under the cosh! Posted September 10, 2011 Share Posted September 10, 2011 My ex wife and i are joint owners of an apartment which we have put up for sale. My ex commissioned the agent in my absence BUT did not explain the sale is part of a forthcoming divorce settlement. I made subsequent contact with the agent and have now discovered that my e mail exchanges with them have been forwarded to my ex, which to me is a breech of client confidentiality.What can i do about the agent, who has a three months mandate and is there any re-dress??? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
woolybanana Posted September 10, 2011 Share Posted September 10, 2011 The mandate is not valid unless signed by both owners, I think, but others may know better. As regards the emails, you could always ask a lawyer if it really matters. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Russethouse Posted September 10, 2011 Share Posted September 10, 2011 Maybe I'm naive but surely the correct and grown up way to proceed is to include your ex wife in all communication with the agent, as she should you - writing to someone you don't know and hoping they will keep a confidence seems far too trusting - Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
woolybanana Posted September 10, 2011 Share Posted September 10, 2011 Oh, RH, you are an innocent, young thing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
under the cosh! Posted September 10, 2011 Author Share Posted September 10, 2011 Clearly as a subsequent correspondent said "you are being very naive". The issue is the estate agent doing things without authority, with a bias to one party and what if any impact there is on his mandate.If would be far more useful if you would answer the question! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
under the cosh! Posted September 10, 2011 Author Share Posted September 10, 2011 Clearly as a subsequent correspondent said "you are being very naive". The issue is the estate agent doing things without authority, with a bias to one party and what if any impact there is on his mandate.If would be far more useful if you would answer the question! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AnOther Posted September 10, 2011 Share Posted September 10, 2011 Unless skulduggery is afoot on the part of one party or the other I'm struggling to understand what's confidential about selling a jointly owned property [Www] The agent obviously knew that it was jointly owned and unless instructed to the contrary would likely have included both of you as a courtesy so I don't see you have any complaint against him.Edit: Exactly what redress would you be seeking, have you actually suffered a financial loss or been disadvantaged ? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lori Posted September 10, 2011 Share Posted September 10, 2011 When we signed our mandate, the agents required both signatures on the mandate. One alone was not acceptable for them. Do you both own the property jointly? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NormanH Posted September 10, 2011 Share Posted September 10, 2011 If would be far more useful if you would answer the question!With an attitude like that I doubt that many people will feel moved to bother [:(]Are you suggesting that somehow the agent will try to help your other half? How exactly? Wouldn't a sale benefit you both? In what way can an agent be biased to one side, given that the legal work and there fore the proceeds are handled by the Notaire.Or are you opposed to the sale ? In which case if you have any title you presumably just won't sign.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beckett Posted September 10, 2011 Share Posted September 10, 2011 Well, you're both his client, so the notion of breaching client confidentiality doesn't really make sense.It would help if you indicated what the problem is. Were you rude about your ex or something? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
under the cosh! Posted September 10, 2011 Author Share Posted September 10, 2011 There are a number of issues:-1, two offers have been recieved, i have not seen either in writing, although my ex has.2. my e mails made it plain to the estate agent that despite being ordered by a court to market it for sale, i wanted to retain the property and until there was a final settlement and hence a sale would not go through quickly. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nomoss Posted September 10, 2011 Share Posted September 10, 2011 I think everyone should allow for a bit of post marital paranoia on the part of the OP. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Russethouse Posted September 10, 2011 Share Posted September 10, 2011 Does the property belong to both of you ? When you say you want to retain the property, do you mean that you want to use it until it is sold or that you want to buy whatever portion of the property you do not already own ? Surely your ex is au fait with your point 2 ? As for point 1 is your wife legally in a position to sell without your say so ? If the agent receives an offer of the asking price my understanding is that the vendor(s) are obliged to accept it..... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NormanH Posted September 10, 2011 Share Posted September 10, 2011 "despite being ordered by a court to market it for sale, i wanted to retain the property"Presumably the agent feels that the court has some authority in the matter Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Etoile Posted September 10, 2011 Share Posted September 10, 2011 Well at least if the agent is copying your former partner in he must be getting off his arse. That in itself is remarkable. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
under the cosh! Posted September 10, 2011 Author Share Posted September 10, 2011 1. The property belongs to both of us, as i say it is jointly owned.2. It was an error by the court that it ordered that it marketed for sale, this was pointed out to the ex but she still proceeded with marketing it for sale.3.The ex wants to sell it asap rather than wait for a final settlement and she is aware that i want to retain it and take over the mortgage.4. No she canot sell without my say so.5. The two offers i am told through her solicitors made to date fall way short of the asking price. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
idun Posted September 10, 2011 Share Posted September 10, 2011 Under the cosh, I realise that you are upset about this, but what quite startled me was the amount of detail that came up about our purchasers when they bought our house. On the paperwork we were informed of the amount they sold their property for, how much mortgage they had got, their marital status and ages, every thing. We didn't need to know any of it. It seems that information is spewed out to 'anyone', so that your info was passed onto your ex does not surprise me at all. I think that I would just tell them that I expect any contact between your self and them has to remain private and not to be forwarded to your ex at all unless indicated and that you want informing immediately about any offers, as you are joint owner. In fact why don' t you just put an offer in anyway, get your notaire to do it for you, as you will need a notaire anyway. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
under the cosh! Posted September 10, 2011 Author Share Posted September 10, 2011 IdunUnfortunately it is not quite that simple, since i am not sure that I can be afford it until a final settlement is reached, hence why i wanted to wait until then. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lori Posted September 10, 2011 Share Posted September 10, 2011 If your name is not on the mandate, I don't see how the agent can sell it. Does the court order make this possible?Did I understand you to say the court order was issued in error, meaning a sale cannot be forced by the court? If so, did they issue a correction to the order.I can imagine your anger/displeasure. I do not know your circumstances, but I think I might just sit back and forget about it if I were you (continue to live in the property), unless the court IS in fact ordering the property sold. If it is not, then your ex cannot sell it without your signature, so just sit tight. No? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
idun Posted September 10, 2011 Share Posted September 10, 2011 You mean the final settlement of everything, rather than just the house sale? If so, then yes, you cannot, can you.If I were you, I would see a notaire immediately. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PaulT Posted September 13, 2011 Share Posted September 13, 2011 Under the Cosh wrote:2. It was an error by the court that it ordered that it marketed for sale, this was pointed out to the ex but she still proceeded with marketing it for sale. In whose view is it an error of the Court? Yours?Has the Court revoked its original decision? If not then the order stands.Plus the only info is that you are divorcing. There have obviously been some problems and are these influencing your wife? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bluebaguette Posted September 13, 2011 Share Posted September 13, 2011 You really should be speaking to your notaire to clarify the situation. They are there to help and advise on this kind of thing.Good luck, divorce is a stressful time. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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