Why are you asking us? Don't you have an agent or attorney? If yes, ask them!!!

It is not his decision to make. The deposit money is in an escrow account and it cannot be released or forfeited by the agent alone. I would talk directly with the broker who the agent works for. Brokers do not want dissatisfied buyers.

Very few buyers have an agent or attorney to represent their interests. It sounds like the agent is representing the seller and is being overly aggressive in forcing a sale to an unwilling buyer. That is not the way agents should behave. That is why the broker needs to get involved.

Sounds like you want to cancel the transaction because the home failed the inspection contingency. There should be an addendum in your contract. Tell the agent your intention.... in writing. you'll get your money back. The leverage you have is until this is cancelled the seller has to disclose to any buyer the home has a contingent offer that the seller has accepted. You'll get your money back....

🤦
 

Ask a bunch of bored retirees for real estate advice, you will get what you deserve.

Your realtor will guide you.

I agree, but another issue is that the seller needs to disclose the water damage to any other prospective buyers. Also, if the water damage was not hidden, it should have been disclosed in the original listing offer. This could be another reason for the OP to file a complaint with the state license board.

Don’t Sign
 

You do not have to sign an extension. Period!

Note that all VLS and MLS agents selling houses for a commission must be licensed and regulated by the state and they must comply with the state laws.

Most buyers do not have an agent representing them. The agent asking the OP to extend the inspection clause is almost certainly representing the seller, not the buyer.

Get your money back and move on. Failure to return your money is a violation of DPBR Florida real estate conduct.

Another Crooked Agent
 

Reading between the lines the real estate agent is saying,

“Just give me my commission check, and nobody gets hurt.”

I put a deposit down on a house once, here in Florida. It failed the inspection, but the seller, a lawyer, refused to give me my money back. Fine, I still didn't buy the house. A few years later, I started getting emails from a bunch of lawyers, who said I had money available from the escrow company and for 10% they would get it for me. I got it for myself, all of it. So, even if you walk about, without the deposit, you will eventually get it back it seems.

After you seek and get legal advice on TOTV, why not next ask how to do your own heart surgery?

to me $10,000 is a lot of money. So is the amount you have contracted for to pay for the house. Yet, you rely upon unsophisticated TOTV commenters and the advice of a real estate agent who may and probably does have a vested interest contrary to your own.

It seems to me that 2 or 3 hundred bucks paid for an attorney in this...perhaps the largest purchase you will ever make is money well spent!

Please remember that anyone who provides legal advice in the state of Florida is committing the unlicensed practice of law...which just happens to be a felony in Florida!

run

Refund
 

I have a feeling once they secured an attorney, the agent would back off very quickly. There is nothing like the ole legal notice for recovery.

OP, do you know who is holding the deposit money? If you paid by check, it should have been deposited into an escrow account and the company name may be stamped on the back of the cancelled check. I would suggest that you prepare a simple letter to the broker asking to cancel the contract and to refund your deposit because of your dissatisfaction with the inspection. Send a copy of the letter to the escrow company. This will document your position. If you can get a lawyer to send the letter, that would be better, but probably not necessary. Although, talking directly with the broker would most likely resolve the issue. It sounds like the real estate agent is not trying to help you.

Cancel and start over. You don’t need the headache.

I have purchased many homes and have sold just as many and the inspection window is just another time frame for the buyer to get out of the contract if they want to. I’ve got out of a new house purchase because the inspection found $15k worth of issues and I did t want anything to do with the house, all while the selling agent tried to get us to accept the deal if the builder would go out and fix all the issues. They did keep the earnest money to the last date by law hoping we would change our mind.
Most if not all contracts have in there that the sellers will only pay so much to fix anything or they might flat out say buy as is, even if you find something the seller isn’t going to fix it. That’s how I sold my last 3 houses. Always, the buyer always has the option of walking no matter what the inspection says.
1 house we were buying, we needed to move in on a specific date and the builder agreed to it. During the waiting period to close, we noticed some issues that we didn’t like and we told the builder and he didn’t care. Well, the builder fell behind 1 day and couldn’t get everything done, so we couldn’t move in. We cancelled the contract, all the while the selling agent told us they could write up an amendment, nope, what’s in the contract is what you live by, good or bad

DEPOSIT REFUND - Might be too late!
 

-The FAR/BAR 'As-Is' contract typically allows 15 days for inspections.
IF that period expires (past the 15 days) then you have a 'Cash Sale' (I.E You don't have any rights under the (expired) inspection clause any more.
-What to do?
Find out who has your deposit
Go there right now with written notice that you are withdrawing from the sale (No explanation included!!!!.
Demand a written response.
Then they will have to deal with the State Of Florida is they don't comply.
Hope this helps
.

As a buyer you should be in contact with your agent. If you do not have representation, keep in mind the listing agent is now working as a transaction broker only and can only facilitate the transaction — they are under no obligation to provide guidance for your exclusive benefit. If you do not have your own agent, my recommendation is to contact a real estate attorney to be sure your are compliant and your rights under the contract are protected — timing matters!

