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I am concerned with this story because you are saying two different things...that you didn't sign addendum,but you weren't told what the addendum was....which is it?Why would do an inspection on a house that you didn't sign a contract on? And why would it be 24 hours unless you signed it on the original contract?
We had a contract and a short sale Addendum' we did not sign the second Addendum issued after seller's lenders approval; we tried to re-negotiate; they gave us 30 days extra to settle due to our lenders time frame; they withdrew second Addendum that was for commission; allowed us one day to do all inspections from that moment it was offered. Not enough time. We had to travel to SC. We refused again. They threated to sue for specific performance in Interpleader unless we gave them the earnest money; we offered a small amount to settle; they wanted more; we agreed on 50/50. We did this because it was affecting my husbands health and interferring with his work as he came home ill several days over this threat. So we signed over half to protect his health. It makes me ill because it goes against my principle, but I did what I had to do. In essence they squeezed us too far with threats of sueing us for more than earnest money. We gave in because lawyer said it was a crap shoot depending on magistrate, and we would still not be protected from further suits. I just want people to be aware of what these broker's can do, especially young people who may only have $2500.00 + closing. I will not be trapped like this again and will buy a new place or a FSBO and get my own inspections and lawyer to settle.
Sorry to hear about that. The stinking ripoff artists agents and lawyers wore you down. That was their plan all along. I still wouldn't pay them a dime. Don't sign anything. Let them take you to court. Better yet, call the news station down here and tell them your story. Have you called the district attorney of Horry county and told them that you think the felony of fraud and extortion are going on here? Don't give up yet. You are right and they are wrong.
1) You find a house you like
2) You submit a contract offer with a short sale addendum on said house with earnest money
3) Seller accepts your offer and signs the contract
4) Bank accepts your offer and ratifies contract, earnest money check is cashed
5) Bank wants to amend contract so they ask you to sign another addendum...you refuse
6) Bank/Seller/Seller's agent says close on this house or we sue you for damages
jamesboy, you are right except for #5. The bank/seller's lender did not submit an Addendum (different than amended contract) it was the brokerages that submitted the addendum to make up for the commission that the bank/seller's lender did not allow for in their approval. The short sale addendum says we can walk if the bank/seller's lender doesn't accept our offer as submitted. We declined the brokerage addendum. Of course we thought it was from the bank/seller's lender until our lawyer ordered the lender's approval which had been kept from us.
So when you say "brokerages" I assume you mean the seller's real estate agent? The real estate agent is not a party to your contract. The compensation to be paid to the agent is negotiated between the seller and the agent outside of your transaction unless you say otherwise or is stated in the original contract. By rejecting the addendum, you are rejecting a request by the seller to amend the contract. Both parties can continue with the original contract while not agreeing to the addendum. If you fail to perform under the original contract you are liable for damages. Additionally, if the seller fails to perform they are liable. Just perform under the original terms and you are fine. You can't pay a real estate commission that you did not agree to in the original docs.
But the Addendum said it was part of the contract! I know the seller pays commission but he was broke. They became creative and decided we were stupid and would pay the commission (there was no explanation for the money asked for) just that they wanted X amount and seller would pay 1% of closing which was nearly a wash in dollar amount. I can't understand this. Why didn't seller pay the commission instead of closing cost? Why the Addendum which upset the apple cart. Is it because of seller's lender? The original contract said seller would pay no closing. So doesn't that break the contract. Funny thing is the seller had not signed the Addendum it was sent to us for our signature.
To continue on if we went back to original contract which "had" to be closed Dec. 30 and it was now Dec. 8, neither of our approved lenders could comply. The seller's lender had taken too long to approve our offer and our days for inspection in the contract were diminished. So in essence the contract was changed by lender's actions. This is all too complicated for me and I fear we have let a bunch of sharks have off with our money without contest to their unscrupulous actions. It isn't a large amount but it makes me ill that they can do this to anyone seriously interested in purchasing a property if things go awry.
In all honesty I think you are not looking at the big picture. You are only obligated to perform based on what you agreed to in writing. The addendum means nothing unless you agree to it with your signature. You didn't perform, seller didn't perform, bank didn't perform, so no party to the contract can file suit against the other or demand money because everyone breached. They can't collect damages from you if you are ready to execute on the contract and purchase the property.
Demand repayment of your earnest money from the seller/seller's agent/bank with a certified letter. If they don't pay sue in small claims court. Or seek arbitration, which may be required to resolve the dispute per the language in the original contract. Ching, the law is well written with regard to disputes arising from real estate contracts. These laws are designed to protect both the purchaser and the seller. These disputes happen all of the time and are generally resolved quickly.
As I just stated we signed over half because their threats were making my husband ill. They were taking us in front of magistrate to get the whole deposit with threats of further suits. Our lawyers said it was a crap shoot. No one could tell us they were wrong and we were right. Four lawyers involved. Three were demanding our earnest money deposit. They are now in the process of returning half the earnest money deposit.
I am concerned with this story because you are saying two different things...that you didn't sign addendum,but you weren't told what the addendum was....which is it?Why would do an inspection on a house that you didn't sign a contract on? And why would it be 24 hours unless you signed it on the original contract?
We had a contract and a short sale Addendum' we did not sign the second Addendum issued after seller's lenders approval; we tried to re-negotiate; they gave us 30 days extra to settle due to our lenders time frame; they withdrew second Addendum that was for commission; allowed us one day to do all inspections from that moment it was offered. Not enough time. We had to travel to SC. We refused again. They threated to sue for specific performance in Interpleader unless we gave them the earnest money; we offered a small amount to settle; they wanted more; we agreed on 50/50. We did this because it was affecting my husbands health and interferring with his work as he came home ill several days over this threat. So we signed over half to protect his health. It makes me ill because it goes against my principle, but I did what I had to do. In essence they squeezed us too far with threats of sueing us for more than earnest money. We gave in because lawyer said it was a crap shoot depending on magistrate, and we would still not be protected from further suits. I just want people to be aware of what these broker's can do, especially young people who may only have $2500.00 + closing. I will not be trapped like this again and will buy a new place or a FSBO and get my own inspections and lawyer to settle.
You NEVER TRY TO RENEGOTIATE a real estate purchase and sale agreement in the middle of the signed agreement. Always abide by the time contraints and if the property doesn't meet the contingencies ie building inspections, ASK FOR THE DEPOSIT BACK as per the agreement and start over. I learned this the hard wa more than 20 years ago. Consider yourself lucky you only put down $2500. I put down three times as much and it took 7 years to get 2/3 back after attorney's fees were taken out. I would still hire a GOOD attorney to write a letter and frighten them into returning the deposit. My attorney was weak and made things worse. A GOOD attorney should be able to get your money back for you.
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