From: "trebor@sirius.com.no.more" 
Newsgroups: alt.real-estate-agents misc.invest.real-estate misc.consumers.house
Subject: Re: Is this ethical?  Is this legal?  What can I do?
Date: Thu, 12 Feb 2004 00:21:41 -0800

birndorf@hotmail.com (Steve B) wrote:

>Turns out, the old man's agent sold the home to her friend, another
>agent in her office.  Additionally, they offered 20k below ask,
>telling the old man and his nephew (who lives 100 miles away) that the
>house is not worth what they were asking.  Additionally, they bully
>the old man into crediting them for many repairs.
>
>My friend found this information out from the nephew who was
>uncomfortable about the whole thing, but went through with it because
>he was under time constraints and lived far away.  The realtor never
>listed the house, showed the house, or let market forces into the
>picture.  She bought it, below market value, probably double ended the
>commission, and bullied them into accepting the deal.  The contract is
>in escrow.
>
>Is this legal?  Ethical?

I'm still studying my real estate courses, so I'm not experienced. But
this is highly unethical, and you don't have to go to real estate school
to know this. It may also be illegal, depending on the disclosures. At
the very least, someone should complain to the broker or even the DRE.

But a lot depends on what the paperwork says. If the agent disclosed
everything, and the old man signed on the dotted line, he may not have
any recourse. It's hard for the law to save people from their own bad
judgement. As for the nephew, I mean, c'mon... 100 miles is just a
couple of hours' drive; it's not like it's two states over. 

Further, you have no standing here. You're not the victim. In fact,
since you stand to benefit, some could say your involvement is suspect.
How well do you know the house? How do you know what it's worth?

>As a side note, the story becomes more complex, because I have put a
>backup offer on the house at the original asking price.  The nephew
>called me, and told me, point blank, that he was upset about how his
>agent represented him and his family's interests.  He also said that
>he wants to sell the house to me.
>
>Is there anything that can be done?

Well, there's two things going on here. One thing is stopping the sale
in progress; the other is putting the house up for sale again. But
neither is up to you nor even the nephew if he isn't the owner. It's up
to the old man. And if he wants to proceed with the sale, there's
nothing that can be done.

You can't do anything here. What the nephew should do is contact a
lawyer.