By toxic waste - 12/02/2013 04:18 - United States - Tonawanda

Today, I unknowingly bought a house next to a former toxic waste dump. I found out by reading an article in the paper where residents are claiming that they are experiencing cancer and birth defects. FML
I agree, your life sucks 34 093
You deserved it 7 255

Same thing different taste

Top comments

Not to sound rude but you should've done research before buying

That's failure to disclose. You should see a lawyer about that. You might be able to get out of there without having to sell or lose a lot of money.

Comments

Not to sound rude but you should've done research before buying

That realtor must have done an amazing job.

That's failure to disclose. You should see a lawyer about that. You might be able to get out of there without having to sell or lose a lot of money.

Does it have to be disclosed if people are only making statements about it and nothing has currently been proved? I know that here in Wa state you won't be told if anyone has died in the home unless you ask.

These to things are completely different and unrelated.

I'm just trying to say that you must ask very specific questions to receive certain information. Depending on where you live, it may not be considered failure to disclose, but I don't know. I'm not a lawyer.

zero4life123 7

The old house owners have to say if its built on something like that. If they didnt he could get his money back from them as they have to tell them that...

tjv3 10

That should have been disclosed by the realtor . Threaten to sue if they don't refund everything then move.

The seller has to disclose material facts, you don't have to ask anything, that is how the law is in most English speaking western countries and it is especially strongly enforced on real estate. Think about it, there are hundreds of things that could affect the price of a house in a big way -- material facts -- do you think the law would expect an ordinary buyer to know all of them and ask all of them? What remedy they can get, a refund or large discount, that she'll need to ask a local real estate lawyer about. She should get a fresh real estate lawyer -- not the lawyer who handled the sale. The lawyer who handled the sale might be one of the people she is naming in the suit, but definitely her suit would name the real estate agents and seller. Really, she should move out, don't stay more than months. Rent if you need to.

Someone dying in a home doesn't affect resale value, therefore it is not a "material fact", it is more like trivia. In older parts of the country most homes have had people die in them at some time or another. Sure, someone recently dying might deter the odd buyer, but two years down the road it won't affect the resale value of the house. Being built on or next to a toxic waste dump -- that hugely affects the value and the effect will not go down over time, that makes it a material fact. Something that required a large expenditure to fix, like cracked foundation walls hidden behind wall panels, that could be a material fact too.

Well let's just hope you don't grow any extra appendages or eyes!

...Biology doesn't work that way, you buffoon.

That was rude! 2 was only trying to make a light joke.

Rude much? When I read this I instantly thought of the fish from the Simpsons.... Three eyes? Obviously biology doesn't work that way, it's called joking. Maybe you should familiarize yourself with it lol

It was a joke, ya dick. I actually thought of the Simpsons too. Joke's on you, I have a Biology degree and I know damn well how it works. Lighten up!

asnakelovinbabe 16

Comment moderated for rule-breaking.

Show it anyway
bigtaytay 13

60 's comment made me spit my cereals all over the kitchen table. if I had a degree in biology too, I could know what the hell happened 0_o

asnakelovinbabe 16

I guess we less educated folk will never know, since we don't have biology degrees!

68- You seem to be confident for something you can only assume.

asnakelovinbabe 16

72- Generally on most websites commenters who have been picked on always end up having a degree on the exact subject that was brought up. Sometimes they actually do. A lot of times it's fluff. Either way, flaunting a degree, real or fake, to some strangers online is just beating your chest really. I would know. I have a Social Networking Commenting Degree.

APersonalProblem 13

#43 LMFAO #Everyone else, stop being sensitive.

Don't hashtag. This isn't twitter or instagram bud.

60- Or, ya know, I actually just have that degree because that's what I chose to study in college. And yes, it is convenient. That's why I brought it up.

Move out quick! I would put the house back up for sale and stay at moms for awhile?

jogihoppa8343 23

exactly. what is the point of having such property where you can't have a peace of mind... jus buy a house somewhere else as soon you manage to sell it.

OP should sell it or sue the company. Something like that happened down here and the community put the builders out of business.

priceyfml 7

Who ever she bought it off of should be sued for possibly putting her life on danger

daringtoride 27

Well, that sounds fun :( FYL, though it is true you should have researched the place first. Hope you'll be okay, OP.

He might just be fine, depending on how well he can inform himself and stuff. The "are claiming" in the post reminded me of a somewhat similar story here in Germany: A telecommunication company decided to build a new sending mast near a city. Only about 2 months after it was built, a petition went out to have it abolished because the people living near it had complained about constant headaches, increased stress and regular collapses. The company answered to these claims by stating: "Man, that sounds really bad. Wonder what will happen when we actually turn that thing on." So what I'm saying here is that not all toxic waste dumps are actually dangerous for the people who are living nearby. You first have to make sure whether you can see this whole thing rationally and if so just need to find out how much danger the dump actually poses.

iMarriedadouche 3

Not all waste dumps are unhealthy, but given that this was a TOXIC waste dump, I'd imagine if is...

jem970 19

The fact that the word TOXIC was used to describe the dump makes me wonder. Also, cancer is a bit more serious than a headache and generally people who claim to have cancer actually do because they went to a doctor for a check up and something abnormal was found.

#81, that still doesn't necessarily mean that this case of cancer was caused by the waste dump. Remember those thousands of cases that said that mobilephones caused cancer? And people who said that microwaves caused cancer? A connection between these things and cancer could not be proven to date, even though there've been dozens of studies so far.

sonrisapreciosa 6

Well, it was cheap for a reason.

oj101 33

Why do people even live in such areas? It would hardly be a picturesque place if it used to be a toxic wasteland - so why did OP even look there?!

50 - Actually, landfills usually look rather nice once they're sealed up. I know quite a few that have been turned into parks and nature preserves. Most of them don't look like the backdrop of a bad 1980's superhero movie.

JR_Goes_Rawr 11

Maybe you will be the lucky one who develops super powers? :D

Like Alex Mack? Now that would be cool!

mega20913 8

like on that episode of family guy

ABrokenRose 7

That's something they have to disclose, you should be able to back out of the deal.

I agree, the people who sold OP the property MUST tell if they live near a health hazard. They could be sued

They don't have to disclose if it's only verifiable through claims that haven't been confirmed.

I recommend that your highest priority be finding somewhere safer to live as soon as possible!

You might be able to get your money back.. I'm not sure in the states, but in Canada I think there's a law against realtors not informing clients about potential hazards like that.. Good luck!