re: Purchase agreement question

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Any kind of agreement that is worth a shite should have a “force mature” clause in it.

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You mean ‘Force Majeure?’

Work with the buyers... both sides should be understanding of what happened and come up with a solution.

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I doubt you can keep the deposit if the house isn't in the same condition when the purchase agreement was signed

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Not even questioning this. I know I have to fix the damages. They just aren’t giving updates on their end. Hell I would come off of price to get it done as long as they are in agreement. When we gave them the closing date, they more or less told us it was on their end that was the problem. They are selling two homes to buy ours. Will find out a lot after we meet.

No. We were just told that’s what they are waiting for and why we are delayed. According to them it was supposed to be done weeks ago. They were waiting on that to pay us. We agreed to September 14th because it was 45 days. Just recently got updates. They told us to deposit the check written to hold it for them. It’s like they have no care that they gave us money and just want to fix damages and be done but seems like after damages are fixed, they still may not be ready.

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From my perspective, I just don’t think they seem worried at all. She has already mentioned the possibility of losing the deposit. I told them that we were not interested in taking it from them but just want them to understand that it’s not a never ending closing date.

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That’s odd. How much was the deposit? If you don’t want to state it publicly, email me the contract and I’ll look at it for you. Sometimes there’s verbiage that is an out clause that a laymen may not recognize. Note I’m not an attorney nor am I giving legal advice, but happy to help.

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My wife texted them last night then today asked about the sq. foot under roof. Is that sounding like insurance for them to buy?

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This could mean anything, so it’s not worth speculating.

ETA:

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They are selling two homes to buy ours

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oh, so it's contingent on them selling their property. That's not uncommon but If they are having to sell two pieces of property before they can buy yours, that's not real encouraging. You can include in the contract what is called a kick out clause that allows you continue to market the property and if you get another prospective purchaser (you can also take a back up contract), you will give them a certain amount of time to procure funds, and if they can't do that, then the contract is void. It can even be as short a term as a few days or a week, though typically I will give them a couple of weeks to document the funds or lender pre-approval for the funds. I don't remember ever having a contingency that they had to sell 2 properties though. Not sure I'd take that. I'd probably advise them to check back with me if they sold one or both properties and if I still have the house, we'll make a deal.

Honestly, it sounds like you and the prospective purchasers may need a real estate attorney to help you guys sort things out, prepare the documents so everybody is protected, and to close the sale. Split the costs and it shouldn't be too much. It depends on the state, too. In Georgia, attorney's generally close the sales. In Florida it's generally title companies and they will do it for very good fees.

Note the point about documents that protect you. You don't want to wind up sued at some point in the future due to some bullshite the buyers say you should have told them, or this, that, or the other thing. It's a litigious world out there these days. Buyer beware, and seller too. Cover your arse.

I guess it depends on what Purchase Agreement you used and the terms within it. I'm not a Realtor or attorney, but my thinking is I would rope the lender in on correspondence and write an extension for the closing date and do another addendum in writing that states the Buyer will reinspect the property. Then I would go through the Inspection process again. It's unorthodox, but so is this whole storm situation. The Inspection report that generally accompanies contracts in Louisiana outlines where the Buyer finds deficiencies and what their desired remedy is. So y'all can go line by line with what the damage is and whether they want it repaired or adjust the sales price in lieu of repairs. Put all of this in writing. If you and the Buyer can't agree to the terms in the Inspection report then the Purchase Agreement becomes null and void. Even if you agree to all of the terms in the Inspection report, but the process drags out past the date on the extension of the closing date, the Purchase Agreement then also becomes null and void and you move on. It's just a sucky situation because generally a Purchase Agreement (line 161 on the standard LA PA) states that the agreement was "based upon the property's apparent current condition" on the date the contract was signed so you basically have lost leverage there. In my opinion, a new inspection process gives you a clean out in writing if they keep dragging their feet.

Once again, I'm not a realtor, but I did stay at a Holiday Inn Express last night.

If you are selling the home and the couple agreed to buy it pre storm, then do the honorable thing and sell them the home as they bought. It’s still yours so claim it on your insurance and make sure they get the home they bought.

“Real estate agents suck and are worthless!” - the OT

“Help! I need a real estate agent” - the OT

Btw, 90% of the responses are comically inaccurate. Real estate contracts are legally binding contracts with severe ramifications if not done correctly. Agents exist for a reason. Let me know if you need professional advice. I’ll be happy to walk you through this because I’ve used this board for countless information over the years. I’ll pay it forward. Let the snarky realtor comments commence.

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Out of curiosity, it’d be interesting to get your opinion based on the information provided.

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Without looking at the contract it’s impossible to know.
Was there an agreed upon inspection period?
Was the inspection period still on going?
If the inspection period had concluded and the buyers were still interested after the inspection period….Mr. seller has an obligation to return the house to the condition that was in place at that time (since it’s a cash sale I believe the seller can offer money in recompense).