Hunnicutt v. Lee

38 S.W.2d 572
Texas Commission of Appeals·Decided May 16, 1931·No. No. 1268-5673·Published·Cited by 4 cases

Opinion

RYAN, J.

On November 18, 1924, Charlie H. Hunni-cutt and wife conveyed to E. B. Lee a tract of land out of the Logan league, being 50 by 150 feet, fronting 50 feet on Grand avenue in the city-of Dallas, for a recited consideration of $1,000 cash in hand paid and the execution and delivery by Lee of one promissory note in writing for $4,250, payable in monthly installments of $50 each, including interest, secured by vendor’s lien retained, and also by a deed of trust lien of even date, to one E. T. Marion, trustee. At that time there was on the land conveyed a frame building of five rooms, bath, and sleeping porch, which was rented to a tenant for $25 per month.

On January 7, 1926, E. B. Lee and wife conveyed the abovg property to R. G. Hock-ett for a recited consideration of $1,250 cash in hand paid, the assumption and agreement to pay by Hockett a balance of $330 and interest due on a certain paving lien held by the Uvalde Paving Company, and the execution and delivery by Hockett of one promissory note in writing in the sum'of $5,000, payable in monthly installments of $50, including interest, to the order of Charlie H. Hunnicutt, in lieu and extension of the above-desaribed note in the sum of $4,250, executed by E. B. Lee to Hunnicutt’s order on November 18, 1924.

On 'or subsequent to January 7, 1926, E. B. Lee acquired title to and possession of said dwelling house from said Hockett, and, in or about August, 1926, Lee moved the'house off the land, and located it upon lot 10, block 1460-A in Pair Park addition to the city of Dallas, which was another lot then owned by him.

Lee acquired title to said lot 10 by deed from Mary C. Watts and husband, dated September 1, 1926, the recited consideration being $10 in cash and $1,490 due on or before 90 days after that date, payable tp said Mary C. Watts, and secured by deed of trust of even date to C. H. Watts, trustee.

On November 20, 1926, E. B. Lee and wife executed and delivered deed of trust conveying said lot 10 to T. O. Junkin, trustee, to secure payment to Investment Securities Company of Texas, of their notes aggregating $2,-500, and comprising two notes for $250 each, and one note for $2,000, due December 1, 1929, 1930, and 1931, respectively, with interest payable semiannually. Said deed of trust recites that said notes are given in renewal and extension of the note dated September 1, 1926, for $1,490 executed by Lee, [573]*573payable to Mary C. Watts on or before 90 days after date, and also to secure tbe payment of $1,010 advanced to Lee and wife by said Investment Securities Company, it being expressly agreed that all liens securing said indebtednesses shall remain in full force and effect, and tbe Investment Securities Company be subrogated to all the liens, title, interest, and remedies thereunder.

The above three notes and liens were assigned on December 27, 1926, by the Investment Securities Company to Chatham-Phenix National Bank & Trust ,C°mPa:Qy> who, on January 26,1927, assigned said notes and lien to itself, as trustee. The Bank & Trust Company received the notes and lien under the terms of a trust agreement between it and the Investment Securities Company, dated October 3, 1925, for the benefit of persons purchasing bonds issued by the Investment Securities Company and to the extent of these and other notes and liens, against which such bonds were issued.

Hunnieutt, on October 18, 1927, brought this suit in the district court of Dallas county against E. B. Lee and- Chatham-Phenix National Bank & Trust Company, trustee, asserting a superior equitable title to said house and the right to rescind the sale thereof, and tendered to defendant Lee the note given by Hoekett in renewal of the original note given by Lee’ to him; in the alternative, recovery was sought in the sum of $2,500 as the value of said house and foreclosure of lien therefor against lot 10.

The petition contains also the following prayer: “And plaintiff further prays in the alternative that if rights of the defendant, Chatham Phenix National Bank & Trust Company, Trustee, have intervened so that plaintiff may not be awarded the relief herein-above prayed for, then he prays that his contract or equitable lien upon said house, arising from non-payment of said purchase money, be established and foreclosed as against said house, subject to such intervening rights, and that he have his order of sale, writ of possession and costs of suit; and further in the alternative plaintiff prays that he recover of defendant, E. B. Lee, a judgment in the principal sum of $2,500.00, together with 6% per annum thereon as interest or damages from the date said house was converted, together with,all costs of suit; and plaintiff ■further prays for such relief, legal and equitable, general and special to which he may show he is entitled.”

The defendant Lee answered by general demurrer and general denial; the Chatham-Phenix National Bank & Trust Company, trustee, after general demurrer and general denial, pleaded specially their claim under the deed of trust from Lee and wife to T. P. Junkin, trustee, conveying said lot 10, to secure said indebtedness of $2,500, at which time neither it nor the Investment Securities Company had any knowledge that the house in question, then located on lot 10, had been removed from other property, or that the-plaintiff had any claim or lien thereon; that thereafter the plaintiff brought suit in the district court of Dallas county against Hock-ett and wife and one Prank E. Wells upon said notes so given by Lee and by Hoekett to plaintiff and for the recovery of the property described in the deed from him to Lee, alleging that he was the holder of the superior title by retention of the expressed vendor’s lien to secure payment of said notes, and on September 7, 1927, judgment was rendered therein canceling and rescinding the deeds of conveyance from plaintiff to Lee and Lee to Hoekett and restoring to plaintiff the title and possession to the land and premises in question, and canceling the note executed by Lee to plaintiff and the note executed by Hoekett to plaintiff. It was further averred that, at the time of filing.said' suit and the entry of said judgment, said house was not located upon the land conveyed by plaintiff to Lee, but was located on the land described in the deed of trust from Lee to Junkin, and constituted a part of the teal property conveyed by said deed of trust; also that said judgment is res judicata of plaintiff’s claim to said house, and is a cancellation of the notes executed by Lee and Hoekett to plaintiff and an investiture of plaintiff with the title in the shape and condition it was and as it existed on the date of said judgment, September 7, 1927, -and a release and cancellation of any liens claimed by plaintiff upon any other property securing payment of either or both of the notes executed to plaintiff by Lee and Hoekett.

And by way of estoppel it was averred: “That if the house was upon- the land as conveyed by plaintiff to Lee, said house was moved by the defendant, Lee, from said land in August, 1926, to Lot Ten (10) in Block No.

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Hunnicutt v. Lee, 38 S.W.2d 572 (Tex. Super. Ct. 1931).

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