Woman claims diet pills led her to buy worthless home

ORLANDO, Fla. -- A woman is asking a court to let her back out of a home purchase, because she says her judgement was impaired due to the diet pills she had been taking.

Mary McKaig, 54, says she regrets buying the home, and that she mistakenly bid on the foreclosed house that had more than $415,000 of debt, according to ABC News. McKaig had submitted a bid for $100,500 on RealAuction.com on Feb. 19, the same day she began taking a prescription for phentermine diet pills, according to her court filing.

Four days later, she filed an objection in Orange County circuit court to halt the sale, which is permitted within 10 days of a foreclosure auction, according to Florida law. Documents provided by RealAuction.com list the the four-bedroom home with a value of about $276,878.

McKaig claimed in her court papers that she immediately realized she made a mistake after submitting the bid, according to the court filing. Chase Mortgage has had a $400,000 lien on the house for years, and the homeowner's association is also claiming over $15,000 in unpaid dues and fines on the property.

Orlando attorney Richard Weinman, who represents McKaig said that she "basically dumped $100,000 into a property that is $100,000 underwater," according to the Orlando Sentinel.

In response to McKaig's filing, the homeowner's association, which wants the sale to close so it can be paid, said "lack of knowledge, however, or lack of due diligence is not a mistake," according to the association's filing with the court on Feb. 26.

"Phentermine is an appetite suppressant," the homeowner's association states in its response and in its court exhibit. "'Altering judgment' is not listed as an adverse reaction or a side effect to taking Phentermine under the Physicians' Desk Reference and Web MD." The homeowner association listed potential adverse reactions to include nausea, irritability, dizziness, psychosis, dry mouth and change in sexual desire.

The Phentermine.com website lists "less common or rare symptoms," including clumsiness, confusion and tiredness.

McKaig was "solely responsible for research regarding (the house)" but "had not discovered the mortgage before the sale," her attorney wrote in the court filing.

According to the Orlando Sentinel, the price that McKaig is paying for the home only pays off the homeowner association debt, while she would still need to be responsible for paying off the $400,000 lien.

Orange County Clerk of Courts set a notice of hearing for April 16. A judge could either let the case stand and McKaig would be forced to make good on her commitment to purchase the house; or a judge could vacate the sale, returning McKaig's money so that the property may be re-auctioned.