Legal Question in Real Estate Law in Florida
We signed a document stating these:
"You are entering into a contract with a mortgage brokerage business to obtain a bona fide mortgage loan commitment under the same terms and conditions as stated hereinabove or in a separate executed good faith estimate form. If the mortgage brokerage business obtains a bona fide commitment under the same terms and conditions, you will be obligated to pay the mortgage brokerage business fees, including, but not limited to, a mortgage brokerage fee, even if you choose not to complete the loan transaction. If the provisions of s. 494.00421, Florida Statutes, are not met, the mortgage brokerage fee can only be earned upon the funding of the mortgage loan. The borrower may contact the Department of Financial Services, Tallahassee, Florida, regarding any complaints that the borrower may have against the mortgage broker or the mortgage brokerage business. The telephone number of the department is: [insert telephone number] ."
The house failed inspection, no appraisal was made, purchase cancellation was made. Now, broker is asking for the brokerage fees using the even if you choose not to complete the loan transaction clause. How can he say that he obtain a bona fide commitment when we did not even reach any deal with the seller, the loan did not push through and it was not funded?
Will appreciate all the answers. Thank you.
2 Answers from Attorneys
The way a lot of mortgage brokers structure their agreements is to lock in the buyer to pay their fees once they get a pre-approval letter from a lender. (Not sure if you received this or not.) This is seperate from finding a property to purchase or whether closing occurs. I would recommend you have a real estate attorney review the entire brokers agreement and advise you to what your options are after reading the full agreement. Some attorneys will provide you with a free initial consultation is cost is an issue.
I agree that you need to have an attorney review the entire agreement before advising you what your rights or obligations are under that agreement. Regards,
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