Small claims court?

@formulaross20 Do you feel like we're owed that rebate or am I being un-reasonable

You could do what formulaross mentioned or you could accept that the agent will not be paying that money. If they have not paid by not it is unlikely that they will. You can ask but do not expect to receive the money. If you waited this long to bring it to their attention they have probably forgotten about it.

Take the $500 loss and feel free to tell everyone you know not to use her services (use facts and not emotional statements).

@maifleur03 I didn't wait long she's just been ignoring my calls and emails. @chispa I'm not into taking losses. $500 is a lot of money during the holiday season, especially when she still got paid to do nothing

I'm a little confused about why you had to fire her? I mean, I get that you didn't like her and she wasn't doing her job well, but it sounds like the transaction was already in place, contract signed, and you were simply by-passing her to get things done yourself until closing (which I'm guessing hasn't happened yet)? So, why the need to actually 'fire' her rather than just ignore her if she's going to get paid her commission from the builder one way or the other? You didn't enlist another agent in her place, did you? I just think that had you left it alone, sure, the $500 would still be coming back to you. But now, at best, it's an uncomfortable conversation to have. Maybe I'm missing something....

Yes, I'm not a lawyer but I think small claims court would rule in your favor. $500 is nothing to sneeze at if you are really owed it.

What did you actually do to fire her. Did you sign any documents that says you released her from the contract or ...? What you did there may matter.

Does she work for a broker? If you don't have a release document from the contract then I'd contact the broker and ask about your refund.

I'd send one more email to her and her managing broker demanding the check within 5 days (or whatever). Inform them you will take this to small claims court if you do not receive the check within that amount of time. RE companies don't want the company name appearing in court documents for any reason.

@lettersatoz basically the builder didn't want to negotiate directly with us until she was no longer our realtor. And she was essentially blocking direct communication to the builder. We'd ask to talk to him and she'd say things like "he doesn't really talk to clients" We only got his contact information after she accidentely copied him in on an email. She was doing a bunch of sketchy stuff prior as well. To in depth to go into.

@lyfia We had buyer/broker contract that was signed in january that lasted six months. home was supposed to be done in August so we extended it twice. In November agreement expired after 60 day hold over period so we mutually agreed to part ways. Brokers not answering call and our emails have been blocked( assuming she had a hand in that too).

Send a registered letter stating what rrah said. Then take them to small claims.

Have you tried calling her broker? Or is she also an independent broker? In most states you actually pay the broker the commission and the sales agent gets a portion of that commission. If she isn't independent and has a broker I would escalate the issue to them. If decent, they will pay you the rebate and hold it back from her future commissions.

Seems like taking her (realtor) and the broker to small claims court will be the best course of action if you're not willing to let this go. Better do it soon as some jurisdictions have a time limit.

The wording seems pretty clear to me that they are in breech without any other signed documents since then, but I'm not an attorney (although work in a legal field). But they wrote it is not tied to the other contract and it should be paid immediately following closing, which hasn't happened. Seems to at least be a good case to argue assuming the amount fits your local small claims court requirements.

@devonfield Yea the broker is in cahoots with her. I tried to call and email them and my calls and messages have gone un-answered and they've blocked me from sending them emails.

@lyfia hopefully it doesn't come to that. I surely don't want to tarnish anyone's name or lively hood, but I don't like it when people play with my money. So court may be the only option

Has closing occured?

Does the paperwork show a commission paid to her brokerage?

When you say "fired" does that mean you terminsted her contract? How was that done?

We need Denita to untangle this.

@JJ yes, yes, and read previous comments

Sometimes just a threat of court is enough to get payment. Send a facts only letter by registered mail to both broker and realtor with a copy of the contract and request the payment. Usually registered mail and the demand would be the first needed step anyways before filing in court to show they were aware and didn't comply.

Something along the lines of

According to the attached contract we were expecting payment of $x immediately after closing which occurred on date xxx. We have not received the amount and have tried contacting you via phone on the following dates (if you have a lot of calls make it an attached list of date) and via email sent on the following dates (see note on calls) with no response. We are now notifying you through registered mail and expect to receive payment by xxx or we will look at legal action to enforce the contract.

