Category: Real Property Law

Chase Home Finance, LLC v. Cunder

MORTGAGES; FORECLOSURE; ATTORNEYS — A lender’s attorney has no duty to a borrower to record an order vacating a sheriff’s sale and declaring that the deed and the recording of the deed were void.

• Opinion Date: December 14, 2011

Housing Authority of the City of Passaic v. Jackson

LANDLORD-TENANT; HOUSING AUTHORITY; EVICTION — A housing authority, seeking to evict a tenant because a family member was found guilty of drug crimes on the authority’s property, must present proofs from which a court can evaluate and confirm whether the authority’s decision to evict is a reasonable exercise of the authority’s discretion.

• Opinion Date: November 14, 2011

Lowe’s Home Centers, Inc. v. Township of Raritan

AFFORDABLE HOUSING; DEVELOPERS — Even though a moratorium was placed on the collection of a nonresidential project development fees, if the developer already had committed itself to make pay a fee prior to the moratorium, it must still meet that obligation, but only in accordance with the terms of its initial commitment.

• Opinion Date: November 3, 2011

McLaughlin v. Howell Township Zoning Board of Adjustment

TAXATION; AGRICULTURE — Since a horse breeding farm is an agricultural use, and farm labor houses are commonly, habitually, and by long practice established as reasonably associated with the primary use of a horse farm, the New Jersey Agriculture Development Committee has the authority to approve construction of farm laborer houses.

• Opinion Date: November 1, 2011

Rogers v. Holland Township Planning Board

ZONING; SUBDIVISION; EXTENSIONS — New Jersey law permits the expiration date of a subdivision’s approval period to be tolled when the approval is delayed due to litigation designed the public health and welfare.

• Opinion Date: October 31, 2011

Sam Young Corp. v. Lyndhurst General Services, LLC

CONTRACTS — Where a contract of sale for real estate imposes a material post-closing obligation on the seller, if that obligation is not satisfied before a corresponding seller’s take-back mortgage becomes due, the due date of the mortgage may be extended by a court.

• Opinion Date: October 13, 2011

Village Super Market, Inc. v. Estate of Saul Cantor

LEASES; DEFAULT; NOTICES — Absent particular additional requirements in a lease, a default notice need only inform a party of the alleged breach and, if applicable, provide it with an opportunity to cure the breach.

• Opinion Date: December 1, 2011

Evans-Francis Estates Associates, LP v. Township of Cherry Hill

TAXATION — Although the Tax Court can relax the requirement that taxes are current before a property tax appeal can be filed, it will not do so when the circumstances preventing the taxpayer from being current are reasonably foreseeable by the taxpayer.

• Opinion Date: November 9, 2011

Laridian Consulting, Inc. v. Bolanos

LOANS; JOINT ACCOUNTS — If a debtor can prove that the money in a joint account was contributed entirely by a non-debtor, then the judgment creditor is not entitled to those funds; otherwise, the judgment creditor is entitled to recover the debtor’s half of the funds.

• Opinion Date: November 7, 2011

New Jersey Real Estate Commission v. Petridis

BROKERS; FIDUCIARY DUTY — A real estate broker has a duty to ensure that the interest of his or her principal is paramount, and must place the interests of the principal ahead of his or her own, and this means it must continue to advise its customer of additional offers even while a contract is pending.

• Opinion Date: November 1, 2011