Help On Estate Agent Contract Clarity Needed

Thrugelmir

Rosesgirl said:

pinkshoes said:

Is the EA trying to say that by insisting on not exchanging until you find a suitable rental then you are preventing exchange so it is YOU causing the buyer to pull out of the sale?

If you need to move into rental then of course you should secure a rental property before exchanging, as otherwise where do they expect you to go?!?! If the buyer needs to wait as there is nothing suitable you want to rent at the moment, then so be it, they will need to wait. If they don't want to wait then they can pull out of the sale, and no fee will be due.

Yes that is exactly what the estate agent is saying . I was told the buyer will only wait until October because i wanted to complete a month later and the estate agent phoned and said the buyer will not wait any longer than October and i have spoke to my manager and if that is the case you owe us fee of £1986. With Covid it has delayed things and the buyer has had enough i get that but it is unfair to exert and threaten me like this ....

Why has the buyer got to wait until November (at the earliest)?  Understandable if frustration is mounting as you appear to be dithering. A number of people have expended an enormous amount of time and energy to get this far.  Only to find that you are kicking the can down the road so to speak for no apparent reason. 

Rosesgirl

It was me that wanted November not the buyer i feel like the estate agent was pushing me into a corner saying the buyer refuses to wait past October so accept or don't accept and lose the buyer and then you have to pay us full fees. The estate agent did not give me a chance i was not saying i did not want to sell i thought the completion date was agreed by all parties i was asking for November because i am struggling to find a rental as i have no guarantor no rent history and they want 6 months rent in advance plus the deposit which i have not got . 

Slithery

Rosesgirl said:

i was asking for November because i am struggling to find a rental as i have no guarantor no rent history and they want 6 months rent in advance plus the deposit which i have not got .

So it is your fault that the sale can't go ahead then if everything is ready and you refuse to exchange.

eddddy

Just to re-focus on the original question.

Perhaps it would be the seller's fault that the buyer is withdrawing, but that's not the same as the seller withdrawing.

Saying "I won't complete until November" is not the same as saying "I'm withdrawing from the sale".


The clause quoted in the contract only talks about the seller withdrawing.  So there would be no legal obligation to pay the EA's fee if the buyer withdraws because of this (but maybe some people think there is a moral obligation to pay the EA).


TBH, I wouldn't be surprised if the EA's threat to charge you a fee is just a tactic to make you exchange/complete earlier. And the EA is fully aware that they can't charge you a fee, if the buyer withdraws.

canaldumidi

Hi Mr Agent.

Please note that I am not withdrawing from the sale. My solicitor has not been instructed to cease work. I anticipate Exchanging in (November/whatever).

Yours, Rose

steampowered

The clause you posted very clearly says that the fee is only payable if the buyer withdraws.

The clause does not say that the fee is triggered if you refuse to move into rented; or if the buyer withdraws because you are being difficult; or anything along those lines. 

Your estate agent is a plonker. You might as well tell the agent that if the sale falls through they have to pay you a £10,000 fee for wasting your time with a rubbish buyer. That is as close to the contract as what they are asking for. 

Rosesgirl

Update ; I received another call from the estate agent asking how my search is going. Yesterday a letting agent would not proceed any further with me unless i agreed to pay 12 months rent in advance . I emailed the estate agent and said i am still looking, i received a reply again reminding me if the sale is lost we are liable for the fees.

I emailed the estate agent asking for clarity he replied back he was passing on my emails to the manager and she would call me . I received an email from him this morning to say he has spoke to her and she has agreed that if the buyer withdraws we won't be liable for the fees but we won't be remarketing your property. So as i suspected they wanted their money house sold or unsold .

canaldumidi

Rosesgirl said:

....she has agreed that if the buyer withdraws we won't be liable for the fees but we won't be remarketing your property. So as i suspected they wanted their money house sold or unsold .

Good news. But strange. A agency that won't remarket? That's like a supermarket that won't sell food.

There must be a back-story.....

980233

Slithery said:

Rosesgirl said:

i was asking for November because i am struggling to find a rental as i have no guarantor no rent history and they want 6 months rent in advance plus the deposit which i have not got .

So it is your fault that the sale can't go ahead then if everything is ready and you refuse to exchange.

Totally not sellers fault. Completion date needs agreeing by both parties. She has proposed sometime in November and buyer throwing hissy fit. Would you agree a date not to your liking?