Suppose to go to closing Friday when the buyers called late Thursday night to complain about an issue which was sufaced during a title search that has already been resolved (their settlement attorney agreed and they went and found another attorney Thursday). I am guessing they're trying to pull out but will give them the benefit of the doubt for now. Would like to have a rockstar real estate attorney waiting in the wings should I need it. Anyone have a rec?

j

I'm not sure if Eddie Van Halen has finished school at Yale Law yet, otherwise I would recommend him.

jason Wrote:
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> Suppose to go to closing Friday when the buyers
> called late Thursday night to complain about an
> issue which was sufaced during a title search that
> has already been resolved (their settlement
> attorney agreed and they went and found another
> attorney Thursday). I am guessing they're trying
> to pull out but will give them the benefit of the
> doubt for now. Would like to have a rockstar real
> estate attorney waiting in the wings should I need
> it. Anyone have a rec?
>
> j


I'm not really sure what a "rockstar real estate attorney" will do for you besides cost you more money. I'm not in real estate, but my understanding of this stuff is that the buyer can pretty much walk away from a deal if they haven't signed anything with you.

RESton Peace Wrote:
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> I'm not sure if Eddie Van Halen has finished
> school at Yale Law yet, otherwise I would
> recommend him.

He said Rock Star.

I like Rock Star energy drinks

Haven't bought property I take it? When you submit a contract to a seller and they accept the terms, that becomes a legally binding agreement. While there are ways to legally break a contract, once you reach the point where you are days away from closing, the seller, or the buyer, can't just pull the plug without repercussions.

I suspect they may be trying to pull a fast one to get you to
lower the price. Are you one of the "motivated sellers"? If they
dont like the deal, tell them to buzz off.

Title issues hinge on whether or not the buyer is able to obtain title insurance for the property. If the property is not able to be insured against title defects, a buyer would be crazy to proceed with the sale.

If the buyer can obtain title insurance, then all risk of a title defect is transfered to the insurance company and they have no reason not to go forward.

As a seller, you need to make sure you have followed every last detail of the contract and met all legal provisions that need to be met. The most common is the need to give the purchaser three days to review Home Owner's Association documents. If a detail like that was missed, the purchaser can easily walk from the agreement.

JeffRoyce Wrote:
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> Title issues hinge on whether or not the buyer is
> able to obtain title insurance for the property.
> If the property is not able to be insured against
> title defects, a buyer would be crazy to proceed
> with the sale.
>
> If the buyer can obtain title insurance, then all
> risk of a title defect is transfered to the
> insurance company and they have no reason not to
> go forward.
>
> As a seller, you need to make sure you have
> followed every last detail of the contract and met
> all legal provisions that need to be met. The
> most common is the need to give the purchaser
> three days to review Home Owner's Association
> documents. If a detail like that was missed, the
> purchaser can easily walk from the agreement.


All that was done. Inspection was done. Final walk through was done. There was a bizarre issue in our covenant regarding setback that many homes in our community have violated since inception back in the 80's (though it passes current county zoning laws). They decided to void the deal 12 hrs before closing and we're all moved out. It would be easy to remedy through the association.

Is there any common law surrounding covenant violations if it hasn't been an issue with the association (e.g. No notice/No letters by the association on the matter) for 5/10/15/20 yrs?

J

Sorry, but you have little to no chance to force them to close, or even retain their deposit, if there's is any issue - no matter how small it is.

There is a provision in almost all real estate contracts giving you a chance to cure any title issues. You should work to cure the issue whether you enforce this contract or not because it will come up again.

Unfortunately for you, most contracts also have a liquidated damages clause which states that your only damages are to keep the deposit. It is highly unusual for the seller to be able to force the buyers to settlement. It is usually only the other way around.

Keep the deposit and fix the title problem before you enter into another contract. Unfortunately, the deposit is probably held by a real estate company or an escrow agent. They are going to be reluctant to release it to anyone without all parties agreeing to it. You may end up in court, but just about any real estate or contract attorney could handle it for you. This is not a complicated case- if your contract was standard realtors contract.

dave Wrote:
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> There is a provision in almost all real estate
> contracts giving you a chance to cure any title
> issues. You should work to cure the issue whether
> you enforce this contract or not because it will
> come up again.
>
> Unfortunately for you, most contracts also have a
> liquidated damages clause which states that your
> only damages are to keep the deposit. It is
> highly unusual for the seller to be able to force
> the buyers to settlement. It is usually only the
> other way around.
>
> Keep the deposit and fix the title problem before
> you enter into another contract. Unfortunately,
> the deposit is probably held by a real estate
> company or an escrow agent. They are going to be
> reluctant to release it to anyone without all
> parties agreeing to it. You may end up in court,
> but just about any real estate or contract
> attorney could handle it for you. This is not a
> complicated case- if your contract was standard
> realtors contract.

Dave, agree we will resolve this issue irregardless. I was just curious if there was a statute of limitations on covenant violations if not enforced.

Also, does anyone know where one can pull the original permits on the construction of the house? I'm wondering if they were approved before the covenant was ratified in which case we may be grandfathered. It's just odd to me why the developer would create a covenant then immediately violate it!

j