June 20, 2008
Musician’s Case Against Real Estate Agent Moves Forward
The guitarist for the rock band Velvet Revolver, whose name is Saul Hudson but who goes by the moniker Slash, is no stranger to lawsuits. Three years ago, he sued his former Guns N’ Roses bandmate Axl Rose over royalties to the group’s songs. That same year, his former publicist sued him for money she said he owed her.
In November, Slash and his wife, Perla, filed a lawsuit against the real estate agent who sold them a house in the Hollywood Hills back in 2005. This week, a judge in the case agreed to allow the case to proceed.
Judge Mel Red Recana denied defense motions to dismiss the portions of the suit alleging fraud, constructive fraud, negative fraud and breach of fiduciary duty, and to strike the claim for punitive damages.
He scheduled a Feb. 17 trial date and urged both sides to consider resolving the case with the help of a mediator.
Here’s what the suit contends:
The couple allege they thought they had found their dream house in December 2005 and believed it was on a private, gated street in the Hollywood Hills. Although the street is gated, it is public and has very little parking, according to their court papers.
The rocker and his wife also say the home was much smaller than 7,800 square feet, as listed, and that there were other issues with the title to the property.
“It’s hard to imagine conduct that is worse than a real estate agent intentionally misleading and/or withholding critical information from a purchaser so that a sale would close and a commission would be paid,” their court papers state.
The other side:
But the defense court papers maintain that Holcomb and Sotheby’s had no way of knowing that the Multiple Listing Service description of the home was incorrect and that it was not actually on a private street.
The fabulous Real Estalker has covered this case from the beginning.
Shortly after purchasing the property for $6,250,000, the Slashers decided they didn’t want the 5 bedroom and 6.5 bathroom mini manse after all. So they dropped it back on the market for $6,995,000. Despite several price reductions, the house languished on the market and the asking price was eventually brought down to $5,995,999, a number significantly less than the sue happy homeowners paid for the property.
Here’s the Redfin listing for the property, showing that the house (just over 5,500 square feet; quite a bit less than the 7,800 Slash says was represented) was purchased in December for $5,725,000 (by San Diego Padres pitcher Randy Wolf, incidentally, apparently unfazed by the parking and size challenges).
Given Slash’s somewhat litigious past, it might be easy to dismiss this lawsuit as yet another disgruntled buyer trying to blame his real estate agent for his own lack of due diligence. After all, wasn’t actual square footage revealed by the appraiser during the escrow process? Shouldn’t Slash have done his homework regarding the street’s status?
But the judge allowed the case to proceed and refused to dismiss allegations of fraud or strike the punitive-damages claim. Maybe that means something; maybe it doesn’t. However, the defense is admitting that the MLS listing contained inaccurate information and that they had no way of verifying it. Well, SOMEONE clearly put that info up there — perhaps the seller? Is the seller named in the suit?
Many questions and few answers at this point. One thing is certain, though: This case will be closely watched.
Recent Redfin posts:
Is California On Its Way to a Housing Recovery?
Curbed Prices in the Valley: Slow-Bursting Bubbles Back to Back?
