11/30/2016 Settlement Reached In Annapolis 'Snake House' Case http://www.inman.com/2016/11/29/settlement-reached-annapolis-snake-house-case/?utm_source=inbrief&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=inbrief&utm_content… 1/4 Matt Jeppson / Shutterstock.com AGENT NEWS BRIEF Settlement reached in Annapolis ‘snake house’ case The buyers accepted an undisclosed sum to drop the case PUBLISHED 1 DAY AGO BY MARIAN MCPHERSON ! STAFF WRITER 97 SHARES Key Takeaways Annapolis couple Jeffery and Jody Brooks reached an undisclosed settlement in a lawsuit against real estate agent Barbara Van Horn. house for at least eight years. Maryland law requires sellers and their agents to disclose latent defects and material facts to buyers and buyers' agents. Get Inman via Facebook Messenger Our top headlines delivered once a day. é BY CAREYBOT Send to Messenger Mark Bergman Not you? Where’s Samuel L. Jackson when you need him? In April 2015, Jeffery and Jody Brooks discovered a den of black rat snakes between the walls of their newly bought Annapolis home.
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11/30/2016 Settlement Reached In Annapolis 'Snake House' Case
This isn’t the only seller disclosure lawsuit that has taken over the internet this year.
In June, Laura and Richard Coté of Monterey, California, filed a civil complaint against the seller, Sean Ford, and their
buyer’s agent, Herbert Aronson, for failing to disclose that a murder took place at their home more than 16 years ago, and
that the murderer had buried the body in the backyard.
The Cotés initially rented the home in 1998, and after 18 months, the couple decided to purchase the home for $339,000.
In court documents, the couple said their landlord pressured them to “close on the sale quickly,” and that Aronson had to
have known about the highly publicized murders since he’s been a Realtor in Monterey for over 30 years.
The case is ongoing, but like Maryland, California requires disclosure of material facts — although Maryland does not
require disclosure surrounding murders, and California does if the murder occurred in the past three years.
Email Marian McPherson
97SHARES
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Countrywide Properties GroupWe have our very own "Snake House" in Rexburg Idaho too. It's been on national news and on Animal Planet. Love a good snake story!
Like · Reply · 1 · 23 hrs
Eric Axelson · Associate Broker at Keller Williams Realty, Inc.It should be noted that the last sentence is misleading. In Maryland, the law does not consider a murder a "material fact." In California, it does, ifit occurred in the last three years.Like · Reply · 9 hrs
Amber Taufen · Editor-in-Chief at Inman NewsThank you for clarifying; story updated!Like · Reply · 6 hrs
Paolo Nascimbeni · Project Manager at Life in Italy LLCGood story. About one year ago a couple was arrested in Florida for lying on their disclosures. The house had a sinkhole. The sellers tookinsurance money to fix the sinkhole, but instead of fixing the sinkhole they pocketed the money and sold the house to a family.
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11/30/2016 Settlement Reached In Annapolis 'Snake House' Case