Hold Back Clause

Q - Recently my husband and I purchased a home which had a lot of junk (car parts, motors, old boat, lumber) in the back yard.  The contract had a clause for the sellers to remove this but when we moved in, it was still there. Is there anything we can do?

A - If you can get in touch with the previous owners, ask them to remove this junk as per agreement.  The chances are that if they didn't do it before, they are not likely to do it now.

The best way to avoid such a situation is to put it in the contract, as you did,  but include a date by which it has to be removed.  It has to be a date before you sign the paperwork at your lawyers.  On that date, go and check to see if the junk has been removed.  If not, ask your lawyer to put in a hold back clause and an amount of money that would cover the expense of having someone come and haul away the collection of junk.  This protects you, at least financially, if someone doesn't comply with the agreement.