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Just signed with estate agent but now have private buyer, can I cancel estate agent?
Stevev99
Posts: 172 Forumite
Hi,
We have literally just signed a sole agency contract 2 days ago and had one viewing on our house.
Our next door neighbours have a friend who is looking for a house and wants to buy ours, I'm thinking that since we're still within the 14 day cooling off period with the agent, I can just cancel and pay them the £300 it mentions for 'reasonable expenses' since they've not even taken pictures, advertised it or put a board up?
Think I'm correct in thinking that as long as there's no path of introduction from the agent to the buyer we don't have to pay the commission on sole agency especially this early on in the process?
We have literally just signed a sole agency contract 2 days ago and had one viewing on our house.
Our next door neighbours have a friend who is looking for a house and wants to buy ours, I'm thinking that since we're still within the 14 day cooling off period with the agent, I can just cancel and pay them the £300 it mentions for 'reasonable expenses' since they've not even taken pictures, advertised it or put a board up?
Think I'm correct in thinking that as long as there's no path of introduction from the agent to the buyer we don't have to pay the commission on sole agency especially this early on in the process?
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Comments
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How did your neighbour's friend know it was for sale?
If it's because your neighbour or their friend saw the house advertised - online, in the paper, in the shop window, or a for sale sign outside your house, or your agent ringing/emailing their list of potential buyers, your agent can claim they were responsible for introducing them as a buyer. The fact that they also happen to know your neighbour doesn't get you round this.0 -
The 14 day cooling off period I believe only applies to distant selling: Where / how did you sign the contract?
Was it a 'sole agent agreement' or a 'sole selling agreement'? If the former you have no problem since the buyer was not introduced by another agent. If the latter........0 -
It's a sole agent agreement.
My other point was that they only knew ours was for sale because our neighbours told them. The agent has so far done nothing except phone their own list of potential buyers so far. They haven't yet taken photos or mentioned our hours on their or any website. There's no way the estate agent could claim any sort of introduction.
As long as our potential buyers were not contacted in any way by our estate agent I reckon I'm ok to cancel the agreement using the statutory allowed cancellation rights the agent has left us a copy of.0 -
Or indeed just take the property off the market.....0
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