Legal Question in Real Estate Law in California

Can I back out of an offer accepted to sell my home? The real estate agent took square footage from county record "2031 sq. ft." and listed the house based on that footage, which is incorrect. I was sent a link that led me to the county website that made me question the footage. I got a new appraisal, the actual footage is 2460 sq. ft. which means my house $65,000 under value.


Asked on 9/14/15, 12:16 pm

2 Answers from Attorneys

Bryan Whipple Bryan R. R. Whipple, Attorney at Law

I'd have to say probably not, at least not without a substantial risk of being sued for breach of contract. An accepted offer is binding unless there are unusual circumstances, although it's certainly worth the time and expense to have an initial conference with an experienced real-estate attorney before closing with a $65K loss in prospect. While speaking with the attorney, be sure to inquire about whether you may have an action against the agent and his/her broker for basing the pricing upon a badly erroneous square footage.

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Answered on 9/14/15, 1:13 pm
Nicholas Spirtos Law Offices of Nicholas B. Spirtos

You could be facing a lawsuit if you back out now. You may have some claims against your agent, but it might be difficult to lay all the blame for this error on him or her. Many people would find it hard to believe that you did not know what the square footage of your own house was.

Talk to a local real estate attorney. There may be some simple way to fix the problem.

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Answered on 9/15/15, 7:49 am


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