with a pile of cash or deal with a land contract. You get the possibility of added interest on your investment, but sometimes you get skunked. Sorry. I hate deadbeats.
> A guy, down on his luck, needed a place to stay, so he moved into his step-mother's Motel. The plan was that he pay some rent and shovel snow. Didn't happen. So, after a few months, his Jeep blew a piston and he moved away. He agreed to give her the Jeep Cherokee in exchange for owed rent. He signed the title and gave it to her. She started looking for a buyer. I bought it as a project.
> I hauled it home. Gutted the interior and replaced the carpet, repaired everything. Got the inside like new. I pulled the engine, cleaned the engine bay, Bought a rebuild kit, had the cylinders bored and a lot more. As I was working on this, the woman began looking for the title.
> ...


The contract hasn't been deeded. Nothing at the courthouse of the land contract between us except for our contracts. When he paid the property off is when it would be turned over to him. The camper is a separate sale, which he also defaulted on. 
He continues to go there on weekends to enjoy it even though he hasn't made a payment since March and is being evicted. I filed the papers in court a week ago Friday. The 20th. I sent him a summons for court and he was also served by the Menomonee Co. Sheriff's dept. I found out through them he's well known at the dept. This wasn't his first scam. His criminal history goes back to 2001. Wish we would have checked. Oh. He feels he thinks we should give him the camper so he doesn't lose out on the deal?? SMH. He could pay the $700.00 He owes on it and take it no problem.


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## Yoopergirl58 (May 12, 2018)

GTX63 said:


> Well, since you didn't not file your documents/contract then there is no legal record of the transaction. I'll take it that your buyer does have paperwork that was at least signed between the two of you. Depending on your general personality and disposition you have some options but I am not a lawyer and I won't advise you what your options are outside of the law. The first thing that strikes me is that if this guy is not living on site it is not considered his residence. I'll assume there is no mail, no trash/utility in his name?
> It if were me, I would padlock the gates, the doors to the camper and remove it and post trespassing notices. The guy can't pay his rent I doubt he can hire someone smart enough to go to court for him. When he calls I would refuse to meet with him unless he has cash in hand. There will be plenty of folks who disagree; I'm only speaking from personal experience with layabouts and liars that look for nice people to rent and steal from.


Well, he "says he has a good lawyer that likes to dig up dirt and he's going to have fun with us! Said his lawyer advised him not to make any payments or remove his personal items from the property. I never heard such a thing.


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## Mickie3 (Aug 28, 2010)

Yoopergirl58 said:


> Well, he "says he has a good lawyer that likes to dig up dirt and he's going to have fun with us! Said his lawyer advised him not to make any payments or remove his personal items from the property. I never heard such a thing.



Ask him for his lawyer's name so your can get in contact with his. You know he doesn't have a lawyer, he doesn't have the $$$ for one. 

Why are you evicting him, shouldn't you be foreclosing on him on the property and repossessing on the trailer? IIRC, evictions are only for rentals.


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## GTX63 (Dec 13, 2016)

Lawyers send letters. Clients don't speak for lawyers. It should be obvious that if he did speak to a lawyer, it was for 30 minutes and that amounted to his advertised "free consultation."
Evictions are only for rentals.
Unfortunately, the longer you allow this to continue, the longer you will suffer for it.


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## Yoopergirl58 (May 12, 2018)

Mickie3 said:


> Ask him for his lawyer's name so your can get in contact with his. You know he doesn't have a lawyer, he doesn't have the $$$ for one.
> 
> Why are you evicting him, shouldn't you be foreclosing on him on the property and repossessing on the trailer? IIRC, evictions are only for rentals.


This is the process district court told to go.


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## dmm1976 (Oct 29, 2013)

Like pp I'd also ask him for his lawyers contact info. Tell him your lawyer advised you to only speak with his lawyer from here on out.


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## GTX63 (Dec 13, 2016)

Does he has insurance in case his trailer should burn down? Or be broken into and rendered uninhabital?


