Recommendations On How Agents Should Handle Missed Agreement Deadlines
by James L. Goldsmith, Esquire
Of the common mistakes in residential sales, none occurs more frequently than the failure to abide by timelines, specifically those found in the inspection contingencies. If there is a time limit, someone will miss it.
In the Standard Agreement, the burden of observing the timeline is imposed on the buyer. If the seller does not agree to satisfy all terms of buyer’s corrective proposal, or if buyer and seller fail to negotiate a resolution, the buyer’s choice is to accept the property or terminate the agreement. If the buyer fails to make an election timely, subject to the goodwill of the seller, the buyer has lost the benefit of the contingency and is obligated to take the property in its present condition, even if the seller has agreed to satisfy most of the buyer’s demands. Buyer’s failure to meet the timeline means that buyer has purchased the property as is.