Articles

ENTROPY, TERMINATION AND RELEASE Entropy is a principle of thermodynamics that says (really, really, paraphrasing) that in a closed system things always go from a complicated state to an uncomplicated state over time. Naturally, the practice of residential real estate brokerage violates this law of science because it is inevitable that it gets more, rather […]

THE SWORD AND THE SHIELD THE THIRTY DAYS WAR I have seen an increasing number of agents misconstrue the REIN Standard Purchase Agreement’s provision concerning termination thirty days after the specified closing date. Specifically, this clause is being interpreted by some to mean that a party automatically has thirty days after the specified date in […]

Everyone recognizes that a buyer and seller can sue each other – after mediation of course – in the event of a breach of contract. Buyers have a special breach of contract remedy though, called “specific performance.” That is, a court can order a seller to specifically perform the contract, which means that the court […]

There have been a number of significant changes to the REIN contract. As part of the Association’s efforts to disseminate and highlight those changes, I thought I’d take this opportunity to review two of them again (and to be clear, these are not the only ones, even in these sections). Previously, with respect to termite […]

I seem to be seeing my share of dead people these days in real estate transactions. Naturally, when a seller dies during the pendency of a real estate contract the question asked is whether the contract is still enforceable. In 1835 the Virginia Supreme Court answered this question, in the case of Moore’s Adm’rs v. […]

Sign Here, Please Your man on the legal corner is frequently asked whether the omission of a signature is fatal, potentially fatal, or just a flesh wound (any Monty Python fans?). This question usually arises out of two basic fact patterns: In the typical first scenario the agent (and usually the client) writes and signs […]

Show Me The Money, (or I Won’t Show You The Property) You love being a Realtor, do you not? And since it is a calling, a passion, and a labor of love, does that mean that one is obligated to work for free or for less than one thinks one is worth? Frequently, I am […]

Shhhh. Don’t Tell Anyone. Promise? Does a listing agent violate her duty to a seller by disclosing in the MLS or the contract that the seller’s ability to perform is dependent “on the consent or approval of any third party”? Virginia law requires (absent a written agreement to the contrary) a listing agent to “maintain […]

UNFORTUNATE ENDS We all hope that a real estate contract terminates with a successful closing and performance by all parties concerned. After all, that is how you earn your living. Unfortunately, however, contracts can end in a variety of non‐successful, non‐paying, ways. A contract may terminate early according to its own terms. Home inspection rejection […]

POWER OF ME Naturally, your man on the legal corner would like you to think that the term power of attorney refers to the author, but I recognize your first thought probably is of the document. To that thought we then turn. A power of attorney is a written document authorizing a person to act […]