[quote=sdrealtor][quote=bearishgurl]Oh, and sdr, I’ve never had a dispute over a “screen door.” It was more like exp. pool pumps, spa heaters, roof leaks, plumbing leaks, failure to do the necessary work to obtain a termite clearance and sellers not properly disclosing defects that they HAD to have known about.
A buyer has EVERY RIGHT to walk if the seller agreed to fix or replace something and then tries to close without fixing it. Your lawyer will advise you NOT to close until the terms of the contract are performed.[/quote]
Actually good experienced agents can resolve these and still close. For example, the seller can leave money in escrow to be held until the repair is made and to be released to teh buyer if the repair is not made within X days. Good professional full time agents know how to make things work and get things done.
Your lawyer will advise you endlessly at $300/hour when simple common sense solutions are readily available among reasonable people.[/quote]
Here is the OP from that thread:
[quote=trojan4life]We had a few minor repairs on the house that were agreed upon in writing by the seller, one of which was replace a spa light. We did the walk through the day before the house was supposed to record and the sellers vacated 3-weeks prior. Needless to say the spa light wasn’t replaced and I noticed it. The seller’s agent claims they never saw the attachment (block was checked request for repairs form and the sellers signed stating they agreed to make all repairs).
The seller’s agent related to me she was never given the attachment by my agent (Century 21), and that my agent ponied up to pay $500 to replace the light. Well, when the pool dude came out to replace the light they realized there is a kink in the conduit and it’s going to require breaking through the patio to find the kink and repair it, then replace spa light, then repair patio. Looking at $3-5K.
I’m just going to get estimates for the work then present to the seller’s agent and the seller (out of state) and ask for payment. What do you guys and gal think? If they don’t fess up, I’ll have to sue them I guess.[/quote]
Here are some excerpts from that thread.
[quote=SD Attorney]You may have some rights against the sellers, depending on what was agreed to, signed, etc. Ultimately, you are in a tough spot since the deal has already closed and the sellers are long gone.
I think your idea about getting estimates and presenting them to the seller’s agent is a good start. Make sure you give her a deadline to respond back to you.[/quote]
[quote=sdrealtor]I apologize but the reason I and probably others havent responded is that its no longer a real estate transaction matter but rather its a legal matter and you probably will need an attorney unless they willingly step up and make it all right.[/quote]
[quote=SD Realtor]I agree. Consult a real estate attorney or follow the advice of the agent you have been working with.[/quote]
This is yet *another case* of sellers who “had to have known” about the problem and *conveniently” split town with their sales proceeds without fixing it, combined with yet another incompetent buyer’s agent. If this buyer would have consulted an attorney for an hour or less DURING escrow, he never would have gotten into this mess in the first place!
I see it all the time, AFTER the damage is already done. Grossly incompetent agents; agents who make offers using “straw buyers” that don’t qualify to buy in attempt to temporarily remove property from the mkt; listing agents who collect offer(s) and do not present them so a friend/relative can hurry and get their act together and put an offer in; agents who try to mask problems (i.e. crack in slab) just before the buyer’s inspector comes out; lots of RESPA violations such as agents who insist their client use a particular “lender” (friend/relative of agent) so the agent can get a “backroom kickback at COE;” agents who draft fee arrangements with clients (in addition to commission) outside of escrow; mortgage broker who plants friends/relatives as closing escrow agent and closing notary where an unsophisticated homeowner was ripped off of $60K in a “cash-out” refi transaction; many dual-agent breach of fiduciary duty/conflict-of-interest problems . . . and the list goes on. There are a LOT of BAD APPLES working in RE. As you’re probably aware, a lot of agents just want make a buck at the expense of a client. Then when something goes bad AFTER closing, they wash their hands, leaving their client in the lurch.
IMO, a LOT of agents out there shouldn’t be doing anything but using the washroom by themselves without their broker chained to their ankle. Unfortunately, in CA, the bar is LOW to become a “provisional” RE agent and begin “working.” There are way too many out there with a minute and a half of “experience” bumping into each other and wreaking havoc on transactions, causing the experienced agent in a transaction (if there IS one – LOL) to do all the work for both sides to get the deal closed.