Run
 

Get your $ back now!
Don’t sign anything. Don’t extend the inspection. Don’t fall for the sellers lowering the price!
There are many houses for sale. You will find one sooner than you think…

Woman passed away at 97 so I doubt she ever knew about it. Inspector discovered in corner of bedroom closet

REAL ESTATE AGENT TELLS ME I Will LOSE MY MONEY. I BELIEVE THEY HAVE TILL FRIDAY TO FIX, REPAIR BUT HOW DO I REALLY KNOW THAT WILL BE DONE??

In addition to repair stipulations as a result of inspection…. There may also be a time requirement to cancel as a result of inspection.
As others have said, read the inspection clause.

I've read it to best of my ability. They have 10 days AFTER inspection to have fixed etc which is Friday. They still say no money is refundable?? Re agent thinks it's neighbors sprinkler system hitting our stucco wall or going under ground?? But how do I know? How will we even know if REALLY REPAIRED??

It doesn't matter if she actually knew about it. The standard is "should a reasonable owner have known about it?" If so, then it had to be disclosed. I hope you have photos.

Deposit or down payment? Deposit you get back as contingent to inspection.

Your sales contract is with the broker, not the agent. The agent shouldn't be telling you that you will lose your money. That is not his decision to make. The decision is for the escrow company to make in consultation with you and the broker. In order for the escrow company to release the money to the broker, they need to determine that you have breached the sales contract and the broker is entitled to the money. Note that many listing contracts state that forfeited earnest money is divided equally between the broker and the seller. I doubt that a broker wants to tarnish his reputation for $5,000. Many large brokers almost never keep earnest money regardless of what happens.

I am surprised no-one has mentioned it, but water leaks may include or lead to Black Mold if not resolved properly. Beware.

This thread is very disturbing to me. It sounds like the OP is being pressured to complete a sale that they don't want by an overly aggressive real estate agent. The agent has no right to tell the OP that they will lose their deposit money. It is not the agent's decision to make or his money. My advice to the OP is to demand to talk directly with the broker. If I were the seller, I would refuse to complete the sale because I wouldn't want to sell my house to someone who doesn't want it. There are other people who will buy the house after the damage is repaired.

You haven’t answered if you’re working a buyers agent. You haven’t answered if with a Realtor or Villages sales person.

You don’t understand the contract you’ve signed, which is for multiple hundreds of thousands of dollars.

Call a RE attorney immediately & do not sign anything else.

I agree with the above post. We ask for details but don’t get them. I will say that this is the reason people should have a buyer’s agent. The reasons a deposit might be lost would be explained while writing an offer.

Not exactly. The listing agent is not working as a transaction broker unless they have the written consent of the seller. As a seller, I would never allow the listing agent to act as a transaction broker until all contingencies in the sales contract were satisfied.

CONSENT TO TRANSITION TO
TRANSACTION BROKER

FLORIDA LAW ALLOWS REAL ESTATE LICENSEES WHO REPRESENT A BUYER OR SELLER AS A SINGLE AGENT TO CHANGE FROM A SINGLE AGENT RELATIONSHIP TO A TRANSACTION BROKERAGE RELATIONSHIP IN ORDER FOR THE LICENSEE TO ASSIST BOTH PARTIES IN A REAL ESTATE TRANSACTION BY PROVIDING A LIMITED FORM OF REPRESENTATION TO BOTH THE BUYER AND THE SELLER. THIS CHANGE IN RELATIONSHIP CANNOT OCCUR WITHOUT YOUR PRIOR WRITTEN CONSENT.

10,000 went into escrow

Outside resource...
 

Contact Seniors vs Crime for guidance....
352 755 3186

They also have an office presence in Brownwood Paddock Square, if you want to stop by and talk face-to-face with a volunteer.

This doesn’t sound like crime. It sounds like the buyer entered a transaction without any representation and didn’t understand the contract she signed. It sounds as if the contract allows the seller time to fix any issues found in the inspection. The seller should have to show sufficient proof of such repair (this can be tricky and debatable).

If they are asking for an extension there is the possibility they can’t get repairs done in time. Don’t sign an extension and on the day it expires request they sign a release.

It could be a crime if it rises to the level of elder abuse. A licensed real estate agent has a fiduciary duty to treat both parties in a fair manner regardless of who they represent. It is not correct to tell a buyer that they will lose their deposit when the agent does not know that to be true.

I don’t disagree but if the contract states the seller has time to fix the issue then isn’t the agent being fiduciarily responsible by explaining that the buyers deposit is at risk? We are missing some details so it’s hard to know.

Did the buyer agree to let the seller fix the issue and now wants to back out. The extension thing is very confusing.

I bet you'll need more than a $10,000 lawyer to get out of it. That's basically what they told me when my seller stole the best chair in my new furnished villa the morning before the closing -- even though it was on the inventory and I had a picture of their realtor sitting in it the day I bought the place. Then they had a million reasons to keep me at the closing, while the sellers had enough time to beat me to the house and use their illegally-retained key to steal an end table and TV from the master bedroom. When I arrived, I found them in my new living room disconnecting the big TV, and I could see the other TV and end table in the back of their SUV. I called 911, reached the Sumter County Sheriff, who told me to take it up with my closing agent.

My guess is, you just bought yourself a house with water damage.

Was there a disclosure
 

If there was a disclosure, was the damage mentioned? I’m thinking you can get your deposit back