Sincerely xxx

And tell her it’s “separate” not “seperate”! Sorry, couldn’t resist. What lyfia said.

I agree with homechef. You have a contract for $500 that they breached. This is what small claims court was made to sort out. Send a demand letter with a short deadline for payment, then when they ignore you, file in small claims court. When they lose, you'll get awarded you court costs (filing fees) as well, though I doubt you'll get any extra pain and suffering money.

I had something like this happen one time. It was supposed to be a rebate through my employers relocation company.

The broker "forgot." When he was reminded, we had to wait for his next closing to get the money. I guess because it was adventageous (or required) for the business to have it come to me that way. But I did get it in the end.

I see the broker is not responding? I guess the demand letter needs to be sent certified signature required.

If you have concerns you can call the real estate commission and talk to one of their investigators. They may be able to point you in the right direction, or if you file a formal complaint they will contact the broker who is required to respond. That is opening a can of worms you may not want though

Agree with homechef's post above.

Normally these types of credits are at closing right on the closing statement - not after closing.

Contracts generally require “consideration” (i.e. value) in exchange for the promise to pay or payment of money. Based on the stated facts, I am having a hard time understanding the new value your realtor received from you in exchange for her promise to pay $500. The “supplement” to the real estate contract says it is a separate agreement. It can’t be a supplement and a separate agreement at the same time. There may also be legal issues relating to attempted supplementation or amendment of a Uniform Agreement, as the general purpose of Uniform Agreements is for them to all be more or less the same/uniform. I don’t have documents or facts to make a definitive statement, but my initial reaction is that this is not necessarily a slam dunk in small claims court.

@shivece you're going to have to simplify that.

@shivece -- I think the "consideration" is stated, however awkwardly -- the $500 payment is in consideration of settlement in full for the additional rate lock fees incurred by Tee. Guessing that's one of the issues that came up that Tee has alluded to, and the realtor has accepted blame and agreed to compensate for it. As to the form used, my guess is it was just laziness.....they used the standard Supplement form, which is inappropriate in this case since the realtor can't supplement an agreement they were not a party to (the agreement was the purchase & sales agrt between Tee and the builder). They should have used a different form, but that shouldn't be a barrier to collecting. It is odd that it wasn't written in such a way so make this amount a line item on the closing statement -- it certainly would have made things easier.

I’ll try. But my main point is this not as simple as some people are suggesting. There is a checklist of the required elements of an enforceable contract. You can look it up on the internet. It includes offer, acceptance, a meeting of the minds/agreement regarding what is offered and accepted and consideration (I.e. value), among other things. Assuming the promise to pay you $500 is a separate agreement (and it might not be), what exactly was the agreement and what value (“consideration”) did the realtor get in exchange for her promise to pay you? The contractor paid her, but that is not “new value” associated with this separate agreement, because it sounds like she was already entitled to that payment under a different, pre-existing contract. You fired her. That is not new value. Did you promise not to sue her for any/all alleged breaches of your contract with her? The writing doesn’t clearly say that - it only ever so remotely hints at it. If it was a settlement, what specific clauses of her contract did she breach? What does that contract say about breach and damages? What specific damages did you incur and in what amounts? If she takes the position in small claims court that she did not breach her contract, that arguably indicates there was no agreement (“meeting of the minds”) regarding a $500 payment to make you whole for her breach of contract. With no “meeting of the minds” and/or no consideration, there is arguably no enforceable contract, even though there is a writing. I am not saying anything here about who is right or wrong, owed or not owed, or predicting the outcome in court. I don’t have anywhere close to enough facts to do that. I am ONLY pointing out that there are some fundamental requirements of contract law the small claims court judge will likely take into account and this dispute is not as simple as “she promised to pay $500 and didn’t do it.” Depending on the evidence presented in court, a judge could possibly find there was a $500 settlement, or that there was no enforceable contract, or something else. Or the realtor might not show up and the judge could default her and rule in your favor. The main point I am trying to make is that this dispute is so “not simple” it would be a great contracts law or even bar exam question. It is not a slam dunk as some people suggest.

