OfflineHello, I hope everyone is well. My partner and I encountered a dilemma we've never experienced before. We really don't know how to move forward without consulting an attorney, so I decided to post our situation here in hopes of getting some bits of wisdom.
We made an offer in the name of a land trust that we hadn't formed completely at the time that our offer was accepted and signed by the seller. My partner put up an EMD amount of 1K via a certified check in his name. After consulting a good friend of mine, we decided to not go the trust route and to just use our personal names to purchase the property. We informed our agent via email of the change who, in turn, informed the listing agent. We never signed an addendum mentioning using our personal names. Well, our title company discovered there were massive issues with title and would not insure the property. Due to clear title not being produced, we signed a release from the AOS form confirming that our deposit would be returned. My partner went to pick up his deposit check and realized that the check was made payable to the trust. His name did not appear on the check. He contacted the listing agent to get a revised check. The agent agreed to do so, but eventually contacted my partner and told him that the check has to remain in the trust's name. We were informed by the listing agent's broker that we should finish setting up the trust, get it notarized, take it to the bank to open up an account for the trust and deposit the check. Is there a simpler way to do this? Is this our only option? The error wasn't on our part, as we promptly revealed that we'd be using our personal names and not the trust. It had also been revealed that we would not proceed with establishing the trust upon receiving the signed contract from the seller's side.
Do you still have your copy of the email in your computer? And...when you get a check at the bank, they usually type a name of the purchaser on it. That should show that your partner is the one that purchased it. If you don't have a copy, the bank should be able to find it in their records. There should have been a ck stub that was attached to it that you should have removed and kept for your records.
Hopefully, that might help if you show them to the broker. Having to go to the expense of setting up a trust, etc is ridiculous advice! That's my opinion anyway.
Karen
"You're never too old to be what you were meant to be!"
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Yes, I have the emails and told my partner to present them as evidence. The issue is ridiculous to me. Century 21 returned the deposit, but made the check out in the name of the trust. However, after just reviewing the release document, it has our names down as the buyer and doesn't include the Trust information at all. It also indicates that the deposit is to be returned to the buyers as set forth in the release. That should be more than enough evidence to encourage Century 21 to revise the name and issue a new check. The broker said that it couldn't be done, which is so weird to me. Also, we went forward to complete the trust, had it notarized, and presented the documents to the bank, along with the check. The bank tells us that the trust is considered a commercial entity and that we may have to get an EIN, then open an account for the trust. We should be hearing from the bank's legal department this coming Tuesday to see where to go from this point. A simple error is turning into something so difficult, smh!
Well, we'd gotten the issue resolved. The account for the trust was able to be opened.
title companies can be very finicky!
Valerie
“And will you succeed? Yes indeed, yes indeed! Ninety-eight and three-quarters percent guaranteed!” ― Dr. Seuss
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Thanks, Valerie! I'm glad that ordeal is over
Reading post like yours teaches me on what not to do in this real estate business. I'm glad you guys got your deposit check back.
Reynold Orozco
Sounds like on to the next one!
Best wishes!
Karen
"You're never too old to be what you were meant to be!"
www.deangraziosi.com/real-estate-forums/investing-journals/59128/day-for...
"Shining Like a Star & Dancing on Sunshine"
"Shoot for the moon! Even if you fall short, you'll still land among the stars!"
Thank you, Reynold and Karen! Yup, Karen, on to the next!