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## Mickie3 (Aug 28, 2010)

Yoopergirl58 said:


> This is the process district court told to go.



District court? The courts are NOT allowed to offer advice, so someone who works in the court (?) has misinformed you on the process you need to be taking. Your best bet is to hire an attorney yourself and let them handle it. 

Who drew up the contracts for deeds? Hope you hired a lawyer for that!


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## Yoopergirl58 (May 12, 2018)

Mickie3 said:


> District court? The courts are NOT allowed to offer advice, so someone who works in the court (?) has misinformed you on the process you need to be taking. Your best bet is to hire an attorney yourself and let them handle it.
> 
> Who drew up the contracts for deeds? Hope you hired a lawyer for that!


I got the forms we filed. I am sorry & embarrassed .... it is a Forfeiture Notice Land Contract we filed. With proof of service. Then a Complaint For possession after Land Contract Forfeiture. Last was the summons Landord-tenant/ Land Contract.


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## Yoopergirl58 (May 12, 2018)

GTX63 said:


> Does he has insurance in case his trailer should burn down? Or be broken into and rendered uninhabital?


No he doesn't have insurance on it. Which HE was to provide.


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## Yoopergirl58 (May 12, 2018)

dmm1976 said:


> Like pp I'd also ask him for his lawyers contact info. Tell him your lawyer advised you to only speak with his lawyer from here on out.


He sent me a text telling me he doesn't have to provide that information. He said we will find out on the 29th in court.


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## Alice In TX/MO (May 10, 2002)

29th of August?


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## Mike in Ohio (Oct 29, 2002)

Speak with a lawyer. Your first consultation should be free. If you believe he might cut trees or do other damage you should consider getting an injunction. 

For all the folks looking to buy and all the folks looking to rent, this is why many folks are wary of being flexible in a deal. I get that there are also sellers and landlords who are despicable. Just saying.


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## Yoopergirl58 (May 12, 2018)

Alice In TX/MO said:


> 29th of August?



Yes


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## Txyogagirl (Jul 4, 2018)

Yoopergirl58 said:


> This is the process district court told to go.


I would do what gtx63 said if u never filed deed with court technically it seems it’s like a unofficial deal y’all made with each other so I would take my camper off land and lockup the gate and post the signs and be done take the money loss as a lesson learned


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## Yoopergirl58 (May 12, 2018)

Txyogagirl said:


> I would do what gtx63 said if u never filed deed with court technically it seems it’s like a unofficial deal y’all made with each other so I would take my camper off land and lockup the gate and post the signs and be done take the money loss as a lesson learned


The only paperwork that's been filed in court are the forfeiture & summons. 
I am going to see an attorney. We really haven't lost any money....he has paid us for Jan., Feb., & Mar. Along with the late fees for esch month and $300.00 towards the camper...last payment on that was also March. He feels we should at least give him the camper so HE doesn't lose out on the deal, smh. We still have potential buyers & i dont see any difficulty selling it. ..but when it goes back up for sale it will be with a realtor!


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## Yoopergirl58 (May 12, 2018)




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## Mickie3 (Aug 28, 2010)

lol, can GUARANTEE you than he has NO lawyer. Needs some money back? What a diaper-load! 

Get an attorney and let them deal with it, you are dealing with someone who has no idea of where reality is.


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## Yoopergirl58 (May 12, 2018)

It's been a long month waiting but tomorrow we go to court. I did hire a lawyer to look over the contract and she feels confident there wont be any problems being granted the judgement. 
In the meantime he's been using the property & camper on weekends. He still thinks we should give him the camper so he doesn't lose out on the deal smh...
That's not going to happen. 
I did some digging and found out he's been in court many times. Judgements against him but we're never paid. 3 evictions in Wisconsin & 2 in Michigan. I've been in contact with 3 of the ones he owes money to. They have been trying to find him. What I don't understand is how this guy gets away without ever paying?? 
Please say a prayer & wish us good luck.


