Q: Marsha, I am due to close escrow on my dream home in seven days. Suddenly, the sellers have declared they no longer want to sell. They want to refund my deposit. I don’t want the money; I want my house and I want them to leave. Both agents are frustrated and angry. What is my recourse?
A: Fortunately, this is not a frequent occurrence. You don’t mention why the sellers want to cancel. In many cases, sellers have a momentary panic and want to cancel a sale. Once they seriously consider it, they will move forward.
I speak from experience in this matter. My husband and I were in the process of purchasing our first home in June 1990. The home had been a rental for many years and was a true fixer. We opened escrow on June 26, 1990. The Painted Cave Fire started the next day on June 27. The winds were fueling this ferocious fire, and the flames quickly reached Santa Barbara. The sellers lived off North Turnpike and were concerned their house wouldn’t survive. They called their agent on June 28 and asked to cancel escrow, thinking they could move into their rental if their home burned. We told the sellers’ agent to have her clients sleep on this action and we would talk in a couple of days. The sellers decided to move forward with the sale. Sadly, along with 427 other structures, their home was lost in the Painted Cave fire.