His eviction case was resolved with a new land contract with the seller, which Mr. Kelso signed in November 2020, according to court documents. Under the new contract, filed with the county recorder of deeds, Mr. Kelso agreed to pay $300 a month, with a final payment of $53 due in July 2023, after which he would own the house.
But when Mr. Kelso mailed his final payment last year, the postal service returned it as undeliverable, court filings say. “The seller basically disappeared,” Mr. Skilliter said.
Legal Aid filed suit asking a court to recognize Mr. Kelso as the owner, in what’s called a “quiet title.” On July 10, the court found in Mr. Kelso’s favor, granting him “all right, title, ownership, and all other interest” in the property. Mr. Kelso said he was relieved. “It was really stressful,” he said.
In a separate case, Dolores Lawson, 59, lost her mobile home in Garner, N.C. Ms. Lawson, who works as an administrative assistant, said in an interview that she visited the mobile home park in early 2019 to inquire about renting a unit. Instead, she was offered an option to purchase one under an agreement that lawyers say is the equivalent of a “contract for deed,” or land contract, under North Carolina law.
Ms. Lawson agreed to a $2,713 down payment, plus 60 payments of $407 a month. “After that, the home would be mine,” she said. (She also agreed to pay monthly rent of $475 for the land underneath the home.)