Posted by michaela-CA on April 22, 2007 at 22:41:18:
Bob,
don’t be so sure of that. years ago I got screwed over by an atty and complained to the bar. There were 2 or 3 other complaints and he ended up getting disbarred over it.
Michaela
Shortsale ethics? I’m p*ssed! - Posted by Apollo
Posted by Apollo on April 22, 2007 at 08:53:18:
I’ve been working a short sale for the last couple of months. When the bank sent out the realtor to do the BPO, my seller met them at the house to provide access. The realtor then began a hard sell with the seller, telling her that she wanted to buy the house. She promised her money under the table, before and after the closing. She then told her that I would never be able to close, and that I had probably vandalized the house myself to drive the price down. The seller of course knew that this wasn’t true, so she called me and told me what had happened. I told her that I would let the bank know what happened, and that she should stop speaking with these people. They continued calling her for weeks after this incident.
The loss mit rep has been a pain to work with. I did call her and inform her of what had happened. She apologized and said that she would report it to her supervisors. About 3 weeks ago when I was able to get her on the phone again, she informed me that my offer was to low, so I promptly faxed over a higher offer. I had been unable to speak with her since that time.
On Friday, I called in to the general number to see if I could get someone to give me an update. The rep that I spoke to me looked at the file, and told me that there were two offers on the house. I of course was surprised that there was another offer on the house, but I knew immediately who it was from. I asked to speak to a supervisor, and was tranferred to someones voice mail. I left a message explaining what had happened, and that someone needed to call me right away.
I got a call back about two hours later. It was some other loss mit rep, saying that her supervisor asked her to call me. I explained to her the situation, and she was pretty rude and cut & dry about it. She told me that the other offer was higher, and that was the one that they were going with. I told her that the realtors violated their code of ethics by pursuing my seller, and that the bank should not have accepted their offer. I have a signed contract with the seller, as well as an earnest money deposit with her. The rep told me that “ethics had nothing to do with it. It’s all about the bottom line.” I couldn’t believe that she actually spoke those words.
I did speak with the seller too. She denied signing any other contracts, but I know she’s lying. I suspect that she has substance abuse problems, so if they offered her any money, she would do whatever they wanted.
So what should I do at this point? I plan on contacting the realtor’s broker and reporting her, and then reporting her to the Chicago Association of Realtors. Beyond that, do I have any chance of saving this deal? Sorry for the long message.
Preston
Re: Shortsale ethics? I’m p*ssed! - Posted by Natalie-VA
Posted by Natalie-VA on April 23, 2007 at 15:48:07:
Apollo,
This whole thing sucks, but I don’t see how you have any recourse. You have no deal without the lender’s approval, so you can’t go after the seller.
The Realtor sounds like a real a$$, but I don’t see how stealing your deal violates their code of ethics. I don’t know…maybe you can go after them for tortuous interference with a contract? Still not an ethics violation. They have no duty to you.
Sorry. Hopefully they’ll get theirs one day.
–Natalie
ethics? I’m p*ssed! - Posted by Nike
Posted by Nike on April 22, 2007 at 19:12:23:
What were the terms of your contract with the seller? Purchase price? You’ve been working on the short-sale for a couple of months? How long were you planning stringing this thing out?
Re: Shortsale ethics? I’m p*ssed! - Posted by Kevin - WA
Posted by Kevin - WA on April 22, 2007 at 13:00:24:
When I have people who try to screw me on deals, I will file a Notice of Agreement for Purchase and Sale against the property. Makes it harder for someone else to get clear title until we handle the situation.
Re: Shortsale ethics? I’m p*ssed! - Posted by An Ethical Appraoch: NOT
Posted by An Ethical Appraoch: NOT on April 22, 2007 at 09:56:38:
One of my earliest ‘deals’ resulted with my being excised from the transaction in favor of the lawyer, MY LAWYER, who bought the house.
Re: Shortsale ethics? I’m p*ssed! - Posted by LeonNC
Posted by LeonNC on April 22, 2007 at 09:28:48:
If the numbers are above what you should pay move on. If the realtor has done anything wrong make sure he/she pays by being reported to the Board of Realtors. Way too many ethical realtors without any ethics.
Re: Shortsale ethics? I’m p*ssed! - Posted by Apollo
Posted by Apollo on April 22, 2007 at 14:11:44:
Thanks for the reply, Kevin. I have a similar document called an “Affidavit of Equitable Interest”, that I was thinking of filing tomorrow.
Could you send me your document? I’d like to compare them, and see which one is best. tfmc@wowwway.com
Re: Shortsale ethics? I’m p*ssed! - Posted by Bob Smith
Posted by Bob Smith on April 22, 2007 at 21:40:49:
Poaching your own client’s deals sounds like grounds for disbarment. At a minimum, a substantial settlement from your lawyer’s E&O policy. Did you pursue it?
Re: Shortsale ethics? I’m p*ssed! - Posted by Bob Smith
Posted by Bob Smith on April 22, 2007 at 21:43:52:
The board of realtors is like the bar, they protect their own. Punishment is rare, and when meted out almost never results in any real hit to the pocketbook or license.