November 18th, 2019 at 12:47 pm
Background: We discussed at our office meeting your Legal Tip from 2 weeks ago about the process for negotiating a Request for Repair (RR). We have two follow-up questions.
Question #1: In the Fact Pattern, a buyer submitted an RR#1 to the seller. The seller responded in the second section of the RR#1 form, which still needed to be countersigned by the buyer to be valid. Instead of countersigning, the buyer submitted an RR#2 asking for even more concessions. The seller responded using a standard-form Seller Response and Buyer Reply to Request for Repair (RRRR#1). The seller said in the RRRR#1 that he no longer agreed to RR#1, and he did not agree to RR#2. You concluded that the seller was not obligated to do any repairs. Why was that your conclusion if the buyer had not yet signed the RRRR#1? (more…)
November 8th, 2019 at 4:26 pm
Fact Pattern: I am the buyer’s agent representing a military veteran. We indicated on the California Residential Purchase Agreement (RPA) that my client will be obtaining a VA loan, and the seller accepted our offer. The VA lender now requires the seller to conduct a few minor repairs, and to sign an amendatory clause stating that the buyer will not forfeit her deposit if the appraisal comes in low. The seller has flatly refused, which honestly surprised me given my client’s military service to our country.
Multiple Choice Question: Is the seller required to comply with the VA lender requirements? Pick the best answer:
A. Yes.
B. Yes for the amendatory clause, but the seller is not obligated to do the repairs.
C. Yes for the repairs, but the lender cannot force the seller to sign an amendatory clause.
D. No. (more…)
November 4th, 2019 at 2:06 pm
Fact Pattern: I am the buyer’s agent. After the buyer’s inspections, we used C.A.R.’s Request for Repair #1 (RR#1) to ask the seller to do certain repairs. The seller agreed by checking the box in the second section of the RR#1 form that required that the buyer to: (1) Remove all contingencies as provided on a separate Contingency Removal (CR) form (which the seller’s side prepared and attached); and (2) Release the seller from all claims concerning the disclosed condition of the property.
After we received the seller’s response to our RR#1, the buyer’s accountant advised the buyer that, in his professional opinion, the HOA was underfunded by $24,000 per condo unit. We then submitted RR#2 to the seller asking for a $24,000 credit. The seller responded using a Seller Response and Buyer Reply to Request for Repair (RRRR). The RRRR stated that the seller no longer agreed to any repairs or credit, and that his RRRR superseded his previous response to the buyer’s RR#1. Unfazed, the buyer then signed the third section of the RR#1 agreeing to what the seller had said in section 2 of the RR#1. The buyer also signed the separate CR that the seller previously provided to remove all contingencies.
Multiple Choice Question: Which one of the following statements is true? Pick the best answer:
A. The seller cannot withdraw his agreement to do repairs.
B. The buyer can cancel the contract because the HOA being underfunded by $24,000 per unit is a new, previously-undisclosed material fact.
C. The buyer was not given a deadline to do as the seller had proposed in the seller’s response to the RR#1.
D. The buyer has removed all contingencies. (more…)
October 28th, 2019 at 11:51 am
Question: I am a co-listing agent on a home. The seller is a bit wacky. He claims he has ghosts in his house. My co-agent says it’s ridiculous for us to tell the seller to disclose ghosts to a prospective buyer, because ghosts are not real. But I have always been told, “when in doubt, disclose.” Should the seller disclose the ghosts? (more…)
October 21st, 2019 at 11:02 am
Question: We are the listing agent at the counter offer stage, and our sellers need to remain in possession of the property after close of escrow. The sellers are not sure about certain details concerning their leaseback. Can they just enter into a sales contract for now, and do the seller-in-possession addendum during escrow? (more…)