You're spending a lot of effort chasing $500. It might be better to simply put it behind you and move on.

I agree with shivece that this might not be a slam dunk for you, I am not sure consideration, although a respectable legal argument, is even the biggest bar to collection.

There are a few issues with this.

First, you should check for arbitration and mediation clauses. If any of these contracts have an arbitration or mediation clause then it is very possible that they will govern this agreement. After you file in small claims court, the realtor's attorney will have the case dismissed and send you their bill for breaching the arbitration or mediation clause.

Next, these funds should be disbursed at closing by the attorney and they should be represented in the closing statement. There could be several problems trying to collect this after closing, if you signed an entire agreement clause, which are fairly common, you are not going to collect as easily.

Finally, don't turn a $500 mistake into a $1,000 mistake. Losing sucks but don't chase justice the detriment of time and wealth.

It sounds like both the agent and the broker she works for aren’t going to cooperate. The next step I would take, if they are Realtors, is to go their local NAR Board and take it up with them. If not, you might address with the state licensing department for real estate agents and brokers.

Have you tried confronting and threating to access legal help on that matter?

@c9pilot @CoolAir Inc. I think that's the next step

Agree with homechef above, but Small Claims will not pay a layperson any money for his time and trouble. It doesn't work like that. Just go with your claim as designated, and if you get that, that's great. It is hard to answer definitively without seeing all written documents.

Why would the Realtor be liable for an increase in the buyer's interest rate? The contract says nothing else that the $500 is in compensation for.

@ncrealestateguy - I was curious about that too (did she forget to pass on a rate lock notice to the builder/lender?), but it doesn't really matter now since the realtor conceded the point by singing the agreement.

@ncrealtor the reason its worded that way because of the delays and multiple extensions im assuming it was to help us with the rate lock fees we kept accruing. not sure why it would be a separate agreement so I can't say. But it was basically done to temper our frustrations with the process and she told us it would come out of her fees

the reason its worded that way because of the delays and multiple extensions im assuming it was to help us with the rate lock fees we kept accruing. not sure why it would be a separate agreement so I can't say. But it was basically done to temper our frustrations with the process and she told us it would come out of her fees

With all due respect, this is just not the slam dunk you, and many others, seem to believe it is.

You can probably win, but be careful. Fools rush in where angels fear to tread. You need to carefully read all the documents you signed with the realtor and at the closing to ensure that the realtor is not a party to any mediation or arbitration clause.

If you have an arbitration or mediation clause with your realtor and you pursue a claim even in small claims court they will pay an attorney to defend them and you will get the bill for it because you are in breach. You can easily get $4,000 legal bill by filing a $500 small claims court case. This only applies if you and realtor are parties to a mediation or arbitration clause.

You also need to ensure that you didn't sign anything at the closing stating that all monies were reflected in the agreement and ensure that your loan program allows rebates. It is against the law to receive any money back from the builder, seller, agent, broker, or attorney with many loan programs including all FHA loans. Really anytime you have down payment assistance and possibly PMI you can't have any rebates. All monies must go towards closing costs.

You can get the money but you are going to have to do some legwork. You really should be asking yourself if the juice is worth the squeeze. I know what my answer would be, but I am not you.

@bry911 The juice isn't worth the squeeze lol. I just plan on leaving a nice amount of negative truthful reviews on her and her company. it's not worth my stress anymore

I can bet that their Buyers Agency Agreement has an Arbitration Clause in it. Ours does. And just to keep things clear, you did not fire her... your and her Buyers Agency Agreement expired, and you both agreed not to extend.

Like Bry said, this should have been bought up at the closing table, with the $500 put towards your expenses.

Why not just hop in the car and go pay the BIC a visit at their office? That's where I'd start.

@ncrealestate I did that and they weren't there. And we did bring it up at the actual closing table but we were told since it was a separate agreement with the agent we would have to take that up with her. So I dont know. Im kind of over it at this point..She'll have to reap what she sows