greentypewriter's Profile
Author's Posts
December 10, 2008
Realtor help
This is slightly long:
Hey there,
I'm in a bit of a pickle with a realtor, and was hoping that perhaps you all on here might have some advice on how to rectify this situation.
As a back story, for several days at the end of last month, my partner and I thought we would have to leave our apartment, so we blindly started searching and blindly signed an application for one apartment, leaving with them about $1500- the first month's rent/deposit, which they told us was non-refundable unless we were denied the apartment. A day later, while browsing their site, we noticed an apartment that we were not shown, and requested to see it. Again, we blindly switched the application over to this new apartment (a studio) but did not initial, etc. the changes on the paper- the realtor took care of this at our request.
They did not run a background/credit check on me, so I am also owed that fee and there is no way that my partner alone could pass the application for said apartment.
Long story short, we no longer have to leave our home and want our money back.
We are pretty sure that we would be denied the studio based on my partner's income (in retail) and my poor credit store and low income (I am a full-time student and a part-time barista), but have a feeling they would approve us out of spite. The best they can offer us is to put the money towards another place- but by June. Again, we now have no intention of leaving our space. The last correspondance from the realtor was today and in addition to basically being told to fuck off we were also told that the manager doesn't make it a habit to contact clients.
In summation, we feel like we are being taken advantage of and also strongly believe that we are deserving of our money back, because to us, $1500 is nothing to sneeze at.
We are preparing to file a complaint with the Dept. of State in the hopes of getting some legal help.
Anyone out there have any other ideas, advice, etc?
THANK YOU!
Author's Comments
And the lease would not have started until January 1.
Posted by: greentypewriter at December 10, 2008 5:43 PM in response to Realtor help
No, this was only the realtor- and we never signed a lease. Just an agreement for the first apt. No initials, etc were ever given to change the application to the 2nd place- it was done out of the kindness of their hearts.
Posted by: greentypewriter at December 10, 2008 5:41 PM in response to Realtor help
We were under the impression that since it's pretty well-known and "is a full-service real estate brokerage company"(from their site) we'd be OK, but they have been nothing but arrogant.
We certainly learned a lesson, but would just like our money back!
Posted by: greentypewriter at December 10, 2008 4:56 PM in response to Realtor help
Responses to Author's Forum Comments
Mopar sorry I was busy to respond to you. I have a life and have got finish working on that down payment so I can buy my forclosed home. As for the poor lads who had the problem with the real estate brokers I know it is harsh but the best thing you can do is report them to the better business bureu and walk away with your lose. Please remember that real estate agents are nothing but blood sucking parisites. I think mopar is one of them. Now that the housing bubble is popped they have no more blood to suck from people so the try to get every drop they can from renters. Let me tell you they made a fortune renting out appartments. What parisites!
Posted by: hannible at December 10, 2008 9:18 PM in response to Realtor help
Read both my posts, Hannible.
Posted by: mopar at December 10, 2008 11:24 PM in response to Realtor help
Who "blindly" gives someone $1500? If realtors are sleazy-- and they are-- they are merely a reflection, a distillation of the public. Please define again for me what exactly a "deposit" is. Maybe I don't understand.
Posted by: annieny at December 10, 2008 11:36 PM in response to Realtor help
Let me use an analogy. Let's say you were a struggling street vendor selling a vintage suit. At 9 a.m. someone said, "I love the suit. Can I come by after work and pay for it?" "Sure, but you have to leave a $50 deposit." So they leave the deposit. Through the course of the day, 2 other people came up to you and offer to buy the suit. You turn them down. Then the person who put the deposit down comes back at 5 pm and says, "On second thought, I don't want the suit. Can I have my money back?" If you were the vendor, what would you say to this person?
Posted by: annieny at December 10, 2008 11:43 PM in response to Realtor help
Why do people, especially people who already live here, use a broker to find an apartment????
From the specific way you described it, you will only get the deposit back if you are denied the aprtment. Maybe yopu will be denied. Go through the process. Otherwise, you know the answer.
Posted by: daveinbedstuy at December 11, 2008 9:15 AM in response to Realtor help
What these "brokers" are doing is not legal. Report them.
Posted by: mopar at December 11, 2008 12:01 PM in response to Realtor help
What these brokers are doing is what they have been doing for the last 20 years. They have been blood sucking anyone that tried to rent. You wanted high rents you had to go to them. You wanted to rent your appartment you had to go to them.Good now houses go back to the rightful owners and away from these heartless parasites. Calling real estate brokers parasites is of course offensive to parasites. I am so glad to see real estate broker after real estate broker go out of business.
Posted by: hannible at December 11, 2008 2:32 PM in response to Realtor help
If I am reading you right, the broker told you that the deposit was first-and-last and a deposit on the apartment, and told you that it was not refundable unless you don't get the apartment.
And now you don't want the apartment, but want your money back.
While I don't think it's good business practice for the realtor to be taking money from you before you get approved, I don't see the part where you are getting screwed. It sounds like the realtor was straightforward about your risk before you handed over the money, and that you handed it over willingly.
I understand that $1500 is a lot of money, but this sounds more like a lesson about being an adult than anything else--I think you're probably out your cash.
If you paid with a personal check, you might want to try stopping payment on the check. But be aware that this opens you up to the consequences of welching on the deal you made with the realtor. Just because what the realtor did was a little unsavory, I don't know that it was illegal, and I am absolutely sure that the realtor has more resources for fighting than you do.
If it makes you feel any better, I think that everyone else here has done something just as stupid or perhaps even stupider with their money. It's how you learn.
Posted by: vanburenproud at December 11, 2008 2:41 PM in response to Realtor help
vanburenproud, no licensed broker deals this way. It's a scam.
Posted by: mopar at December 11, 2008 3:23 PM in response to Realtor help
First, I feel sorry for you greentypewriter, because it sucks to lose money, but you really have no right to reclaim the money you put down. You knew the conditions going in.
"Why do people, especially people who already live here, use a broker to find an apartment????"
I spent weeks upon weeks searching for a 1-bedroom under $2,000 on Craigslist and through friends and had very little luck. Then, just for the hell of it, I peaked at the brokered listings. There were many, many sub-$2,000 apartments.
I ended up in a rent stabilized two-room studio for $1,300/month that I couldn't have found; it was listed exclusively through a broker. Even after the broker's fee, it comes out to about $1,500/month--far better than anything I found on my own.
Posted by: alsawo at December 11, 2008 3:36 PM in response to Realtor help
Dept. of State- whoops. NYS dept. Of State. Yes, I understand the difference there.
Posted by: greentypewriter at December 10, 2008 5:59 PM in response to Realtor help