Buyer on His Own

Steven Keefe, Broker/Owner
Coldwell Banker Sky Ridge Realty
Arrowhead Home Loans, Inc.
www.mountainmoves.com
steve@mountainupdate.com
909.336.2131

In a recent appellate court ruling a buyers representative  wasn't liable for injuries a prospective buyer suffered when visiting a property alone.  In the case the buyer contacted an agent about seeing a home under construction.  After talking to the listing broker, the agent said that the prospect could inspect the home by entering through an unlocked garage. 

Three weeks later the prospect stopped by the house, and a worker who was on the site invited her to enter the house.  She did not contact the salesperson about the visit.  The workers were using a bucket as a stair step to get into the house as the stairway had not yet been built.  The worker assisted the prospect into the house.  Upon leaving the home, the prospect fell off the bucket and injured herself.  She then sued the builder, the worker and both agents alleging negligence. 

The trial court ruled in favor of the defendants stating that a bucket constituted and open and obvious danger, so there wasn't need to warn the prospective buyer about the danger.  The appeals court upheald the ruling, stating that there was no need for a warning, since any reasonable person would see the dangerous situation and take appropriate action.