Casey Consumer just moved to Houston, Texas, USA, from Vietnam. She has been searching for a new house for two months. Casey has never owned a house and is very excited about buying her first home. She has visited about 10 houses, but has not found one she likes.
Recently, Casey saw an advertisement for a local house that seemed perfect. The advertisement said the house had “just been painted,” was a “great deal,” and was in “excellent condition.” The price of the house was $200,000, much lower than most of the similar homes she visited. She went to see the house and spent an hour with the seller looking at the property. She did not talk too much with the seller because her English is not very good, and the seller had a real Texas accent that was hard to understand. She did notice that everything had just been painted and looked like it was in very good condition. She didn’t ask any questions. The next day, she decided to buy the house and signed a contract.
A week after she moved in, the neighbor came by to visit. The neighbor said, “I am so glad he finally sold this house. What happened to his mother was terrible.” Casey said, “What do you mean”? The neighbor then told Casey the story of how the seller’s mother had been brutally murdered in the house. In fact, she said, “her blood had covered most of the walls of the house.” Casey was obviously upset.
Casey can’t even sleep in the house. She has nightmares about what happened in the house, and has lost her job because she has been so distracted. She wants out of the house. She tries to sell it, but no one will pay more than one-half what she paid.
What legal claims might Casey have under the Deceptive Trade Practices Act, and against whom? Fully discuss the claims and the likelihood she will prevail. What damages could she recover if she prevailed?
Texas Deceptive Trade Practices and Consumer Protection Act,
Section 17.45.(4) formulates that ‘’Consumer’’ means an individual, partnership,
corporation, association, or a subdivision or agency of this state who seeks or acquires by purchase or lease, any goods or services.
Section 17.45.(5) formulates that ‘’Unconscionable action or course of action’’ means an act or practice which, to a consumer’s detriment, takes advantage of the lack of knowledge, ability, experience, or capacity of the consumer to a grossly unfair degree.
Section 17.45.(11) formulates that ‘’Economic damages’’ means compensatory damages for pecuniary loss, including exemplary damages or damages for physical pain and mental anguish, loss of consortium, disfigurement, physical impairment, or loss of companionship.