A woman faces a lawsuit after a $500,000 house was accidentally built on her land, and she’s forced to pay property taxes.
A housebuilder mistakenly built a house on Annaleine Reynolds’ land in Hawaii, putting her in a difficult situation.
Builders constructed the $500,000 house without Annaleine Reynolds’ knowledge or permission.
Now, she is not only dealing with a lawsuit but also has to pay property taxes for the home that she never wanted.
The woman bought land for nature retreats.
Annaleine, who lives in California, bought a one-acre lot in Honolulu in 2018.
She had plans to use this land for hosting spiritual nature retreats. The natural beauty of the area was perfect for what she envisioned.
She paid $22,500 for the plot, excited about her future plans. However, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, her plans were put on hold.
While she was waiting for things to return to normal, Annaleine was unaware that a construction crew was busy building a house on her property.
A real estate broker contacted her and informed her that someone had sold a house on her lot, revealing the situation.
This shocking news left her feeling confused and upset.
“And I’m like, what? Are you kidding me?” the horrified property owner said.
Builders mistakenly constructed on the wrong lot.
The construction company responsible for the house, PJ’s Construction, was working under a contract with another company called Keaau Development Partnership, LLC.
They had purchased several lots in the area to build homes.
Unfortunately, they did not hire surveyors to check the boundaries of the land.
This oversight led to the construction of the house on Annaleine’s property instead of the intended lot.
Woman sued and got taxed after a $500K home is built on her land by mistake
When Annaleine found out, authorities initially charged her a small amount in property tax for her empty lot.
However, once they built the house, they skyrocketed her tax bill into the thousands.
To make matters worse, Keaau Development sued her, along with the construction company and others involved in the project.
Feeling overwhelmed, Annaleine hired a lawyer named James DisPasquale to help her navigate this legal nightmare.
As they addressed the issue, they discovered that the developers and builders were passing around a lot of blame.
Everyone seemed to be pointing fingers instead of taking responsibility.
Adding to the complications, squatters moved into the vacant home, leaving it in poor condition.
Annaleine reported finding human waste on the floors of the bathrooms, which was both disgusting and distressing for her.
The judge ordered the house to be demolished.
Eventually, the case went to court. The judge ruled in favor of Annaleine, ordering that the house be demolished.
The court determined that the construction had taken place on the wrong lot, which was a significant win for her.
The judge also criticized the builders and developers for their negligence in handling the property boundaries.
While this decision was a relief for Annaleine, it did not restore the natural beauty of her land.
The construction had damaged the area she cherished.
The judge noted that Annaleine could file a lawsuit against the construction companies to seek compensation for the damages.
Annaleine seeks compensation and plans ahead.
After the ruling, Annaleine expressed a sense of closure, although the situation was far from ideal.
Her attorney, DisPasquale, stated that this was an important step in the right direction.
They hoped to hold the responsible parties accountable for their actions.
“While we didn’t get everything we wanted, this is a significant step in the right direction; the house is going to be taken down,” Dispasquale said after the decision.
“She has a little bit of closure to that.”