I signed the contract but never actually gave it back to the agent (she doesn't have a copy). Can I take the house off the market? Do I owe it to her to reimburse her for her expenses?
2007-11-07 09:21:57 · 15 answers · asked by bomboloneamericana 2 in Business & Finance ➔ Renting & Real Estate
Some of the responders to your question have absolutely no idea of what they are talking about.
The laws regarding real estate transactions vary from state to state.
In general you have the right to change your mind and not sell your house if there is not a signed and accepted contract with a buyer You may owe damages and brokerage fees however.
You are very fortunate that this agent did not take a copy of the signed listing agreetment. Without a signed listing agreement it will be almost impossible for her to enforce any agreement to pay real estate brokerage fees that you may have had.
I recommend that you try to keep this pleasant. Give her a telephone call and explain to her that you have changed your mind about selling your house.
The response that she gives you is very important. Since this is a buyer's market she will have to spend a lot of her money marketing your house and there is no guarantee that she can sell it and get paid.
By cancelling the listing early in the process you have saved her a great deal of money. If she is realistic, she will agree with you that you should not sell your house in a buyer's market and agree to cancel your listing without charging you a brokerage fee or a commission.
If she agrees to cancel your listing, follow up your conversation with a letter confirming your conversation. Send this letter with proof of receipt requested, save a copy for your files in case you need it later.
You might want to give her several hundred dollars to pay her for her time and any expenses.
If she does not agree to cancel your listing voluntarily, then I recommend that you contact a real estate attorney and give the attorney the information that you gave us.
I expect that will be the end of the matter.
2007-11-07 09:54:32 · answer #1 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 2⤋
You don't have any legal issues if there is no executed contract, you can just tell the agent you decided not to sell after all, rip up the contract.
Look at your listing agreement, there is usually a clause that states whether you need to reimburse the broker for expenses incurred *marketing, etc* in the event you decide to cancel the listing and it usually states how much you owe. There may also be information there regarding cancellation policy.
2007-11-08 00:02:35 · answer #2 · answered by iguana 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
If you have yet to deliver the signed contract to the other party, then you don't have a legal agreement.
If you don't have a legal agreement, you are free to change your mind about your end of the bargain - which, in this case, is your agreement to sell your home should the agent produce a buyer who is ready, willing and able to purchase the home at terms that are acceptable to you.
Also, if you don't have a legal agreement to employ the realtor (and his/her broker) as your agent (or transaction broker, as the case may be), or to assist you in any way by procuring a buyer for the sale of your home, then you are under no obligation to compensate the realtor for any work he/she may have already performed.
HOWEVER - if, in reasonable reliance on your assurances, the realtor was induced to spend a considerable sum of time and money in the course of preparing to sell your home, I suppose there is a possibility that you could be found legally liable to reasonably compensate the realtor for those services. If the realtor simply looked up the prices of similar comparative homes so that he/she could knowledgeably advise you with regard to an appropriate selling price for your home, then they probably haven't done much that you would need to compensate them for. On the other hand, if, based on your assurances that you wanted to sell and that you wanted them to represent you, they put in a lot more effort, it might be in your best interest to discuss a reasonable service fee for those efforts.
No matter what they've done for you, they can not force you to sell your home against your will. Even if you had signed the contract, you would retain the right to cancel the sale. The contract may (and probably does) contain specific language about how the realtor would be compensated in the event that you did elect to cancel, but again, if you have not signed and delivered that contract to the realtor, you are not bound by the terms of the never-in-force agreement, but rather only by the principles of fair business and equity.
2007-11-07 17:34:50 · answer #3 · answered by NotAnyoneYouKnow 7 · 1⤊ 0⤋
If you never gave her the signed contract you are not obligated to do anything. If she does have a copy all you have to do is put in writing that you were not happy with the results and fire her. But if you tell them you just changed your mind then you will be responsible for the commision of the sale even if you aren't selling. You do not owe her anything. There are expenses involved in real estate that are expected.
2007-11-07 17:28:52 · answer #4 · answered by Debbie 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Her expenses are the cost of doing business.
She uses these expenses as a write-off on her taxes.
There are NO guarantees that she will make a sale by doing anything for anyone.
YOU have the contract.
She does NOT have a contract.
You are holding the cards. Destroy the contract. Verbally first break off the agreement, then Physically write a letter to her (or fax or both) that says that any Verbal agreement is NULL and VOID. Date it and ship it off.
She can not hold you liable for a verbal unless it was followed up with something written in hand.
Do this quickly and without delay before she commits more to this transaction.
110707 4:28
2007-11-07 17:28:48 · answer #5 · answered by YRofTexas 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
If this agent incurred expenses without having a valid signed listing contract, that's her problem. If she spent a lot of time with you working on your listing, you might consider sending her some reasonable 'thank you' gift for her efforts, but you owe her nothing.
Take it from there.
2007-11-07 17:33:47 · answer #6 · answered by acermill 7 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Even if you had signed a listing contract, you can cancel the listing.
Some Realtors have a flat fee they require if you withdraw the listing. Tell her sooner than later, if she hasn't done alot of work to market this, she may not require the fee.
2007-11-07 20:09:51 · answer #7 · answered by godged 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
No, all real estate contracts must be in writing.
No one can force you to sell your house.
If she doesn'thave a copy, then no contract exists.
Simply do nothing.
She will not try to sell your house without a listing.
If she presents you with a contact to buy, do not sign it.
You do not have to pay her expenses.
2007-11-07 17:27:08 · answer #8 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
Depends. In a similar situation we know someone who could not back out without paying but they did have the right to raise their asking price. They did so figuring that if someone came up with the higher price they would gladly take it. No one did and they happily stayed.
2007-11-07 17:27:43 · answer #9 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 0⤋
No. not if you don't give the contract back .you are only committed if you purchased the property. otherwise
any money handed over will have to be handed back ..
The law says all moneys are refundable if it's not subject to contract..
2007-11-07 17:36:19 · answer #10 · answered by JJ 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