Rihanna wins important battle in lawsuit over leaky LA mansion

LOS ANGELES, Jan. 28 (UPI) -- Rihanna has won a key battle in her $8.5 million lawsuit against Prudential California Realty over problems with her Beverly Hills mansion.

The 25-year-old singer took legal action after a leak in her $6.9 million Los Angeles home ruined her custom-fitted sound system and sprouted mold on her designer clothes.

In a deposition that took place in Los Angeles last week, the seller admitted he had informed the brokers at Prudential California Realty of the problems with the home, but the latter failed to explain the situation to the "Diamonds" singer.

According to a source close to the singer, Rihanna was never able to move into her house because of the leak and is currently living in a rented apartment in New York City.

“It doesn’t rain much in California, but when it did, it rained inside the house," said the insider. "Rihanna never got to move in, but she started modifying it, building a custom closet and fitting in state-of-the-art audio. She didn’t know the house would leak, and the water ruined the new sound system and grew mold on the walls and on some of her clothes.”

“Last week in depositions, the seller, who’s a developer, said he told Prudential about the problems with the property, but it was sold to Rihanna as a dream home,” added the source.

The original lawsuit, filled in 2011, states "In or about January 2010, the property was subject to a moderate rainstorm . . . the rainwater pooled on the second-floor balcony and seeped into numerous rooms . . . numerous construction defects, which existed at the time [Rihanna] purchased the property were not made known to [her].”

Rihanna claims she deceived because "the actual value of the property at the time of purchase, taking into consideration the extensive construction defects . . . was millions of dollars less” than she paid.

The singer is reportedly suing the owner, brokers, inspector and engineers who worked on the house for negligence, fraud and breach of contract. The suit reportedly “puts the focus squarely on Prudential.”

The realtor's lawyer, Martha Mosier, had no comment.

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