Litigation Attorney

Courts only order specific performance (forcing someone to do something) very rarely. It's not something you can just go to court and get. If the seller will not settle, just walk away.

"It's not something you can just go to court and get. If the seller will not settle, just walk away. " I don't agree with this.

Speak to your own attorney & let him/her refer you to someone.

This question itself concerns me. Surely you have an attorney who guided you through executing the contract to begin with. It is that attorney who should be providing you with counsel on whatever this situation is (which is not at all clear since "refusing to settle" hardly explains the situation).

Based on mylimited knowledge of specific performance, it is generaly used if you are trying to buy something unqique. I am NOT an attorney, but I do work with them. Also, before you sue, have you tried resolving your differences witht he seller? Is it something minor or is it someting major that you have no chance of resolving?

Hey Pres,

You're kinda right: RE is considered to be "unique" & therefore does qualify for specific performnc.

dwell...could this be a ground breaking case where the non-performing seller argues it is a cookie-cutter condo", and hence not unique.....:)

Thanks all.I have no explanation at all as to why the seller won't settle,there are no differences that I or my attorney are aware of. They still might settle. My attorney who seems very competent is puzzled and says they can be forced to fulfill the contract and don't have a leg to stand on, but it may need litigation. I have been looking for several years and really like the condo and the price, it suits me in every way - so won't walk away. I suspect the seller regrets selling. The attorney will supply me with a name but I wondered if anyone on streeteasy had experience with someone specific.

'Refuses to settle' makes no sense to me; I don't understand what is/isn't happening here. Keep in mind that litigation can be a long costly process; I'd be asking how I can get away from this mess QUICK.

You mean he refuses to close, but you are ready? Has the seller offered to compensate you? I am not sure what you mean by settle.

For the money you will waste with an attorney, you should get a cash settlement from the seller and walk away. It's not worth it. It will be in litigation for years and you will spend thousands litigating it. Why waste your time? There are plenty of placs out there.

Get your attorneys fees, mortgage fees, and a little bit of cash and move on.

Signed: An attorney

My only suspcion as to why the seller won't settle is because someone came along at the last minute and offered more money, so naturally it would be in the seller's best interest for you to go away. But I would not go with litigation because you are talking thousands of dollars and several years down that road.

Talk to a commercial litigator, don't rely on Streeteasy.

Buyers are held to to their contracts and forced to close (or forfeit their deposits) all the time.

You can do the same with a seller, as you have a contract, this is not a years-long courtroom battle. In fact, I can't imagine what his lawyer can even argue is a valid reason not to close. Your laywer can probably get summary judgment fairly quickly, if it gets that far.

The-President. I think you are right about a new buyer on the scene. Thanks 'modern' that is my legal advice and my preference - It is curious that if a buyer walks away then they default the usually 10% but suggestions here seem to be that if the seller tries to walk away there is little cost to them.
My attorney has been helpful and I am happy with him. I will be pursuing it and they don't have a leg to stand on - it was a cash offer and the money is sitting there waiting.

would definitely second the notion to get real advice from a litigator. i seriously question this notion of any issue like this being litigated quickly. and then of course there is the tricky issue of damages--presumably you have not spent a lot of cash on this transaction yet; i doubt that you could recover legal fees even if you prevail. talk to a lawyer.

If someone else has offered more money, you have to slap a lis pendens on the property ASAP. Otherwise, what is keeping the seller from selling it to the other person?

COMPELLING SPECIFIC PERFORMANCE OF A REAL ESTATE CONTRACT

http://www.rutterhobbs.com/CM/Articles/legal_summer05.pdf

babsie is correct, file the lis pendens quick. as per the article I just posted, it can be sold from under you, and then you can only fight for money damages.

Thanks babsie-02 - will check and institute if appropriate.

modern. Thanks for the link.

An update and finale. I did sue for specific performance. The seller resisted to the very end but finally caved in. They were bitter to the end and behaved appallingly.
My legal team were excellent and I'm happy to recommend them. The re one was Martin Librett. He charged a fixed fee, always responded promptly and referred me to an excellent litigator. He is Dean G. Yuzek of Ingram Yuzek Gainen Carroll & Bertolotti, LLP and his associate
Jennifer Buesser. It was all done via email as I am Australian. Pretty weird litigating from the other side of the world.
Hope this is of use to others on this wonderful internet site.

Still a little unclear as to what happened? Did the seller refuse to close?

Yes, simply refused to close.

Did they leave any surprises in the apartment before surrendering it?

Removed the light fittings which they were emotionally attached to and didn't leave any keys. Other than that it is in very good order.

How far did you have to go? Did you have to sue the sellers before they agreed to close?
How much did it cost you, apart from 5 months?

I'm not sure of the total cost yet - I suspect approx $15,000. Maybe a little more. They reneged at the end of the period where they were required to show cause as to why they refused. Even then it seemed tenuous whether it would actually happen. The sellers litigation attorney seemed to indicate that it was a fragile acceptance. There was a constant tension as to whether the litigation money would be wasted and a difficulty understanding how it may not happen given the contract. I would urge buyers to have a clause in the contract that in a dispute the loser can be liable for the other parties costs - I didn't have that so have to bear all my own costs no matter the outcome.

It is 11.30pm in Australia and need to go to sleep so please bear with my not replying until tomorrow to further questions.

Thank you for your update, and good night!