gracie Posted November 11, 2007 Share Posted November 11, 2007 I will try to make a long story short. My husband and I found a vacation home in Corsica over the summer which is perfect for us considering we have a severely disabled daughter and therefore need direct beach access, parking etc. We felt very lucky to find a listing which had been on the market only 4 days as in this area it is almost impossible to find what we were looking for. We paid full price and signed the Compromis di V at the real estate agent's office and then promptly paid deposit (sellers signed as well). All asbestos, lead, etc. checks were carried out etc. and completion date was scheduled at the beginning of August. We were very anxious to use the home in August and were already packing our bags. We were paying cash so no worries with banks... Two days before the signing date the seller refused to complete for vague reasons. The notaire was unable to get an answer about whether they wanted to sell or not.... We finally scheduled another sale date in October (on the advise of notary), sent all money to notaire, advised seller etc. and they of course did not show. Notaire has said he has prepared documentaion of their default which has been recorded (along with Compromis which had originally been stipulated by real estate agent)... My question is this: Considering that this specific property is necessary for us and our family, and that we are not interested in monetary damages, can we force the execution of the sale? How long is this process? Will the seller be required to reimburse legal fees? Seems that they have probably decided not to sell for whatever reason and are hoping we will ask for our deposit back and just go away. This will not happen.. Obviously however we would like to facilitate the sale a.s.a.p. Any advice???? Help!!! Thanks,[:(] Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nick Trollope Posted November 11, 2007 Share Posted November 11, 2007 Oh dear, bad luck..[quote user="gracie"] My question is this: Considering that this specific property is necessary for us and our family, and that we are not interested in monetary damages, can we force the execution of the sale? How long is this process? Will the seller be required to reimburse legal fees? [/quote]Yes you can force the sale, but it could take years (literally) you will have no guarantee of sucess and no, the seller will not be obliged to pay your costs.[quote user="gracie"]Seems that they have probably decided not to sell for whatever reason and are hoping we will ask for our deposit back and just go away. This will not happen.. Obviously however we would like to facilitate the sale a.s.a.p. [/quote]You will be entitled to your deposit plus another 10% (unless it says otherwise in the CdV). Your agent will probably be entitled to his costs. Bearing in mind that he works for you, he will have to sue the seller, if you don't want to pay him. The Notaire may also want paying. Faced with this, your seller may fold, but noone will guarantee it.Speak to your Notaire, pronto! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Anton Redman Posted November 11, 2007 Share Posted November 11, 2007 Have you spoken to the Real Estate Agent ? Many of their terms and conditions say that if they introduce a buyer ready and willing to pay the price contained in the mandate then they are due their fees from the seller irrespective of whether the sale actually takes place. What is their attitude to this ?Have you checked what the contract actually says. In some cases their is a clause that the seller may withdraw but has both to return your deposit and the same amount again in what under UK law would be described as a liquidated damages clause. If both of those are in place you have a fair bit of financial leverage. I am not sure at what point the Notaires responsibilities in this end. I suspect that recording the default may be as far as their responsibilities go and that you will need to speak to a local solicitor. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
woolybanana Posted November 11, 2007 Share Posted November 11, 2007 Reckon your vendor has got a substantially better offer. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gracie Posted November 11, 2007 Author Share Posted November 11, 2007 Thats what we thought but could seller sell to another party with our contract still in place? Do you think they are just waiting for us to go away? Notaire said "this is France" these things do not happen. Seller MUST go through with sale. Who says so is what I want to know? Why does the process take years if the Compromis is supposed to be considered almost as good as a sale? This is very frustrating because if the seller had told us up front that they changed their minds or had better offer we would have let it go. As it is we have already lost thousands of Euro in interest and because of this we do not just want to fold... Don't get this type of behaviour at all... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nectarine Posted November 11, 2007 Share Posted November 11, 2007 Having just signed the Comp De Vente as a seller, it was explained to me by the notaire that I could not pull out under any circumstances but that my buyer had 7-day retraction process and could pull out if he forfeited his deposit. I, as seller, am legally obliged to sell regardless of whether my circumstances change or if I get a better offer. My notaire was quite forceful about this point, so I reckon you could force the seller to complete the sale. Not sure what the legal process is to get there, but I think you're on firm ground here. Good luck. As the estate agents dont' get paid until the sale is final then I reckon they will be on your side pushing to get the whole matter signed, and hence their commission. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gracie Posted November 11, 2007 Author Share Posted November 11, 2007 Thanks for that. This is pretty much what I think too though I must say that when I hear talk of a legal battle lasting years I wonder what good it does us to be on "firm ground".... Not many people can put their lives on hold that long... Will wait to see how things unfold and hope for the best... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chancer Posted November 11, 2007 Share Posted November 11, 2007 [quote user="nectarine"] As the estate agents dont' get paid until the sale is final then I reckon they will be on your side pushing to get the whole matter signed, and hence their commission.[/quote]Unless the higher bidder is also buying through them? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gracie Posted November 12, 2007 Author Share Posted November 12, 2007 Good point. However my impression is that seller no longer wants to sell. We happened to go to their location during the summer even though we didn't have "our" house (spent a bundle on rent) and seller was there with kids and grandkids having a heyday (same period in which the house was already to have been sold) so I have a feeling their kids got on them and they changed their minds.... If anyone out there successfully enforced a sale through the legal system in France I would be very interested in hearing about it. How long it took, etc... Thanks to everyone for the feedback Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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