[quote=sdrealtor]Short sales are not a waste of time and having done several dozen I can provide concrete proof (i.e. copies of FICO scores before and after) that when done properly they can be much better for the seller’s credit as well as negotiating away recourse on loans with recourse.[/quote]
I’ve closed two “short sales” about 18 yrs. ago. In the one I rep. the buyer, the seller’s agent DID get the ONE lender to sell short in a timely manner. The problem was, her clients were idiots. They had filed a Chapter 13 prior to the lender agreeing to sell short. But then behind their agent’s back, they decided to convert that to a Chapter 7 after the lender agreed to sell short. When the lender got wind of this, of course the deal to sell short fell apart. The lender eventually got their release of the stay and seller’s agent again convinced them to sell short. The lender again agreed to but not AS SHORT as before the Chap. 7 filing, for obvious reasons. The sellers made such a mess of their BK, I eventually had to get them an atty. to represent them in lengthy BK ct. hg. setting aside their 7 and reopening their 13 where an order to sell the real property was signed. Subsequently the 13 was dismissed and the 7 was reopened on behalf of sellers. My atty referral was successful here, sellers paid him and we closed. My young buyers were very tired by then and about to throw in the towel. They hung around for 153 days ONLY because the property was on the same st. as their long-time babysitter. Seller’s agent took a “hit” out of her commission equal to the diff. bet. the lender’s two “short” offers. All in all, I figured I made about half the amt. per hour on that transaction than I netted on my “clerk” day job and income taxes hadn’t even been pd. yet! After closing, I was such a “hit” with seller’s agent and her lg. well-known brokerage that they begged me to come over and join them but I politely declined.
Good luck in all your short sales, sdr, hats off and power to you if you find this work “rewarding.” That “seems” to be where the market’s at right now. Double/triple work and then use part of your commission to clear unexpected liens at the last minute for these *poor overextended sellers* so the deal can close and you can get pd. Never again for me.
[quote=scaredycat]i also personally feel frustrated witha system that is essentially throwing a number out there that feels right, where an agent can’t really tell you what it’s worth or what it’ll appraise for because everything is so unique and unquantifiable and a moving target … i dont’ have any suggestions, though, other than that people should be unemotional and hardnosed, and I am unable to follow that advice.[/quote]
Unfortunately, scaredy, ”unemotional and hardnosed” is how a RE buyer HAS to be during their search, whether it be in looking for an investment or principal residence to buy. So, you think this mindset might deflate the “thrill” out of the transaction? Maybe on the surface, scaredy, but this is how the buyer gets the best price and terms. I have always instructed buyers I worked with to NEVER speak about the property (whether good or bad) to me or each other while viewing it within earshot of a listing agent. If they have questions about the property, defer them to me in private and I will get the answers. The listing agent can never be trusted to tell a potential buyer the *complete* truth or may not even know the answer themselves.
[quote=sdrealtor]Homes are unique assets and the price is determined by a willing/able buyer and seller just as if you were selling a piece of artwork. An appraisal is just an opinion of value like an agent/seller set price. Appraisals are far from the end all and be all.[/quote]
[quote=jpinpb]I was in a short sale escrow that after many months the bank finally accepted. I was the one that backed out b/c it didn’t appraise. I think if you have patience, short sales can work. Remember, I’m still going the FHA route, too. . . [/quote]
sdr, we’ll have to “agree to disagree” here on this point. Unless a buyer has unlimited funds for a cash down payment and there is a wide range in the loan amt. they can qualify for, THEY’RE NOT GOING TO PAY over the appraisal amt. This is 90%+ of buyers, IMO. The property would have to be VERY well located and particularly unique in some way in order for a buyer to agree to pay over the appraisal amount, ESP. in this market. Appraisals are everything here. I would hardly equate all these vacant REO’s and “short-sale” listings to a “piece of artwork.” The lenders/underwater trustors are VERY LUCKY to get the albatross SOLD!!
IMO, buyers and sellers are on an EVEN playing field and highly qualified buyers (and their AGENTS) probably need to ACT more like this and they would be treated much better. Money talks and bulls#*t walks. Many sellers today are delusional, lazy, trying to hide something and over-extended to the brink of bankruptcy. The bulk of bank personnel charged with liquidating these “REOs” not only do not understand our local market, they are unqualified to do their jobs. In the 26 yrs. since I first hung my RE license, I’ve developed the ability to see things for exactly what they are and am able to call a spade a spade when I see one. RE transactions are A-D-V-E-R-S-A-R-I-A-L – always will be.
