A Florida couple who invested $350,000 in a piece of land learned a hard lesson when they discovered they didn’t have a permit from the city to build homes on the property.
Hani Levy and her husband Maikel Gil Hernandez dreamed of building three two-story homes on their half-acre lot in Chula Vista, a quiet Fort Lauderdale neighborhood, which they purchased in September 2023.
The couple have filed a lawsuit alleging that the land was advertised as a “bespoke residential development,” accusing the seller and real estate agents of “deliberately” concealing the fact that it was a gated community.
The pair emailed the municipality to ask if they could develop the land, but only received an answer about the specific obstacles they would encounter after the sale.
A narrow road leads from the main street to the plot. The city told them that the road is not public and that there is no other way to reach the plot, which means that the land cannot be developed.
Because payment was made in cash, the land did not need to be surveyed.
Hani Levy and her husband Maikel Gil Hernandez dreamed of building three two-story homes on their half-acre lot in Chula Vista, a quiet Fort Lauderdale neighborhood, which they purchased in September 2023
The couple had inquired with the city via email about developing the land, but did not receive a response until after the sale was completed
Neighbors across from them are the legal owners of the private street. They were asked if they would sell part of the road to help Levy and Hernandez, but they declined.
“I don’t want this to happen to anyone else,” Levy told the South Florida Sun Sentinel“This was a nightmare.”
When the couple learned of the situation, they tried to reverse the sale, but it was too late.
They have since filed a lawsuit against both the seller and the real estate agent for failing to report that the property was inaccessible to the public.
When the couple learned of the situation, they tried to reverse the sale, but it was too late
A narrow road leads to the plot from the main street. The city told them that the road is not public and that there is no other way to reach the plot, which means that the land cannot be developed
The suit, seen through the Solar Sentinelstates: ‘The seller and the defendant agent deliberately failed to inform the buyer that the property was landlocked and that there was no access to build on the plot, while the property was advertised as perfect land to build on.’
The couple has also entered into an agreement with a neighbor, who is selling them a piece of land where a road can be built from their property to the street.
In return, they have transferred a piece of land, agreed to put up a fence, and built a swimming pool for their neighbor, which they expect will add an additional $150,000 to the project.
But they still need to get official permission to start construction.
A spokesperson for the city of Fort Lauderdale told DailyMail.com that they understand “the unique circumstances” in this case and “continue to work with the owner.”
“Any private transaction involving real estate occurs between the parties involved and involves certain disclosures and information that must be shared in good faith between the seller and the buyer.”
Attorney Marc Brown, who represented Levy and her husband, told the publication that potential buyers should always seek independent advice before making a purchase.
“They had a title company, but no independent attorney,” Brown told the publication.
“The title agent’s attorney helped them and took care of everything, but they also needed their own attorney. Title agents sometimes just handle the closing and don’t always represent the buyer as their attorney.”
DailyMail.com has contacted the law firm that represented the seller during the sale.