I have a property for sale in california. it went to escrow and found out that it does not have a clear title?

can we cancel the sale without getting in trouble with the buyer or the realtor? the buyer put down $500 and gave it the realtor. i do not mind giving back the $500. it is going to take some time for me to get a clear title. the realtor is telling me that i can get in trouble with the buyer. help anyone.I have a property for sale in california. it went to escrow and found out that it does not have a clear title?
You should also look into the title company that closed the property for you. They are liable if the deed was not clear. Yes, you can cancel the sale based on the fact that the deed isn't clear. Just tell them about it. Few people will try to go to the closing table with a clouded deed. Get in trouble? Bull. The realtor will have trouble because he won't get his commissionI have a property for sale in california. it went to escrow and found out that it does not have a clear title?
i agree. one of the contingencies of sale of a home is a clear title. i don't see why they are putting this on you. it is the responsibility of the title company, the lender and the escrow company. these people are supposed to take care of any issues. if you can't clear title that is fine but you will not get into any trouble for falling out of escrow. it happens all the time. the realtor is trying to scare you. they maybe in the industry but they don't know all the details. they are not your lender, they are not your title company and they are not your escrow company. they are your realtor. maybe you should consult another realtor and consider switching realtors. you can cancel the sale if it is still in the waiting period.
Are you selling For Sale By Owner? Why can't you ask your realtor this question? Every brokerage has a lawyer that will answer these types of general questions for you. You get what you pay for!! Also, have you not retained a lawyer in connection with this home sale? If not, are you crazy?





You don't provide near enough facts to answer your question conclusively so it's difficult to give more than a rule of thumb type answer. I can give you some generalities though.





First, know that often a buyer likely can't sue you for this unless the contract you signed specifically gives them the right to do so. It's is a contingency like any other in a contract and both parties agree to the terms.





Second, understand that this is a very common thing to have happen. Every Realtor who does any kind of volume runs into a cloudy title now and then. It's usually not a really big deal but you mention it might take some time to clear your title. Why? What is the cloud? How much time do you need to clear it? If it's a month, then offer to delay the closing and see how they respond, let them kill the deal if they don't like it. If it's a year then ask your lawyer what to do.





The worst thing that could happen would be you may end up being a nice guy and pay them for their inspection and survey and other stuff but there is no way this should go to court.





The only way I can see this being bad for you is if you knowingly marketed a home with a untransferrable title. You didn't do that did you? Even if you did they would have to prove you knew, which they couldn't so just kill the transaction and don't worry about it.





When was the title clouded? Were you tranferred a cloudy title?
Well, no. Isn't that the point of a search? The sale is contingent upon a clear title search. The title can't be transferred, you were unaware of it. If you kept his/her money then I could see a big problem. Give the money back, get on with your life.


The Realtor is probably telling you this in the hopes that you will just pay the lien and continue with the sale. It's not that you changes your mind, you can't legally transfer the title.