Jim, good post!  That would make my heart skip a beat or two as well.  As a former elementary school teacher, I'd have to step back from that situation and take a "Realtor Time Out."  Wow, hope that never happens to anyone!

In a real estate career situations like these are unavoidable.  It is the actions of another party other than yourself that puts another twist in the deal...  There are always solutions, but at the moment it happens none of them are in the front of your mind.  It is like the patient that is told he/she has cancer.   I guess you block out a lot of what the doctor is saying.  Your suggestion of "Time Out!" is most appropriate.  That is exactly the right thing to do.  Let cooler minds prevail.  Let some of the emotion out of the balloon.  Let the seller verbalize, vent frustrations with life... and then tell them "Let me get back to you!"  Always play the good guy, you are their agent, but at some point you also will have to tell them of the realities of their actions, and consequences.  Your broker, the closing attorney or their own legal counsel can fill in the rest of the picture.

A few years ago I sold our home in Georgia to move to Virginia where I also have a brokers license.  There market was smoking hot.  We contracted to sell our home here, and the prices jumped another 150K up in Virginia.  When we came back from Virginia, we realized it was a bubble bursting...but we had already contracted to sell our fantastic home.  We offered the buyer money to get out of the contract, they refused to even consider so we performed.  It was not what we wanted to do, but it was the right thing. 

Hi Jim.  Yup, a contract is a contract is a contract. It's so true that we are always their agent, and thus have to keep their interests in the foreground.  I would definintely be sitting down with my broker and the seller in the same room and try to resolve the issues.  Thanks for your post.

Lee

Thanks Lee.  I think that is the most important thingto remember.  THe seller thinks it is their home, and the buyers feel they have purchased it in good faith.  It is hard especially when the buyers are relocating from out of state.

If you listen well to WHY the seller wants to cancel the transaction, perhaps the problem is with another transaction, the one they were planning to buy, for example. If there's a valid reason for their reaction, then perhaps helping to solve that will allow this one to go forward.

Sharon - I've done that also.  Each deal is different.  Sometimes they just had a bad hair day!  The next day is when I try to determine where it all heading.

Great post, it really makes you think...I hope to never face that one!

I've not had to face this... but a friend has. It was quite a mess. Went all the way to court. The seller was ordered to perform. And did so with help from the local law enforcement. Ugly. Good post with good advise. Take a deep breath and remember the only thing that matters is the facts. Not the emotion.

A contract is a contract.  Specific performance is the remedy if the rest of the contract has been fullfilled.

There is no 3 day recision? LOL  Great post... I've never had a seller back out, but I did have a buyer change their minds.  He was ready to pay the 10% penalty and did.

There was only one instance when we let a seller out.  He rejected before the final signatures. His wife had passed away the year before from cancer, and he was going into foreclosure.  He had incredible medical bills and was forced to sell all his personal belongings. We pulled out all stops and got him a full price offer.  We spent over $1500 in marketing.  In the meantime his insurance reviewed his claim after they told him the case was closed. They sent him a check for 87K.  He said it was a miracle, and now he wanted to buy back his possessions.  I told him I would do the same thing.  He then proceeded to buy back all his memories.  He died to weeks later in the home. 

On other closings the agents received full commissions, and the buyers were compensated for their inconvenience.

I received a call from local agent just about two weeks ago who wanted to see if I would talk the the sellers if they called me.  He didn't want me to persuade them (he said), just discuss the options they had-or didn't have.  It appears that the sellers were upside down and had to take about $8,000 from retirement accounts to close the deal and were getting cold feet when actually pulling out the cash.  I never received a call from the seller, but the deal did close when I checked on it later.  I can only assume that the possibility of a long court battle and costs resulted in the sellers thinking more clearly.  

That is happening more and more frequently especially in Atlanta.  We lead the nation in 100% loans.  52% of every loand written in the stat of Georgia last year were interest only 100%.

I had this exact scenario happen.  My clients were the buyers and ended up with an attorney ready to sue for specific performance and then 9-11 happened.  The seller really lucked out on this one as my clients decided to wait until everything settled down before they moved from Colorado to here.  It is amazing that a seller thinks they can just back out after the option, inspections etc.  A contract is a contract, is a contract.

I've never had this happen...yet.  I'll be beating down the door to my managing broker's office if/when it does!

Well it is a real scenario.  Who knows what is really going on in someones life.  Most times we represent a party buying or selling a home...we've only met the people for a very short time. Divorce, sickness, finances or just "Planet It is All About Me!"