estate agents

smudger1946

Warning.
I had two ESTATE agents (multi) selling home, one showed a lady round 5mths ago approx, lady said to small, other agent showed lady around 5mths later she decided to buy, i had dropped price by £10,000 by then, both agents had the revised price.
I sold through the second agent, now the original agent say i have to pay them there fee £4,600 because they introduced the lady to my home in the first place.
It is in there terms and conditions, which i didnt read, i think this is an unfair t&c.
They are going to pursue unless i pay in 7 days, i dont have that kind of money spare, i have paid the agent who sold property.
Any advice, which way do i jump?

LandyAndy

smudger1946 wrote: »

Warning.
I had two ESTATE agents (multi) selling home, one showed a lady round 5mths ago approx, lady said to small, other agent showed lady around 5mths later she decided to buy, i had dropped price by £10,000 by then, both agents had the revised price.
I sold through the second agent, now the original agent say i have to pay them there fee £4,600 because they introduced the lady to my home in the first place.
It is in there terms and conditions, which i didnt read, i think this is an unfair t&c.
They are going to pursue unless i pay in 7 days, i dont have that kind of money spare, i have paid the agent who sold property.
Any advice, which way do i jump?

Its standard and well known. Always ask the first EA for a list of the people they believe they have introduced and give it to the second agent so that they know not to deal with them.

Meanwhile you signed a contract without reading it which, unfortunately, makes you an idiot.

Jorgan_2

It sounds to me like both agents are entitled to their fee in this case, the first one because they introduced the buyer, the second one entered into negotiations with the buyer.

What were the terms of the multi-agency agreement? Was there any mention of the the agents sharing the commission? If so, agent b will have to split the fee with agent a.

If you honestly didn't know that the buyer had viewed via the the first agent when she put the offer in, speak to the agent concerned to see if they will negotiate a deal with you. If you knew the buyer had already viewed with the first agent, did you mention this to the second agent when they started negotiating wuth the buyer? If so, what did the second agent say about the situation?

dweeby

LandyAndy wrote: »

Meanwhile you signed a contract without reading it which, unfortunately, makes you an idiot.

Whilst what you write may (or may not) be true, that was a bit unkind!

LandyAndy

dweeby wrote: »

Whilst what you write may (or may not) be true, that was a bit unkind!

:rotfl: :rotfl: :rotfl: :rotfl: :rotfl: :rotfl: :rotfl: :rotfl: :rotfl: :rotfl:

As much a warning for others as a reproach for the OP.

Debt_Free_Chick

LandyAndy - you are wicked :rotfl:

I thought I was "to the point" ..... but I can see I have a lot to learn :rotfl:

nobblyned

The one that introduces the client gets the fee. You didn't pay the agent that sold the property, the one that sold the property was the one that found the client for you.

If you are lucky you might be able to set agent A onto agent B and let them duke it out between them. Failing that you will need to ask for your fee back off agent B, going through small claims if necessary (as they didn't introduce the client) and pay Agent A.

Debt_Free_Chick

nobblyned wrote: »

The one that introduces the client gets the fee. You didn't pay the agent that sold the property, the one that sold the property was the one that found the client for you.

If you are lucky you might be able to set agent A onto agent B and let them duke it out between them. Failing that you will need to ask for your fee back off agent B, going through small claims if necessary (as they didn't introduce the client) and pay Agent A.

Although he had a multi-agency agreement from day one

Jorgan_2

nobblyned wrote: »

The one that introduces the client gets the fee. You didn't pay the agent that sold the property, the one that sold the property was the one that found the client for you.

If you are lucky you might be able to set agent A onto agent B and let them duke it out between them. Failing that you will need to ask for your fee back off agent B, going through small claims if necessary (as they didn't introduce the client) and pay Agent A.

Sorry, that is incorrect for the majority of contracts used by agents in England or Wales. Most contracts will say something along the lines of 'i) a fee will be payable if exchange of contracts takes place with a buyer introduced via ourselves . ii) a fee is payable if an exchange of contracts takes place with a buyer whom we had negotiations with to purchase the property.

From what the OP has said, both agents are able to claim a fee.