Legal Question in Real Estate Law in Massachusetts
promissory estoppel
I was working with a real estate agent to have a house built by home builders that he had an exclusive business relationshipp with. We spent 4 months designing and pricing out a house to be built for my ''growing'' family, wife recently gave birth to twins.
In Oct of that year I received a fax indicating that the builders had agreed to the enclosed plans and pricing for the house and were ready to go to purchase and sale. It was indicated that a 15k deposit was needed. I immediately called the agent to inquire who to make the check payable to and was informed that since the construction was not scheduled to begin for 7 months, and to avoid numerous addendums to the P&S, we should wait until just prior to construction before ''completing'' the P&S. 7 months later I was informed that the builder would not be building the home because the agreed upon price would make it unprofitable due to the appreciation of the real estate market during that time.
In reliance of the promise of a forthcoming P&S, I took myself out of the housing market and therefore also lost out on the difference of appreciation of the market. Does my reasonable reliance on his promise eliminate the need for a written contract and can I recoup damages?
2 Answers from Attorneys
Re: promissory estoppel
Probably only if you can allege in good faith (and with specificity), and then prove, the agent/builder intentionally deceived you into postponing the P&S so they could benefit from the postponement. A tough road to hoe, but if you prevailed, you would almost certainly recover your reasonable attorneys' fees expended to get the judgment.
Its possible you have negligence claims, but damages might be barred by an economic doctrine.
Feel free to follow up with me for free additional consultation if you think there are reasons to pursue this.
Re: promissory estoppel
I would assume that you did not have an attorney involved in this transaction. This situation would not have occurred if there were an attorney involved, rather than just a real estate agent.
There are many more details needed to fill out the picture you paint, before any assessment of your rights can be given. Clearly, you understand (now?) the need for a written, executed contract, and this will be an issue in determining what "reasonable" was under the circumstances.
Assuming that you still need to purchase a home, you are strongly encouraged to hire an attorney at the outset of the process. That attorney will also be able to advise you on what rights, if any, you have vis-a-vis the real estate agent.
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