Delray Beach Whitehouse Apts., Inc. v. Hoffmann

257 So. 2d 550, 1972 Fla. LEXIS 4020
CourtSupreme Court of Florida
DecidedJanuary 26, 1972
DocketNo. 40828
StatusPublished
Cited by4 cases

This text of 257 So. 2d 550 (Delray Beach Whitehouse Apts., Inc. v. Hoffmann) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Supreme Court of Florida primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Delray Beach Whitehouse Apts., Inc. v. Hoffmann, 257 So. 2d 550, 1972 Fla. LEXIS 4020 (Fla. 1972).

Opinions

PER CURIAM.

This petition for certiorari presents for review the decision of the Fourth District Court of Appeal reversing the Honorable Joseph S. White as Trial Judge for an alleged abuse of discretion in dismissing the action after he had earlier entered a specific performance judgment. The dismissal was after the respondents (plaintiffs below) failed after 80 days to comply with the requirements of the judgment necessary to carry out its terms for transfer of the property to plaintiffs-vendees. Hoffmann v. Delray Beach Whitehouse Apts., 242 So.2d 769 (4th DCA Fla.1970). Conflict is shown with the prior decisions of this Court in Chabot v. Winter Park Co., 34 Fla. 258, 15 So. 756 (1894) ; Daubmyre v. Hunter, 86 Fla. 326, 98 So. 69 (1923); Orlando Realty Board Building Corp. v. Hilpert, 98 Fla. 954, 113 So. 100 (1927); and Greenfield v. Bland, 99 So.2d 727 (2nd DCA Fla.1958), vesting jurisdiction here. Fla.Const. art. V, § 4, F.S.A.

The trial judge, with an experience on the Florida trial bench spanning a period of almost 30 years, drew a four-page order setting forth the purchase transaction involved and the requirements to be met. Plaintiffs moved to amend the judgment to clarify its terms and, after hearing, the trial judge drew another three-page order. It set forth the time for plaintiffs to tender into the registry of the court the cash down payment and the promissory note and first purchase money mortgage which had been provided in the deposit receipt. Following this, the Order stated:

“At the same time Plaintiffs shall place in the hands of the Clerk a promissory note and a purchase money mortgage for delivery to the Defendant [Appellant]. Such note and mortgage shall be dated as of the date of the institution of this suit and shall be payable at the times and in the amounts with interest fixed by said contract commencing on such date of the institution of this suit; provided, however, there shall be credited on the ■amount of said note and mortgage all sums which Plaintiffs are required to pay in discharge of the first mortgage now encumbering the property, commencing with the first payment maturing under the terms of Defendant’s note and purchase money mortgage and continuing with each installment thereafter until the [552]*552total sum paid by Plaintiffs on account of the first mortgage now encumbering the property has been credited on such installments.” [emphasis ours]
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“ . . . Upon failure of Plaintiffs (Vendees) to so comply, this cause shall be subject to dismissal and in that case, Court costs shall be taxed against Plaintiffs.”

By this September 9, 1969, order, the trial court granted an additional 7 days beyond the 55 days which had already elapsed without compliance from the date of entry of the final judgment on July 15. Upon expiration of the 7 days, defendant moved to dismiss for plaintiffs’ noncompliance. The trial judge thereupon dismissed the cause and the Fourth District Court of Appeal reversed such dismissal as an abuse of discretion.

The district court also cited as grounds for its reversal the vendees’ (respondents’) “offer” to pay instanter at the rehearing on the dismissal. What the attorney said at the conclusion of the rehearing on October 3, 1969 (80 days after final judgment) was:

“I am in a position to do it right now, we represent to your Honor that we have been in a position to pay this mortgage off if we were specifically directed to do so. We are in a position to do it now, and I have a check that I can write.” [emphasis ours]
* * * * * *
“ . . . Tell us to pay it off and we will pay it off.”

This was neither a sufficient nor timely legal tender in the circumstances of this case.1 At this late stage after the court’s earlier rulings, and the passage of 80 days’ time for compliance, it cannot properly be said that the trial judge abused his discretion.2 Chabot, supra, held 37 days sufficient for a payment of money.

In a recent Fourth District Court opinion, Glave v. Brandlein, Fla.App., 196 So.2d 780 (1967), the same court in this present cer-tiorari affirmed a judgment denying the relief of specific performance of a real estate contract to the plaintiffs-vendees there. In reviewing the trial court’s action, this Fourth District Court stated:

“As a condition precedent to specific performance the seeking purchaser must either pay the contract sum; tender it; establish that he is ready, willing and able to do so; or establish that he has been excused from so doing. It would be am anomaly indeed, under equity principles, for a vendee to ask a court to judicially require a vendor to remedy his defaults and perform his covenants by conveying title to vendee when there is no showing on the part of such vendee that he has paid or tendered the contract price as covenanted or that he is willing and has the ability to do so.” [emphasis ours]

The crux of vendees’ (respondents’) contention is that they "did not know” that they were required to pay an existing $150,000 mortgage from vendor to Home Federal Savings & Loan Association of Hollywood, Florida, which had at all times existed on the premises. Vendees take the position that the wording of the final judgment and amended final judgment merely “permitted” them to pay off this $150,000 obligation if they chose to do so, but did not require them to pay it.

The same amended final judgment obtained by vendees which is quoted above, also set forth: “It was stated [referring to the hearing on Motion to Amend] that plaintiffs [respondents] would be expected [553]*553to discharge the first mortgage now encumbering the property.” [emphasis ours]

This alone refutes respondents’ contention. The remainder of the record also belies vendees’ position that they did not know that they were to pay this mortgage. The record shows that:

Vendees’ amended complaint stated in paragraph 10:

“The plaintiffs hereby tender their willingness to perform and are ready, willing and able to pay the necessary portion of the purchase price stated in the aforesaid deposit receipt agreement in cash to fully satisfy the aforesaid mortgage [$150,000] and to pay the balance of the purchase price in the form of a promissory note and purchase money mortgage payable to the defendant. . . . ” [emphasis ours]

This plainly referred to the $150,000 Home Mortgage to be paid by vendees, so that from the very beginning of the lawsuit it is clear that vendees by their own statement were aware that it was necessary to pay off the existing mortgage, as one would normally expect.

The final judgment recites in regard to this existing mortgage:

“It was shown at the trial that the vendor had arranged with a Miami bank to lend the vendor sufficient money to pay off an existing mortgage on the property. The loan was to be secured by an assignment to the bank of the mortgage which the purchasers were required to give to the vendor under the terms of the contract in question.
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Hoffmann v. Delray Beach Whitehouse Apts., Inc.
283 So. 2d 47 (District Court of Appeal of Florida, 1972)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
257 So. 2d 550, 1972 Fla. LEXIS 4020, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/delray-beach-whitehouse-apts-inc-v-hoffmann-fla-1972.