Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
I'm a bit livid right now, so please excuse me if I rant during this vent..
Ten days ago we finally found a house that suits all our needs, made an offer, they countered with a price that was still a bit more than we really thought the house was worth, but decided we were probably not going to find the equivalent for much less money, which we then accepted. We are 80% cash and already pre-APPROVED for the remaining 20%. Got our inspector there in 2 days, house was fine except for a couple of issues that the seller agreed to fix. They then asked if we could go all-cash and even though we weren't planning to... we agreed. Seller's lawyer sent the contract to our lawyer, saying they were in a hurry to get the deal done for a closing at the end of Sept so we wasted no time in signing it and sending it back to the seller for their signature which we were told would be done this past Friday. They kept push-push-pushing us to sign the contracts a.s.a.p. and we clearly practically jumped through hoops to accommodate their requests. I even hand-delivered the contracts to and from the seller's attorney to ours and back to theirs, in order to move things along a.s.a.p. We also said that we would be happy to pick up the signed contracts this past weekend, and hand deliver them to our attorney so as not to lose any time ordering the title search, etc.
Our buyer's agent checked with the seller's agent on Friday and was told the contracts would be signed Friday night. Then we were told they wouldn't be signing until Saturday afternoon "or Sunday". Okay fine it was a holiday weekend, maybe they got an invite to a great party or something. So we expected to hear from them first thing this morning that the contract was ready to be picked up.
No word from their realtor to ours, nor from their lawyer to ours, all day. Meanwhile I'm "on standby" all day for contract-delivery duty....
At 4:30 pm my SO got a call from our lawyer, who had just been told by the seller's lawyer that the sellers have decided not to sell their house after all, and are returning our down payment (of over 60K, I might add) which they have been holding and never even put in escrow for 5 days.
Why? Because they "had second thoughts" about the house they were going to buy and apparantly were not yet in contract for, have gotten cold feet about buying THAT house, and as a result have decided not to sell their house after all.
They put their house in the market in mid-July and after 6 weeks and supposedly one other buyer before us (whose deal fell through because those buyers had a house to sell first and the sellers "didn't want any contingencies that could kill a deal") , they all of a sudden NOW at the last minute get cold feet and decide they can't afford to buy another house after all, so "oh well, too bad, dear buyers".
...my SO just leaned over my shoulder (still muttering curses for the past 2+ hours, btw) and asked whether we are now going to be on the hook for paying our buyer agent her 2% commission since our contract with her says it's owed if "the Buyer enters into a contract of sale" (not "a fully executed contract of sale"... just "enters into".. which WE did do when we signed it..) on this deal that the sellers just arbitrarily killed.
I have no idea and am in no mood right now to call her and ask.....
Sorry man that really blows. I would at least get on the horn to your lawyer and see what he/she thinks about the commission thing. Maybe there is a way through attorneys to get the sellers to foot the 2% for sticking you in a bind. There has to be some contingency for this sort of thing. Good luck.
I would think if they broke the contract they should be responsible for the 2% com. That really sucks. I always think there is a reason for everything, maybe it was not meant to be even thought it sucks right now, good luck keep us posited.
If your agent insists on the 2% and you can't get the sellers to pay it, then tell your agent you're going to find a new agent for your continued home search. I'm sure she'll change her tune if you decide to ditch her for someone else.
I would think if they broke the contract they should be responsible for the 2% com.
The seller's didn't break (breach) the contract... they just at the last minute decided they aren't going to sign it because they don't "really" want to sell their home after all (apparantly).
If they had signed it and then backed out, we'd possibly have a case but since they never signed it... there was technically no contract to "break". A contract doesn't come into existence until both parties sign it.
omigawd, yes I am hoping that our buyer agent doesn't ask us for the commission on this one although I wouldn't blame her if she tried to get it, or part of it, from the sellers. My SO thinks her success in that would depend on how the Sellers' contract with their listing agent reads. If it says that all commissions are due "when Seller signs a contract", then they are off the hook because although WE signed it, THEY never put pen to paper in the end. But if it says they owe a commission to an agent that "produces a ready willing and able buyer".... which our agent did do, in us! ... I would say that obligates them legally to pay.
Something for lawyers to wrangle about, I suppose.
...my SO just leaned over my shoulder (still muttering curses for the past 2+ hours, btw) and asked whether we are now going to be on the hook for paying our buyer agent her 2% commission since our contract with her says it's owed if "the Buyer enters into a contract of sale" (not "a fully executed contract of sale"... just "enters into".. which WE did do when we signed it..) on this deal that the sellers just arbitrarily killed.
I have no idea and am in no mood right now to call her and ask.....
It takes two parties to have a contract. You owe her nothing.
It takes two parties to have a contract. You owe her nothing.
Good point, Tom: the contract, as a legal entity, never came into being because even though WE entered into it, the sellers did not. In other words, a contract that isn't signed by both parties, is not a contract. (Is that the legal equivalent of "If a tree falls in the forest and nobody hears it...." ? )
As a point of interest to anyone considering entering into a buyer broker agreement, I would suggest that you avoid the language that says that you are going to pay the commission. Generally, the commission can and should be paid out of the proceeds of the transaction. In fact, through MLS, most sellers offer compensation to buyer brokers.
Here is the language that I use in my buyer broker agreements:
[b]4. COMPENSATION
[a] If the owner or the owner’s agent compensates Broker at the rate of at least 2% of the purchase price, Broker will accept such compensation as payment for its services under this agreement.
If the owner or the owner’s agent does not compensate Broker at least 2% of the purchase price, all offers that are submitted will specify that such offer includes a 2% Buyer Brokers Fee to be paid from the proceeds of the transaction.
[c] Client acknowledges that if within six months of the termination of this
Agreement, with or without the services of a licensed agent, Client buys, exchanges for, obtains an option on, or leases real property shown to Client by Broker during the term of this Agreement, compensation as set forth in this Agreement shall be applicable and Client shall pay such 2% fee to directly Broker.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
and also...
)
