NJ Homeowners sue real estate agent for fraud

From the Daily Record:

Jury to decide what's in a name

A Morris County jury is expected to begin deciding today whether a real estate agent's description of a new home as being in Montville constitutes fraud because the new homeowners claimed they later discovered that it is in Towaco --which they claimed was a less prestigious location.

In their lawsuit, Theodore and Frances Vagias claimed in 2001 that they told Weichert Co. real estate agent Gabrielle Dingle that they were seeking a home in a prestigious community.

After looking at about eight homes, they settled on one for sale for $743,435 in a then-new development called Woodmont Court at Montville.

The Vagiases claimed that only after the purchase was completed did they find out that the home they were led to believe was in the Montville section of Montville Township -- which reflected the prestigious address they were seeking -- was in fact in the Towaco section of the township, which they claimed was less prestigious.

The location of the home, the couple claimed, would mean that their son would have to attend a different school than they were seeking -- one with a lesser reputation.
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The case is being heard before Superior Court Judge Catherine M. Langlois in Morristown after the state appeals court overturned an earlier trial court dismissal of the case.

The Vagiases filed the original lawsuit in 2002 under the Consumer Fraud Act, claiming that Dingle's statements were intentionally misleading.

The trial judge ruled that Dingle's statements were an "omission," not an affirmative misstatement, according to the appeals court decision. The appeals court ruled that the Consumer Fraud Act prohibits both affirmative acts of deception and acts of omission "with intent that others rely on such concealment, suppression or omission."