Young Couple Evicted from Cheapest House in the Hamptons

Three weeks ago, we posted about the cheapest house available in the Hamptons. 128 Queens Lane, East Hampton, was the property, asking $329K. Turns out there's a sad story there, as reported in the East Hampton Star. A young couple with two children thought they had bought the place in spring, 2014. Amanda Keyser and Shaun Jones (a Montauk fisherman) paid $160,000 for the house, putting $55K down and spending $80K working on the house, including a new roof, floors, and so on. Then, back in February, with snow on the ground, they were evicted. Turns out the company (Hampton Dream Properties) who sold them the house did not have the right to sell it; "one of the several banks that had held the debt on the previous failed mortgage had challenged [the company's] right to sell the property, and had won the case." The couple eventually were returned their $55K down payment, but are out the $80K they spent fixing the place up, and are living with family in Montauk.

According to the website with the same name as the company, it looks like there's been some shady business practices associated with Hampton Dream Properties. Our takeaway from all this? Get a real estate attorney who is independent and thorough when buying or selling. Don't cut corners or you might well regret it.

· Hampton Dream Properties [Official]
· Take a Look at the Cheapest House in the Hamptons [CH]
· Couple's House Isn't Theirs [EHS]