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## dmm1976 (Oct 29, 2013)

Yoopergirl58 said:


> It's been a long month waiting but tomorrow we go to court. I did hire a lawyer to look over the contract and she feels confident there wont be any problems being granted the judgement.
> In the meantime he's been using the property & camper on weekends. He still thinks we should give him the camper so he doesn't lose out on the deal smh...
> That's not going to happen.
> I did some digging and found out he's been in court many times. Judgements against him but we're never paid. 3 evictions in Wisconsin & 2 in Michigan. I've been in contact with 3 of the ones he owes money to. They have been trying to find him. What I don't understand is how this guy gets away without ever paying??
> Please say a prayer & wish us good luck.


judgments can sometimes come out of tax returns if the person doesn't pay. Or even wage garnishment ( varies by state I'm sure).

So maybe he is self employed, or unemployed or paid under the table. Or the process hasn't gotten that far .


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## Yoopergirl58 (May 12, 2018)

While John & I were waiting to go into the courthouse I received a text message from "Joe" telling us the property was cleared off and he sent a certified check in the mail for the balance doe on the camper. I didn't have a good feeling about that text. He didn't show up for the hearing. We won the judgement however he still has 90 days to pay us and has use of the property. After court we took a ride there...I had to see if my gut feeling wss right. It was. He took the camper. The camper and property were separate contracts but both to be paid in full by the 28th of April. He knew he wasn't to remove it. As stated in the above screen shot I posted. His girlfriend also contacted me telling me he Would walk away if we gave him the camper. So he's not out anything. He's behind 6 months on both. 
We can't locate the camper now. He has it hidden somewhere. I called our attorney and will be meeting her Tuesday. 
Plan on taking a ride to the property...he's arrogant enough to haul the camper back there and use it another 87 days. Free of charge. 
He has a very good paying job. As far as him having a lawyer..I doubt it. He won't answer my question to him. Why don't you pay us instead of paying your lawyer?


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## Yoopergirl58 (May 12, 2018)

View attachment 69284
View attachment 69284
While John & I were waiting to go into the courthouse I received a text message from "Joe" telling us the property was cleared off and he sent a certified check in the mail for the balance doe on the camper. I didn't have a good feeling about that text. He didn't show up for the hearing. We won the judgement however he still has 90 days to pay us and has use of the property. After court we took a ride there...I had to see if my gut feeling wss right. It was. He took the camper. The camper and property were separate contracts but both to be paid in full by the 28th of April. He knew he wasn't to remove it. As stated in the above screen shot I posted. His girlfriend also contacted me telling me he Would walk away if we gave him the camper. So he's not out anything. He's behind 6 months on both.
We can't locate the camper now. He has it hidden somewhere. I called our attorney and will be meeting her Tuesday.
Plan on taking a ride to the property...he's arrogant enough to haul the camper back there and use it another 87 days. Free of charge.
He has a very good paying job. As far as him having a lawyer..I doubt it. He won't answer my question to him. Why don't you pay us instead of paying your lawyer?


Yoopergirl58 said:


> View attachment 69284
> While John & I were waiting to go into the courthouse I received a text message from "Joe" telling us the property was cleared off and he sent a certified check in the mail for the balance doe on the camper. I didn't have a good feeling about that text. He didn't show up for the hearing. We won the judgement however he still has 90 days to pay us and has use of the property. After court we took a ride there...I had to see if my gut feeling wss right. It was. He took the camper. The camper and property were separate contracts but both to be paid in full by the 28th of April. He knew he wasn't to remove it. As stated in the above screen shot I posted. His girlfriend also contacted me telling me he Would walk away if we gave him the camper. So he's not out anything. He's behind 6 months on both.
> We can't locate the camper now. He has it hidden somewhere. I called our attorney and will be meeting her Tuesday.
> Plan on taking a ride to the property...he's arrogant enough to haul the camper back there and use it another 87 days. Free of charge.
> He has a very good paying job. As far as him having a lawyer..I doubt it. He won't answer my question to him. Why don't you pay us instead of paying your lawyer?


