Can we sue the people who rented our house for knowingly attempting to cover up termite damage?
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Can we sue the people who rented our house for knowingly attempting to cover up termite damage?
I was leasing a house in Texas and the renter’s knowingly covered up termite damage on the surface. After having the home inspected by a termite inspector, he informed us that they only got rid of the surface termites and knowingly hid it.
Asked on August 10, 2018 under Real Estate Law, Texas
Answers:
SJZ, Member, New York Bar / FreeAdvice Contributing Attorney
Answered 5 years ago | Contributor
You may be able to sue them if:
1) You can prove they knowingly hid the damage--the inspector's expert opinion may well, however, establish that. We mention this because you have to bear in mind that you have to be able to show their knowledge; they would not liable if they did not realize there was other than surface damage and thought they had fixed that.
2) You can could them for the cost to repair damage which you can show would have been prevented if they had themselves taken proper action and/or notified you in a timely manner, so you could have taken action. That is, you can only sue for damage that you can show their actions caused or exacerabated. Damage which would have occured anyway, by the time they become aware of it, they did not cause and are not responsible for.
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