Would you give the money back?

[allisolm]

http://www.foxnews.com/us/2011/05/20/man-finds-40000-cash-utah-home-returns-owners/

You buy a house from the estate of a man who had died. In the attic of a workshop you find $40,000 left there by the previous owner (who is dead.) Do you keep it or give it to the heirs of the previous owner? Would you be under any legal obligation to give it to them?

 

[BTA]

Their loss. I'd keep it.

 

[Cuda1447]

I'd probably keep it.

 

[LookBehindYou]

Definitely keep it, wouldnt think twice. Come to think of it, i'd keep it if they were alive. Not my fault there is 40,000 in MY house.

 

[Saint Nick]

I'd keep it and give them an infraction instead.

 

[IceBergSLiM]

40k tax free lol .......keep unless I was already VERY comfortable.

 

[CrazyAznDriver]

keep it

 

[Blackjack200]

Honestly? Hard to know what I'd do.

 

[Anubis]

Hookers & blow!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[Arik5405]

I would probably give it back.

 

[TwiceOver]

I want to say I would keep it. But I'd probably give it back. I'm the kind of idiot that takes things back into the store if the checker forgets to ring it up.

 

[IceBergSLiM]

if you are ethically/morally in a bind bet it all on black and if you win it was meant to be and you give 40k back and keep 40k. if you lose well nobody gets anything and your back where you started.

 

[ussfletcher]

Keep it and feel mildly guilty.

 

[jalaram]

I want to say I would keep it. But I'd probably give it back. I'm the kind of idiot that takes things back into the store if the checker forgets to ring it up.

Ditto.

I've also taken lost items (e.g. a camera at a park) and given them to some clerk/ranger/manager so that the owner can come back for it. I've had plenty of people tell me that I'm an idiot because said clerk usually just takes it for their own use.

 

[brainhulk]

definitely keep it

 

[rivan]

What money?

</shiftyeyes>

I'd probably be conflicted, and it might just depend on how the sellers were to me when I bought. For instance, I now wet-dry vac the water out of my "dry basement" (according to the sellers) every spring. And I'm 99.98&#37; certain they knew what they were doing.

If it were them? I'd probably keep it.

 

[SunnyD]

If the house was bought as part of an estate sale, then I would venture a guess the money legally belongs to the new owners if it was included with the house. I'd keep it.

 

[wiredspider]

Keep it, old guy didn't tell the kids about it and they didn't even bother to look around themselves.

 

[nick1985]

keep it

 

[whattaguy]

He probably found $80,000.

 

[BrownShoes]

I would donate it to the charity of Me.

 

[allisolm]

He probably found $80,000.

LOL
That is always a possibility. He gets to be a hero. The heirs are happy. He gets to be happy as well. Win win.

 

[allisolm]

I want to say I would keep it. But I'd probably give it back. I'm the kind of idiot that takes things back into the store if the checker forgets to ring it up.

Me, too. Sadly, I think we belong to a vanishing breed.

 

[amdhunter]

I'd keep it and have a new Audi TT-R tomorrow. I'm well off enough that I can hide $40k from the tax man without raising suspicion.

 

[Ryland]

It is part of the house so I would keep it. The flipside is if you found out that there was contamination that nobody knew about which would cost you $40,000 to fix you would be stuck with it....