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## Yoopergirl58 (May 12, 2018)

Yoopergirl58 said:


> View attachment 69284
> View attachment 69284
> While John & I were waiting to go into the courthouse I received a text message from "Joe" telling us the property was cleared off and he sent a certified check in the mail for the balance doe on the camper. I didn't have a good feeling about that text. He didn't show up for the hearing. We won the judgement however he still has 90 days to pay us and has use of the property. After court we took a ride there...I had to see if my gut feeling wss right. It was. He took the camper. The camper and property were separate contracts but both to be paid in full by the 28th of April. He knew he wasn't to remove it. As stated in the above screen shot I posted. His girlfriend also contacted me telling me he Would walk away if we gave him the camper. So he's not out anything. He's behind 6 months on both.
> We can't locate the camper now. He has it hidden somewhere. I called our attorney and will be meeting her Tuesday.
> ...


IM SO SO SORRY ABOUT THE F BOMB....


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## Mickie3 (Aug 28, 2010)

Since he has not paid for the trailer but has taken it without permission, the easiest thing to do is to report it STOLEN and tell the officers you report it to you have an idea of who took it. 


As far as him having a "good paying job", I believe that as much as I think I can flap my arms and fly. I think someone is misinforming you and not sure of why?


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## Yoopergirl58 (May 12, 2018)

I know he has a good job. The company has posted pictures of their employees. 
The Menomonee Co. Sheriff's dept. Has been notified. They went to his house but the camper wasn't there and nobody was home. He has it somewhere because in the last text he sent he told me he was using it for hunting. Also commented again if we would have just given him the camper he would have walked away. But I don't believe that. Just like he told us the check is in the mail....nothing. I'll be getting all the papers I submitted to the courthouse for the hearing then bringing them to our lawyer on the 12th. He had 10 days to appeal the judgement but he hasn't. So now he has 79 days to pay. And if he doesn't we have to go back to court to evict.


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## Mickie3 (Aug 28, 2010)

This is getting even more bizarre. Pics of employees on website? Must be a small company, that has a website that complete?  Are you sure you are not working on a fark.com article?

Sounds like you got NOTHING from your court date and are getting nothing in the future. Now changing my advice to: give up, sign over all your property to this guy, he definitely has the better lawyer and job. OK, maybe not.


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## Alice In TX/MO (May 10, 2002)

It is a slow frustrating process. Hang in there!!


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## Yoopergirl58 (May 12, 2018)

Mickie3 said:


> This is getting even more bizarre. Pics of employees on website? Must be a small company, that has a website that complete?  Are you sure you are not working on a fark.com article?
> 
> Sounds like you got NOTHING from your court date and are getting nothing in the future. Now changing my advice to: give up, sign over all your property to this guy, he definitely has the better lawyer and job. OK, maybe not.


I'm not quite sure if you're being sarcastic but what I am saying is true and definitely frustrating. Yes, we live in a very small town and I don't know what fark.com is. And I don't find your comments helpful or amusing. This is a serious matter to us. 
We will get our property back but the law gives the defendant 90 days to pay for it or he will be evicted. As far as the camper I'll know more when I see our lawyer. 
He's conned many others. 
We fell for his story too.


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## Yoopergirl58 (May 12, 2018)

Alice In TX/MO said:


> It is a slow frustrating process. Hang in there!!


We are! Thank you.


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## Yoopergirl58 (May 12, 2018)

19 days have gone by. He hasn't budged. And we havent seen any money. Now he has No Trespassing/hunting signs around the acre with his name on it. What he did say is he could file bankruptcy and tie the property up longer?? I brought all paperwork, judgement, police reports to our lawyer. 
He hasn't sent us payment for the camper. We don't expect one. He still thinks he's entitled to it and we still don't know where it is. Theres nothing the police can do becsuse its considered a civil matter. I should find out more this week. Yes, this whole thing is bizarre but this person is like no one we've ever met.


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