Lawyers Corner, A one-stop centre on lawyers and queries
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 Mar 15 2011, 02:51 PM
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#1
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Senior Member
1,042 posts Joined: Feb 2011 
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Hi dariofoo, regarding the issue of housemate not paying rental..
in this instance, if one were to write a demand letter, but the tenant is not around to receive it (as he didn't go home). He could claim he didn't receive the notification? And in the instance that he did receive and still refuse to pay, any idea what's the next step? |
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Mar 15 2011, 08:53 PM
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#2
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Senior Member
1,042 posts Joined: Feb 2011
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Hi dariofoo, I'm posting this on behalf of the poor flight of a friend.
She put a downpayment 2% (through agency) to purchase a condo unit. Both parties has signed the offer letter. Seller mentions wants to use buyer's same lawyer to save cost. Seller also agreed to give 21 working days to the buyer to draw up the S&P. So in the midst of drawing up the S&P, I think it was 2 weeks later after signing offer letter, the owner sms my friend saying 'we dont want to sell anymore. sorry'. Just like that. Buyer immediately called up the agent to ask about this matter. The agent told her will try to find out what's wrong.. etc. In the end, almost nearing the 21 working days, the agent just said.. 'unable to contact seller'. So she actually wrote a demand letter to the seller asking for compensation. But so far, the seller did not reply. In this instance, how should she proceed? By the way, agent already pass her back the 2% deposit, which she has not bank-ed in yet. Added on March 15, 2011, 9:01 pm QUOTE(dariofoo @ Mar 15 2011, 08:01 PM) 20,000 views for this thread already! yes thank you very much for the legal advises!  This post has been edited by @Adele: Mar 15 2011, 09:01 PM |
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Mar 16 2011, 02:18 PM
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#3
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Senior Member
1,042 posts Joined: Feb 2011
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QUOTE(dariofoo @ Mar 16 2011, 11:45 AM) Once the letter of offer to purchase has been executed and the 2% paid, there is a binding contract to sell and buy. Both parties can enforce it against the other in event of a refusal to proceed. The cheque she already took back. Does the constitue as acceptance? She didn't bank in yet.Don't accept the 2% as it may constitute acceptance of rescission (in layman't term - cancellation/revocation) of the contract. Is there a clause in the letter that the vendor has to pay an additional penalty as compensation? Most of the time, it would be an equivalent sum of the booking deposit - so the vendor has to pay you 2% + further 2% - if you accept that as compensation, then you can't proceed any further and the matter comes to an end. Otherwise, advise the lawyer to proceed with a civil suit to seek specific performance of the contract - make sure that your friend really really wants this unit and you must be prepared for all eventualities as the vendor may not act in good faith and there have been cases (similar scenario to auction purchases) where the house is almost, if not completely thrashed. defaced, stripped of fixtures,etc by the vendor who then disappears without a trace. Advise her to sit down with her lawyer and get the lawyer to explain the pros and cons and eventualities - before deciding to proceed. Or else, just accept the 2% refund, forget it and proceed to look for another unit. Who knows, maybe that one was not meant to be huh?  Cheers.  Yes, there is a clause in the letter. But now seller is trying to ignore this, and I guess refuse to pay. She doesn't want to buy the house anymore, but she is asking for compensation. Hence, the demand letter to the seller, which the seller ignored. Her question is this, the S&P is not signed as seller can't be contacted. However the 21 days is already over. Can she still seek compensation or lawsuit against the seller? She did ask around, it seems she can caveat the property or something. Appreciate your advise, thank you. |
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Mar 16 2011, 07:07 PM
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#4
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Senior Member
1,042 posts Joined: Feb 2011
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lolikid: your plight sounds exactly like the friend of mine! except agent willing to give back the cheque. However, they also said the same thing like .. 'u want your money/compensation, u go sue the owner la'. And refuse to do anything further.
dariofoo: thanks for the advise. Got one more question: If we can't caveat the property, how can we ensure the seller pay the compensation? If she sues, and seller just ignore.. she'll be wasting her time and money for nothing? |
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