Essence of the dispute:
The essence of the dispute:
The client decided to purchase a luxury apartment. He approached a real estate agency, and they allegedly found a suitable option, proposing to sign a Letter of Intent to enter into a purchase and sale agreement. The client agreed, handed over an advance payment to the seller, and a significant amount to the real estate agency.
Subsequently, it turned out that the documents for the apartment were not in order. Due to this, it was impossible to conclude the agreement, so the client requested a refund.
The seller decided to keep the money as earnest money. He insisted that the documents for the apartment were perfect, and the client's notary was making up something.
Representatives of the real estate agency pretended that this issue did not concern them, claiming they had not seen any money. And then they simply disappeared.
Important:
We advise you to always check the documents for real estate properties before making any advance payments, rather than after. Even better – involve a lawyer in the process.
What was done?
Lawyers from "YURIS FERRUM" Law Firm prepared and filed a lawsuit in court to recover monetary funds from the seller and the real estate agency.
Our arguments:
- An advance is not earnest money unless there is a written agreement between the parties for earnest money to secure the performance of an existing principal obligation;
- Unlike earnest money, an advance is always refundable;
- Monetary funds transferred to the real estate agency for safekeeping should be returned as unjustly acquired property.
Results:
The court granted the lawsuit and awarded the client the recovered funds, court fees, and attorney's fees.