Tracking down a safety deposit, responsability

[Clayton Hutton]

Afternoon,

   I recently purchased a property in Indianapolis. It came with a tenant on a month to month lease. I started trying to track down if this tenant had a deposit in place, but there isn't a record from what I can tell, at least with the previous property manager who doubled as the listing agent. If there's no record, and I got this property and the previous owner didn't return it, who does this fall on? am I obligated to pay this out if they leave? Is it not my problem per the law?

Thanks for any help or direction in advance.

Clayton

[Nathan Gesner]

@Clayton Hutton

if you read your contract carefully, there's probably a clause in there saying that the real estate agent is not obligated to verify all information and that it is your responsibility as the buyer. When an agent tells you that it is sub metered or that it's 1600 square feet, it is your responsibility to verify. I believe the verification process is even more important with investment property because landlords have a tendency to forget things because they do not occupy the property, where they hide negative things to make the property more sellable. The estoppel is just one of the many important tools available.

Sorry you had to go through this. education can be expensive, but it could have been much worse!