Is this legit?

M

macnas

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A site came on the market and as it was beside my parents house, my brother said he was interested in it. His sister lives in a mews behind the parents house and showed no interest in the site although it gave her access to her house without going through the parents property. She did not put a bid on the site and said so to my brother, who then placed a bid which was accepted by the seller.He then paid a deposit to the estate agent. His solicitor has started the conveyancing but it is not finalised.
Since then she has thrown a hissy fit and wants the site. My brother, to maintain peace in the family, has said he wants to withdraw from the sale. He can do this as no papers have been signed.
My sister now wants to "step into" the bid of the brother and told the estate agent that the brother was buying it on her behalf! The estate agent has accepted this and is proceeding with the sale to her. Is this a correct proceedure for an estate agent to follow? Has the underbidder(s) any claim on the site? Is my brother in danger of being taken to court by the underbidder for conspiracy?
 
using a proxy bidder is very common. a lot of people submit bids through solicitors or other people for various reasons. eg if bono put in a bid on your house and you knew it was him, the price would go up straight away
your sister does seem a bit of a cow though.
 
How can your brother be taken to court by anyone over this? All he did was withdraw his bid before he signed a contract. His reasons for doing so are irrelevant.

Also, assuming your sister's bid is still the high bid the agent is doing the right thing by accepting it as his responsibility is to the seller, not the underbidder. I'm sure he gave the underbidder an opportunity to top the high bid.
 
Hi extopia,
My brother had his bid accepted by the seller. The legal process had begun with his name as purchaser. At that stage the sister was not interested in the purchase. But this last month she has demanded the property. My brother rather than create family bitterness, is no longer interested in the sale. The sister then went to the estate agent and told the story that the brother was buying on her behalf. The estate agent knows that this is not true. The brother's solicitor is still processing the sale/conveyance as not told yet what is happening.
 
Yes, that's what you said the first time, too. I don't think I missed anything, unless your brother has signed a contract?

Whatever is happening your brother should tell his solicitor what's going on and stop the process, if possible.

Did he sign a contract or just pay a (refundable) booking deposit?
 
Hi extopia.
He has not signed any contract. He has paid a deposit "subject to contract" (his words) to the estate agent.
He also has legal expenses to pay.
Is it possible for him to get the sister to use his solicitor to complete the transaction. This would mean not having to pay his solicitor? but get the sister to pay the cost instead?
 
No contract = no problem. The agent should refund the fee.

Re. the solicitor fees, fine if solicitor and your sister agree to this.

Like I say, you should tell your solicitor what's going on before things progress further.
 
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