can you sue a real estate agent for incompetence?

Answer 1

If they cost you money (read harm) in a real estate deal, you may sue. To sue just because they made you angry is an poor use of your money and time. If they made an honest mistake you may file a charge against their Errors & Ommisions insurance and collect if the investigation reveals a legitmate cause of action. Do not file as fraud for if it is determined that fraud was indeed teh cause the E&O will not pay off and you lessen your opportunity for restitution.

You may also file charges at the local board of Realtors for restitution. They will hold an investigation, and then a hearing if the investigation indicates it is warranted based upon the evidence presented. I have filed such on behalf of the public at times in the past and advocated same for the public as well. I also have presided over hearings. Usually there is fault to go around, it becomes a matter of assigning who is to bear how much fault. Any ruling is binding same a a court of law. The cost to file this kind of action is nominal compared to the legal system. You also may have the right to have an attorney present if you wish, they will so advise you.

If they factually were incompetitent they need to be brought for charges. Otherwise they will repeat their behavior until stopped. Better to stop it here and now than later.

It would have been helpful if you had outlined the scenerio.

Answer 2

Was this a listing or sales contract?
Almost every listing contract has a provision for mediation and arbitration. See is yours has one and whether or not you agreed to stop at arbitration after mediation left you unhappy. If so, then you are stuck with the arbitrators decision.

Regardless, to start with mediation before going to law suit is a good idea. If you start a suit, the court is most likely going to ask you to try it first, anyway. Don't expect the broker to side with you or do anything other than rigorously defend the agent. If you are thinking about any kind of action, do not go to that broker at all; let your attorney do it. Your own words can come back to haunt you. Brokers can twist them beautifully.

It is a "buyer-beware" world; a certain amount of the responsibility lies with you, however, realtors are held to a high standard with regard to ethics and competency. I am ashamed to say that almost any idiot can pass the exam to practice real estate. I have come across some real gems in my practice!

Get a consultation with a real estate attorney to see where you stand and go from there. Yes, you can sue a real estate agent for incompetence. These things, if proven, are usually paid out of E & O insurance or from the State Board.

Good Luck!

Answer 3

Mike's law professor is right. Armed with a piece of paper and the filing fee you can sue the pope for rape, proving it is another matter.
Incompetence is defined as lack of ability or capacity. A real estate license properly issued by the State in Jurisdiction in effect tells the consumers that a licensee has the ability and capacity to conduct real estate transactions for others.
Now then to sue you must prove damages.
To file a complaint with your state's real estate commission, against the licensee you must prove that he was incompetent.
Some real estate commissions have a fund set a side to compensate consumers for the wrong full acts of licensee's when such wrongful acts lead to a monetary judgment damage against the licensee.
Of course the licensee also has or should have Errors and Omissions Insurance to compensate consumers harmed by the agent's actions or in-actions.
Here is a morsel of information for you:
"reasonable care" = That degree of care which a person of ordinary prudence would exercise in the same or similar circumstances. Failure to exercise such care is ordinary negligence.

Answer 4

I am trained as a paralegal and can't give legal advice, but I'll tell you what I know about real estate licensing in my state from personal experience and research on the internet.

According to my state's code, real estate agents have specific duties that must be performed a certain way according to their licensing commission. They also must adhere to an ethics policy. Of course, everyone's human....you might consider speaking with them personally first or to their Broker if you don't feel comfortable with confronting them. If you are not able to resolve this, an attorney in your state is able to take over the issue if it is a valid claim of incompetence.

Answer 5

My law professor told me I can sue anyone for anything; winning is another matter.

Answer 6

Nope. If that was the case, they'd spend all their time in court.