Any Real Estate Experts??

djbock · #1 10-10-2006, 11:04 AM

A little over a year ago my mother passed away. Before she did she put her acerage up for sale and moved into an apartment. When she passed away, of course we had to honor the contract with the agent she used. After that contract was up we switched over to another agent. We have recently taken it off of the market to do some upgrades to the house. Now the first agent has contacted me stating that the very first people that she had given us an offer from are still interested. They offered us $60k less than our asking the first time around and $55k under assessed value.

My question is, am I under any legal obligation to the realtor as far as comission or any form of payment? Her contracted ended in Nov of '05.

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Wagner · #2 10-10-2006, 11:15 AM

Simply, no. Her contract is over, you can do whatever you like. Now she may be representing the client buying the home, but no the seller.

djbock · #3 10-10-2006, 11:17 AM

Thanks Wagner, that is what I figured, but you never know.

noncom23 · #4 10-10-2006, 11:35 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by djbock

Thanks Wagner, that is what I figured, but you never know.

But obviously, you are rejecting the offer anyway, right?

broknlgs24 · #5 10-10-2006, 11:50 AM

what Wagner said!

x5GuyInLA · #6 10-10-2006, 01:34 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by djbock

A little over a year ago my mother passed away. Before she did she put her acerage up for sale and moved into an apartment. When she passed away, of course we had to honor the contract with the agent she used. After that contract was up we switched over to another agent. We have recently taken it off of the market to do some upgrades to the house. Now the first agent has contacted me stating that the very first people that she had given us an offer from are still interested. They offered us $60k less than our asking the first time around and $55k under assessed value.

My question is, am I under any legal obligation to the realtor as far as comission or any form of payment? Her contracted ended in Nov of '05.

Not sure how the contracts are in Wisconsin, but I'm sure they're similar to what we have here in California as far as what's in the contract. If the contract ended in Nov '05, you shouldn't have to pay a commission to the agent, but that depends on the holdover period. Here in Cali, if the contract expires or is withdrawn, there is a holdover period clause that says that within an agreed to amount of time, if anyone who came to see your property when it was listed, decides to put in an offer after it comes off the market and you accept it, then you owe a commission to the listing agent. Usually, the holdover period is no more than a couple of months, but there are some shady agent who will put the holdover period as long as 3 years!

JonK · #7 10-10-2006, 03:21 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by WagnerX5

Simply, no. Her contract is over, you can do whatever you like. Now she may be representing the client buying the home, but no the seller.

should check the local law.

Ed Garces · #8 10-10-2006, 08:11 PM

Call the local Real Estate Board too. They will probably tell you that you have no obligation to any listing contracts signed by your mother. I take it that the title of the property would be on your name already so it's a brand new ball game. In so far as the original listing Agent advising you that she has an "interested party", she could well be fishing to see if you are going to re-list the property. Like any prudent professional salesperson, she would have flagged you for a follow-up call sometime back.

If she is serious about a buyer, you do not have to re-list the property with her to sell to her client. Just tell her to bring the offer (we call it D.R.O.A.) to you, assuming of course that you do want to sell the property. If she is honest, her client would likely request for another viewing of the house or she will bring you a fully documented offer with earnest money deposit and she would go over the details with you like any other Real Estate professional. At that point you can either sign or reject the offer, or determine that it's all BS (in which case, don't ever deal with that Realtor again!). If you decide to accept the offer, remember that she is representing the buyer's interest, not you, and her loyalty is to the buyer even though you would be paying the comission. Remember, buyers woud like to buy "low"......My advice would be to tell her that you would call her back the following day for your decision. If a buyer wants your property, they will wait! This will give you the time to consult with your attorney, or realtor friends.

At any rate, YOU would decide how much you pay her and this would be clearly defined in the offer. Usually the Realtor would ask for 1/2 of the regular Listing commission rate.

loansinpa · #9 10-10-2006, 08:43 PM

What Ed said but highlight that the original listing contract was with her...not her or her heirs.

Best bet is consult a local professional.

djbock · #10 10-11-2006, 01:11 AM

Here are a few more details in the situation. The property is located in Iowa and I am not. She was very, very unprofessional the first time around and that is why we did not resign with her. After the end of her contract she tried to put a lein against us for damage that was done to her sign as a result of snow being plowed into it. She also had someone come repair a fence that was broken, according to her, that was never authorized by me. She has also never returned the keys to the property and so it was rekeyed after her contract was up.

Within the last week we have had an additional 3 people interested in it. So I am not too concerned with her and her clients. There has not been any offers from them other than what they offered over a year ago. I will definitely get in touch with my lawyer and see what he has to say. Thanks for all of the help on this as it is not a situation that I have had to deal with before.

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