Condo Help... False Advertising?? (Gaithersburg: real estate, condominiums, loan)

[CGYFlames03]

I could use some advice... or comments... or whatever! I posted here a few weeks ago about purchasing a 2 bed, 2 bath condo at Rosewood Condominiums at Flower Hill in Gaithersburg. Well, that intent came to an end today, and I'm left wondering if this is even allowed.

This is the listing: Real Estate


I put in an offer for 215k on the exact unit listed, #304, was fully pre-approved for that loan, and no other changes were made to the contract. What I figured was a done deal, was far from it.

The seller countered with an asking price of $235,000. I thought this was strange, given the listing price, but countered again with 220k, because how would they be able to ask for more? Again, this was the only offer on the unit. Their counter? 235k.

Since I'm a first time homebuyer, is this sort of practice normal? And should it really be legally allowed? It truly seems like false advertising to me, as the 235k selling price was NEVER mentioned until after I went through a week of working with their lender, selling agent, etc.

Any feedback you all would be great... Needless to say I'm a discouraged 1st time buyer

[erilley]

Was the $215 their original asking price and then they countered for more?

[Joykins]

Asking price is usually a starting point for negotiations. This is a buyer's market so if they keep that up they will have a hard time selling it. If it gets that far and the appraisal comes in lower than the price, they may be forced to lower the price then also (or else no one will be able to get a loan to buy it).

[CGYFlames03]

Originally Posted by erilley

Was the $215 their original asking price and then they countered for more?

$220k was the asking price.

My first offer was $215k....... their counter was 235k. Even coming up to their 220k list price as my counter, they still refused and stayed with 235.

While I can understand negotiating is part of the process, I don't think advertising a price and refusing to go anywhere near it is very ethical. It's a misrepresentation of what is actually being sold and at what price.

Just seems strange to me....

[erilley]

That is strange! I don't think it's illegal, but it is a real jerk thing to do. Sometimes people do something rediculous to break the sale- why I don't know. I'm surprised they didn't give a reason. My husband and I put offers in on 3-4 homes before we got one. We had people that after we put a good offer in - decided they couldn't sell, then another who asked us to pay rediculous amounts in closing because of a nasty divorce. If you have a realtor I would ask them to try and find out what's going on if you are really still interested. Good luck!!!!

[TeamBenya]

There may be recourse if you offered a full-price non-contingent contract without closing help. Your agent may have recourse as well, because they brought the seller a ready,willing,able buyer at full terms of the asking. If you were asking for closing help, contingencies, etc. this may not be the case though. what does your agent say about it, or are you working with the sellers agent? If you don't have an agent working for you specifically, then you need to get one! The sellers agent is not working for you, and as a first time buyer, you need your own agent to help protect you from situations like this!

[hokiejane]

I've never heard of that happening when there's only one offer on the property.

Do you know how long it's been on the market? If it's a new listing and your offer came in quickly, the seller may think the condo was underpriced and s/he could have gotten more. Or maybe another unit in the development just went for $235k.

[AlicynD]

In your offer price did you request closing help of any sort? If you did, that may be why they bumped the price up - so they would be near their asking price.