Any issues with this estate agent contract?

km1500

You are correct in that if the buyer simply pulls out then the EA does not get their commission

however if it buy a pulls out because you won't exchange then the EA does

jimbog

YoungBlueEyes said:

…decided to wait until right before we exchanged to cut his offer by 50% because that’s what it’d cost him to do the flats. 

We refused that offer but had we also dumped that estate agent and started again with another we’d still have had their fees to pay, because they did technically find us a RW&A buyer. 

I would have pushed back. Your buyer wasn’t ‘willing’ to buy at the agreed price. 

As an aside it seems strange that an EA could argue that a buyer was ‘able’ to pay the selling price but simply didn’t want to and so  still demand their fee 

RHemmings

jimbog said:

YoungBlueEyes said:

…decided to wait until right before we exchanged to cut his offer by 50% because that’s what it’d cost him to do the flats. 

We refused that offer but had we also dumped that estate agent and started again with another we’d still have had their fees to pay, because they did technically find us a RW&A buyer. 

I would have pushed back. Your buyer wasn’t ‘willing’ to buy at the agreed price. 

As an aside it seems strange that an EA could argue that a buyer was ‘able’ to pay the selling price but simply didn’t want to and so  still demand their fee 

Personally I think a complaint to the TPOS would have solved this, if the EA had been a member of TPOS. I'm not so sure about PRS, as they don't have published information on RWA buyers that I can find. Note 'that I can find'. 

saajan_12

For a RWA clause to work, I think it should have a date and a price. If the buyer is ready, willing and able to exchange by a certain date for the offer price accepted and if the seller refuses to exchange by that date for that price, then its triggered. If not, then not. 

That makes it clear that buyers who suddenly want to drop the price are not RWA. Also makes it clear that non-genuine sellers can't just stall for 2 years and pretend to still be willing to exchange as long as the buyer waits forever. 

Thats similar to how rental holding deposits work, ie its tied to some specifics.