Anyone terminate their contract on a home before closing?

Denise91980

Hey ladies. We were in the process of purchasing a home. After the inspections, we found that the sellers needed to replace the septic system (although they advertised a 4BR, recently new septic...it was only a 3BR septic and only the tank was new).  They wound up having to put in a mound system, which completely effed up the look of the backyard. We are unhappy with the impact because there is now a 7ft huge hill in the back, where there was once a gorgeous level yard. So, at this point we are terminating and they let us out of the contract, but our deposit money is still sitting in escrow and we cannot touch it until an agreement is made. Has this happened (or something similar) to any of you? If so, how long did it take to get your money back?

 

TIA

wrysmyguy

I dunno but the woman who had a contract with us for the sale of MH's first TH broke the contract and she got all her money back. It is hard to keep ernest money.

Denise91980

I hope we get it back. Our attorney sent their attorney a letter saying that we agreed to the septic plans as long as we are satisfied upon completion and we feel it doesn't negatively impact the yard. It does, but they feel it is not a valid reason to terminate. 

MrsDB

talk to your attorney- the sellers attorney has to "agree" to it for it to be released, which may take a few days to happen and then get a check cut and out in the mail, but it shouldn't take too long. i think we had our check back a week after we backed out of the last house- when we found out it had high levels of arsenic in the topsoil. 

bosha711

Yes, we did. We were under contract when the inspections found several issues that the sellers refused to fix or give credit for (radon, mold, electrical issues & a few other things), which made the purchase out of our budget. We had already given our deposit, but got it back after 40 days. Our attorney said we were allowed to back out at that time b/c we were still in the negotiation phase. The good faith money ($1k) was applied to the purchase of the house we're in now. GL!