Problems buying our first home

Problems buying our first home

Member since 2020 · 5 posts · 1 vote

Sorry if this isn't the right place for this. Just found out about the podcast and have listened to a ton of them! We are in the middle of buying our first home. We've ran into some problems. We love the house but have ran into internet issues and my girlfriend works from home. 30 mins from Nashville in 2020 and never thought it would be an issue! She has to have hard wired but only satellite is available. We didn't have internet as a contingent. We paid the earnest money and asked to back out but have been threatened to be sued. It's a brand new build and we asked for 3 things. A huge brush pile to be taken out, 2 recessed cans to be aligned in the kitchen, and an outlet to be added to the island. We aren't trying to recoup the earnest money, it was "off the market" for 28 days, even though it was still listed as owner accepting offers until the morning of the threat of legal action. The listing agent didn't disclose that the builder was her husband. Do we have any options on getting out and not being sued?

0Reply
56 views

10 Replies

Jump to latestLatest
  • Flipper/Rehabber · San Diego, CA · Member since 2020 · 33 posts · 20 votes
    6y

    Not sure of TN laws, but in California, as a "professional seller" you are liable for any material defects or non-disclosure of important relationships for 10 years.  If you're not a broker, ask your broker to get out of the deal.  The listing agent must disclose that they have a financial interest in the sale of the property.  A flipper friend of mine told me he did a crappy remodel years ago and the buyer was suing him.  Ultimately, he had to buy back the home because he failed to disclose that he as the listing agent was also the seller.  That was 9.5 years later!  

  • Member since 2020 · 5 posts · 1 vote
    6y

    It wasn't disclosed verbally but potentially buried in the paperwork. Our agent didn't know they were related either and it was due to my girlfriends research that we even found out. That has to fall under a breach of trust, right?

  • Rental Property Investor · Durham, NC · Member since 2016 · 7k+ posts · 7k+ votes
    6y

    @Brandon Baird are you sure you haven’t exhausted all options to just get Internet? It’s highly unlikely you’ll get sued, as it would cost them more than they’d get from you.

    How much is the earnest money?

  • Member since 2020 · 5 posts · 1 vote
    6y

    The only option on internet access is unlimitedville which is satelite and not hardwired. She looked into her work documents and it says it has to be hardwired. We are 30 mins to downtown Nashville and 5 mins to the interstate so we NEVER imagined it would be an issue. Earnest money was 3150. We feel like it's a scare tactic but apparently main owner is a harsh 78 year old and it's literally his last house ever. So who knows how far he is willing to go.

  • Investor · Nashville, TN · Member since 2015 · 688 posts · 607 votes
    6y

    @Brandon Baird first off, not giving legal advice, just speaking from my own experience as a seller with buyers trying to walk out of contracts. sounds like a rough spot for you not having a contingency to walk away. Regarding a material defect, if it's a brand new build, they would have no way of knowing the internet is poor. The seller does have the ability to sue but a lot of people do not realize what all the seller can sue for all damages including but not limited to: the earnest money, any and all repairs they had to make due to a repair replacement addendum, all holding costs during the time it was contracted and holding costs going forward to find the next buyer, difference in price and closing costs from the next sale vs. your transaction, IF it's a TAR form, they can also get their attorneys fees. 

    My advice if you really want out of the transaction is to try and settle it and get a mutual release

  • Member since 2020 · 5 posts · 1 vote
    6y

    @Devan Mcclish after reading the contract and speaking with a lawyer,  you're correct they have could hold us accountable for attorney fees, repairs, and specific performance. The funny thing is the sellers agent lived in the same subdivision, in the same floorplan, and said they had At&t but what she meant was unlimitedville that pings off an At&t tower. So we feel mislead there. Technically speaking the contract says any changes would have to be  proposed in writing and signed off on and they weren't but also they would have done them anyways no matter who was buying outside of the outlet on the island. The seller agent didn't disclose her relationship to the builder.  We know for sure she is married to the foreman that did the walkthrough. We believe she is related to the builder in some form. Either way none of that was disclosed. It was still listed as owner accepting offers until the morning of the threat but we didn't have a chance to screenshot it. The property taxes are 300 a month. So 25 days have been "wasted" since they accepted the offer. We are totally willing to give up the earnest money and appraisal money which is 3635 total. It's 5 mins off 40 in Dickson and we never thought internet would be an issue. Sorry for the long response.

  • Real Estate Broker · Jacksonville, OR · Member since 2009 · 199 posts · 155 votes
    6y

    Brandon, I am sorry to hear this.  When and how did you discover the internet issues?  I would not be so quick to release your earnest money with a threat of a lawsuit.  In some states, if there is disputed earnest money deposited in escrow for a particular address, this can hold up the next sale.  I mention this, as it gives you some leverage for them to reconsider suing you IF it will cost them a delayed next sale AND the value of your earnest money.  The fact is, you probably paid for an inspection and an appraisal, all of these things indicate you were in earnest, although it can be argued in light of your cancellation.   

    Did they agree to correct the items you indicated you wanted fixed?  My guess is, if you had the property off-market for 28 days, you were already through your inspection period?  

    Standards of Practice have two rules in regards to a Listing Agent being financially invested in a listing they are representing. It has to be disclosed on the body of the contract, and it has to be indicated through the Local MLS, so this information is available to a Buyer prior to calling a listing agent. Separately, they also have to disclose a relationship they have with a Seller. For example, Listing Agent is related to the Seller. This information should actually be listed in the marketing comments of any listing, so that a potential buyer would be made aware of this prior to making first contact with a Listing Agent, this is an ethical breach. However, it is difficult to say whether this relationship played a role in your representation. Was the Listing Agent representing you, or did you have a Buyer Representative?

  • Member since 2020 · 5 posts · 1 vote
    6y

    @Kim knox I shouldn't have, you're right! We discovered it a couple weeks later after trying to get comcast and at&t out there on a ticket to check it. Neither did because it's not registered with the post office. The  inspection is scheduled for this week.

  • Rental Property Investor · TN · Member since 2018 · 2k+ posts · 2k+ votes
    6y

    Could your wife go into another area and rent a shared office space for her work for the short term?  INTERNET is changing in TN and hopefully soon the electric companies will be able to offer that service.  Where I live there is limited, expensive options for INTERNET, but our electric service provider has said they are very interested in providing INTERNET service as soon as it is legal for them to do so.

  • Investor · Philadelphia, PA · Member since 2016 · 2k+ posts · 1k+ votes
    6y

    @Brandon Baird doesn’t help with your contract questions, but have you explored 4G/LTE connections?

    Take a look at the Cradlepoint ARC1600 router. It connects like a normal cable/internet router?m, but you put one (or more) data SIM cards in it and connect using AT&T, Verizon, or whatever cell provider. These are the routers that buses (and others) provide WiFi on the road.

    Speeds are pretty good, easy to use, and overall a good solution for locations that have cell service but don’t have wired internet options.

Join the conversationCreate a free account to reply, vote on answers and follow this thread.