Legal Question in Real Estate Law in California

Re: Offer on short-sale home

Attorney Whipple is correct - once the seller has accepted another offer, unless he retained the right to in essence "juggle" multiple offers (which you sometimes see in counter-offer situations), the Seller is probably not going to be able to cancel the other deal, and accept a higher offer. That's the whole point of contracts - to avoid the uncertainty of people changing their minds for a better deal after having reached an agreement, in this case, to sell property.

I guess my first question is how do you know that your offer wasn't presented - have you talked to the Sellers? Your offer may have been presented but rejected because the other offer was better. Price is not the only factor in determining which is a better offer.

Now, what do you do? First, you call the Seller's Agent's broker and complain to him/her. That's not going to get you much relief as he/she is probably going to tell you the same thing I did - there is nothing they can do about it. Next step is to complain to the local association of Realtors. All Realtors (not all licensed real estate agents, but people who belong to the National, California and local Assocation of Realtors) ascribe to a code of ethics. One of the provisions of that code of ethics is that they must submit all offers to their client, or if acting as a buyers agent, to the listing agent. He has breached that obligation and the Association of Realtors has the ability to suspend that Realtor from the MLS. Third, call the California Department of Real Estate and file a complaint. Similar to the ethical rules from the Associaton of Realtors, licensed real estate agents have specific ethical obligations, including presentation of all reasonable offers. Finally, you can hire an attorney and pursue a lawsuit against the Listing Agent - the failure to present your offer may have cost you the home. Contact a litigation attorney in your area, but be prepared that this is not generally the kind of case they will take on contingency fee, and a large retainer up-front will be the standard.

*Due to the limitations of the LawGuru Forums, The Gibbs Law Firm, APC's (the "Firm") participation in responding to questions posted herein does not constitute legal advice, nor legal representation of the person or entity posting a question. No Attorney/Client relationship is or shall be construed to be created hereby. The information provided is general and requires that the poster obtain specific legal advice from an attorney. The poster shall not rely upon the information provided herein as legal advice nor as the basis for making any decisions of legal consequence.

Re: Offer on short-sale home

Once an offer is made and accepted, the property is sold (unless the offer was made subject to a condition) and the seller is a former seller and bargaining time is over. Closing is a formality.

(This isn't strictly a true statement of the law, but it is close enough to give you some direction)