Ives v. Saunders

164 S.E. 394, 158 Va. 638, 1932 Va. LEXIS 282
CourtSupreme Court of Virginia
DecidedJune 16, 1932
StatusPublished

This text of 164 S.E. 394 (Ives v. Saunders) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Supreme Court of Virginia primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Ives v. Saunders, 164 S.E. 394, 158 Va. 638, 1932 Va. LEXIS 282 (Va. 1932).

Opinion

Chinn, J.,

delivered the opinion of the court.

By contract in writing dated September 23, 1919, Joseph R. Ives, acting for himself and as agent for his wife, Margaret C. Ives (hereinafter referred to as defendants), sold to Matilda Saunders, a colored woman (hereinafter referred to as plaintiff), a certain house and lot in the city of Norfolk for the sum of $2,250.00, upon the following terms: $200.00 cash upon the delivery of the contract, $50.00 payable December 1, 1919, and the balance of $2,000.00 to be paid on “building and loan association plan” of $7.40 per week, $5.00 of which to be credited on account of purchase price and $2.40 to be credited as interest and dues; said weekly payments to begin on October 1, 1919, and continue for six years and six months thereafter, with right to the purchaser to pay the balance at any time.

Plaintiff made the cash payment of $200.00 upon delivery of the contract, and was put in possession of the property, and additional payments were made on the contract up to December 4, 1925. On that date the defendants, without the knowledge or consent of the plaintiff, conveyed the house and lot to her husband, Edward Saunders, who thereupon executed a deed of trust on the property to secure a loan of $1,000.00, out of which he paid the defendants the sum of $925.20 claimed to be the balance [641]*641then due them on the contract, and for taxes and insurance premiums they had paid, amounting to $216.00. Edward Saunders subsequently died, and the property was sold under the deed of trust to satisfy the debt secured thereby. Shortly afterwards the plaintiff brought this action to recover the amount paid by her up to the date of the deed to Edward Saunders, claiming that the delivery of said deed constituted a breach of the contract referred to.

The trial of the case resulted in a verdict and judgment in plaintiff’s favor for the sum of $1,348.00, which the defendants have brought before this court for review.

It is contended by the defendants that the sum allowed by the jury is in excess of the total amount paid by plaintiff on account of the purchase price of the property.

According to the books and accounts kept by Mr. Ives and produced in evidence, up to the date of the deed to Edward Saunders, including the cash payment, there had been paid on account of the contract the total sum of $2,313.75, of which sum $1,548.00 was credited by Ives on the original purchase price, and $765.75 was credited to interest and dues. It is admitted that plaintiff paid the sums of $200.00 and $50.00, respectively, as stipulated, and also paid the weekly installments of $7.40 each for two years and six months, but it is claimed that all subsequent payments were made by Edward Saunders on his own account.

It appears that at the time the plaintiff bought the property, Edward Saunders was in New Jersey, but about three months afterwards he returned to Norfolk, and several months later, on account of his conduct towards her, plaintiff left the premises in the occupancy of her husband and children and obtained employment at Ocean View, where she remained until after his death. It is argued as being improbable that plaintiff would have continued the payments under the circumstances, and that she could not have done so out of the wages she was receiving.

[642]*642It is conceded as a fact, however, that plaintiff kept up the payments in full for over two years after she and her husband separated, and if the jury believed her testimony, which is not inherently incredible and was corroborated by her daughter, they were justified in finding that she earned the money by her own labor and continued to make the payments up to the time the property was deeded to Edward Saunders.

It moreover appears that all the payments made on the property were entered by Mr. Ives in a book kept by the plaintiff for the purpose, and just before the property was conveyed to Edward Saunders he made up a statement of the account in the name of “Matilda Saunders in account with Jos. R. Ives and Margaret C. Ives,” thereby recognizing their contract with plaintiff was still in force, and giving her credit for all the payments made up to that time. Therefore, even if it be conceded that Edward Saunders furnished the money for any of said payments, it is only reasonable to assume that they were accepted by defendants on account of the contract with plaintiff, and for her benefit.

Defendants complain of the verdict upon the further ground that the jury failed to allow them credit for the $216.00 they paid out for taxes and insurance, and also failed to take into consideration the rental value of the house and lot from the time plaintiff took possession until it was conveyed to Edward Saunders, which they claim was $6.00 per week, and would have amounted for that period to the sum of $1,944.00.

The general rule is well settled in Virginia, in equity at least, that on a contract for the sale of real estate, the rentals and profits-derived therefrom belong to the vendee in possession, although the conveyance has not passed, and the vendor is entitled to the interest on the purchase money from the date on which he took possession, unless the parties by their contract have provided otherwise. Barnett [643]*643v. Cloyd’s Ex’rs, 125 Va. 546, 100 S. E. 674, and authorities cited; Sale v. Swann, 138 Va. 198, 120 S. E. 870; Oliver’s Ex’r v. Hallam’s Adm’r, 1 Gratt. (42 Va.) 298, and cases cited.

We have found no Virginia case in which the question of rental value was involved in an action by the vendee to recover the purchase money and interest thereon, as in the case before us. It has been generally held, however, that in the absence of special agreement, when for the vendor’s breach of his contract the vendee elects to recover the amount he has paid on the purchase price, the vendor is entitled to offset against the vendee’s claim for interest upon the purchase price his claim for the reasonable rental of the premises during the time the vendee was in possession. But according to the weight of authority the rental value can be set-off against the interest only, and not against the purchase price. See authorities collected in Note, 48 A. L. R., pages 60-64; 29 Am. & Eng. Ency. L., pages 707-709. See, also, Thompson’s Ex’r v. Guthrie’s Adm’r, 9 Leigh (36 Va.) 101, 33 Am. Dec. 225. As previously stated, at the time defendants breached their contract, plaintiff had paid $1,548.00 on the purchase price, and interest amounting to $765.75. The verdict of the jury was for only $1,348.00 without interest. It is, therefore, evident that the jury took into consideration the amount defendants claimed for taxes and insurance, and allowed them the interest which plaintiff had paid and also the interest she was entitled to recover from the time of the breach, in lieu of the rental value of the property while it was occupied by herself, her husband and her children up to the time defendants disabled themselves from completing their contract by conveying the property to another. Manifestly the defendants could not justly claim both rent and interest under the circumstances, and we, therefore, find no ground upon which to hold that the verdict was excessive as claimed by the defendants.

[644]*644The next assignment of error relates to two instructions given for the plaintiff over defendants’ objection.

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Thompson's ex'or v. Guthrie's adm'r
33 Am. Dec. 225 (Supreme Court of Virginia, 1837)
Wilson's v. Keckley
59 S.E. 383 (Supreme Court of Virginia, 1907)
City of Richmond v. Poore
63 S.E. 1014 (Supreme Court of Virginia, 1909)
Virginia Cedar Works v. Dalea
64 S.E. 41 (Supreme Court of Virginia, 1909)
Barsa v. Kator
93 S.E. 613 (Court of Appeals of Virginia, 1917)
Barnett v. Cloyd's Ex'rs
100 S.E. 674 (Supreme Court of Virginia, 1919)
Sale v. Swann
120 S.E. 870 (Supreme Court of Virginia, 1924)

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Bluebook (online)
164 S.E. 394, 158 Va. 638, 1932 Va. LEXIS 282, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/ives-v-saunders-va-1932.