• iconNews
  • videos
  • entertainment
  • Home
  • News
    • UK News
    • US News
    • Australia
    • Ireland
    • World News
    • Weird News
    • Viral News
    • Sport
    • Technology
    • Science
    • True Crime
    • Travel
  • Entertainment
    • Celebrity
    • TV & Film
    • Netflix
    • Music
    • Gaming
    • TikTok
  • LAD Originals
    • Say Maaate to a Mate
    • Daily Ladness
    • Lad Files
    • UOKM8?
    • FreeToBe
    • Extinct
    • Citizen Reef
  • Advertise
  • Terms
  • Privacy & Cookies
  • LADbible Group
  • UNILAD
  • SPORTbible
  • GAMINGbible
  • Tyla
  • UNILAD Tech
  • FOODbible
  • License Our Content
  • About Us & Contact
  • Jobs
  • Latest
  • Topics A-Z
  • Authors
Facebook
Instagram
X
Threads
Snapchat
TikTok
YouTube

LAD Entertainment

YouTube

LAD Stories

Submit Your Content
Neighbours call for action after man returned home to land he bought in 1991 to find £1.2 million house on it

Home> News> US News

Updated 16:44 5 Jul 2024 GMT+1Published 12:01 3 Jul 2024 GMT+1

Neighbours call for action after man returned home to land he bought in 1991 to find £1.2 million house on it

Dr Daniel Kenigsberg isn't the only one who has been left frustrated by the land dispute

Olivia Burke

Olivia Burke

If you're the proud owner of a decent-sized chunk of land, let this be a lesson that you need to keep tabs on it.

Otherwise, you might end up like this bloke who got the shock of his life when he returned to his prized half-acre plot in his hometown, only to realise that a £1.2 million house had been built on top of it.

Dr Daniel Kenigsberg purchased the plot of land, which was situated next to his childhood home in Fairfield, Connecticut, back in 1991 and has held onto it for decades despite being approached numerous times to sell it.

He shrugged off offers of $400,000 (£314,000) in 2022 and instead opted to hold onto it, in the hopes that he could pass it down to younger generations in his family.

Advert

So when an old pal from his hometown rang him for a catch up and broke the news that construction had been underway on the land he owned, as you can imagine, Dr Kenigsberg wasn't best pleased.

Dr Daniel Kenigsberg was left stunned when a four-bed home was erected on his land. (NBC New York)
Dr Daniel Kenigsberg was left stunned when a four-bed home was erected on his land. (NBC New York)

According to CT Insider, he rushed back to Fairfield from Long Island to find that a four bedroom house had been erected on the site, which seemed to only need a few finishing touches.

It turns out that the land had been 'sold' to Sky Top Partners LLC for $350,000 (£275,000) back in October 2022.

According to a lawsuit filed by Dr Kenigsberg, the supposed sale of the land and subsequent construction of a house had been done without his knowledge.

Advert

He sued the firm on nine counts and was seeking damages and compensation of up to $2 million (£1.57 million).

The lawsuit also ordered the company to clear off his land and restore it to how it was before they thought they bought it.

CT Insider later reported that Gina Leto and Greg Bugaj of 51 Sky Top Partners LLC claimed they had fallen victim to a scam, instead 'buying' the plot of land from someone who had impersonated the landowner.

Neighbours have voiced their concern. (NBC New York)
Neighbours have voiced their concern. (NBC New York)

Speaking to NBC New York, Dr Daniel Kenigsberg alleged that a 'fraudulent deed' had been submitted which claimed they had the legal right to sell the land.

Advert

He fumed: "How the system fails, you know. When you have checks and balances, you have lawyers on each looking at things - how does this not get caught?"

Residents in Fairfield are just as frustrated by the situation, as construction on the home was halted following the legal action, so the street is now stuck in a stalemate... with no end in sight.

One neighbour who voiced concerns about how long the issue may take to work out said: "There's really nothing to look at. It's just... really, it's just an eyesore at this point."

Another local added: "People just keep driving by. They wanna see what’s going on. Take a look at the house. And it just causes traffic."

While a third chimed in: "I really just hope everyone involved gets what they need, because it seems like there are two victims in this case."

Advert

Dr Kenigsberg and his neighbours really aren't happy about the half-complete pad. (NBC New York)
Dr Kenigsberg and his neighbours really aren't happy about the half-complete pad. (NBC New York)

Dr Kenigsberg admitted he 'felt bad for the builder', adding: "It's a bad situation that tends to lose a lot of money."

Consumer protection lawyer Kevin Kneupper suggested that his claims were not that outlandish, as it is actually quite simple to pose as a landowner.

He explained: "It's really easy to go find who owns land. If you've never done searches on this, in most counties, you can actually just go, it depends on your state.

"But in many places, you just search online, they'll have databases, so they could find out real easily who's the actual owner and then just pretend to be him.

Advert

"Now, to be clear, his attorney and Mr. Kenigsberg, they are not accusing the people who bought it of being involved.

"They think that they sort of didn't know what was going on, and that someone in South Africa did this.

"And that's who the police are trying to go after to find where the money actually went to when they paid for it."

Featured Image Credit: NBC New York

Topics: Home, Money, US News

Olivia Burke
Olivia Burke

Olivia is a journalist at LADbible Group with more than five years of experience and has worked for a number of top publishers, including News UK. She also enjoys writing food reviews (as well as the eating part). She is a stereotypical reality TV addict, but still finds time for a serious documentary.

X

@livburke_

Advert

Advert

Advert

Choose your content:

2 hours ago
3 hours ago
  • 2 hours ago

    How man declared 'legally dead' walked into a courtroom to apply for a driving license

    And the astonishing part is, the judge said he was still legally dead

    News
  • 2 hours ago

    Doctor issues warning about major mistake millions make while driving that is ‘slowing your brain down’

    Most cars have this button on the dashboard - but be mindful of how long you're using it for

    News
  • 2 hours ago

    Expert reveals disturbing reason why you should never tell your dark secrets to ChatGPT

    Perhaps a set of code using data it's mined from the internet archive isn't your BFF?

    News
  • 3 hours ago

    The dark happenings behind the scenes of ChatGPT that many people don't know about

    In 2023, OpenAI was subjected to controversy following a TIME magazine investigation into ChatGPT

    News
  • Expert explains what happened after man returned home to land he bought in 1991 to find £1.2 million house on it
  • Man who bought flat on cruise as it's cheaper than home reveals exciting opportunity if you want to join him
  • Man walked into house he'd owned for 30 years to find someone living in it and redecorating
  • Woman stunned after finding £395,000 home built on land she bought six years earlier