Question: What can be done if both a seller and buyer agree to cut their own deal, in order to cheat both the seller's and buyer's agents out of their commissions?

Answer: The buyer and seller can arrive at whatever agreement they want. What they cannot do is undermine any listing or buyer brokerage contract to which they have agreed.

This is a matter to resolve immediately, before it gets out of hand. A letter from your attorney with a copy of your agreement should clearly establish your claim to a commission -- and to legal fees and damages if required.

While you're at it, ask your attorney to explain the concept of tortuous interference. In general terms, when a third party interferes in a contractual relationship they may be liable for losses and damages.

For example, if you have a listing agreement with a seller and a buyer tries to interfere by saying you should be paid less or not at all, you may have a claim again the purchaser.

Question: I need advice. My house has been on the market for one week in still-cold New Jersey. I am no longer living there. I was out of the area for four days and stopped by for a few minutes to check on things. All was okay. Then there was a showing at 4 pm. The next day when I entered at 10 am to clean out a closet, the house was cold and had a strange smell. When I checked the thermostat, it was set at 53 degrees on air conditioning (it was 43 degrees this morning).

It's clear to me that an idiot broker or client attempted to see if my central air worked and forgot to put the heat back on. You're not supposed to turn central air on when it's cold out. I'm sure the smell was the compressor seizing.

I immediately reported this to my broker who called the showing broker who denied having touched the thermostat (no big surprise there). So now I'll be facing a huge repair caused by a broker's negligence.

To me, this is why businesses have liability insurance, but who is responsible? Ultimately, isn't my own broker responsible?

Answer: You've jumped the gun on repairs. Until a heating and air conditioning professional that you trust checks the system you don't know that anything is actually wrong with it.

Before saying that a given broker was an "idiot" or that someone engaged in "negligence," you need to be sure of your facts. In this case the facts are insufficient.

You don't have any evidence to show who was responsible. Your listing broker, the showing broker, the prospective buyer and even you can all plausibly deny touching the system.

As to a repair bill, if there is one, insurance may not help if you or the broker have a large-enough deductible. Indeed, if an insurance claim will produce only a minor benefit it may be wise not to file a claim to hold down premiums.

A suggestion: Get a repair estimate from a reliable heating and air conditioning professional. Then ask the broker if he can help off-set the cost. While you likely would not win taking your claim to court (because of that pesky lack of evidence), a broker not defined as an "idiot" or accused of "negligence" might try to help as a matter of good client relations.

Question: My husband and I have a property for sale on a salt water canal in Florida. We have two lots. One is a little smaller than 1/4 acre and has our 2 bedroom, 2 bath ranch stilt home in great shape.

The other separately deeded buildable lot, also waterfront, is just under 1/4 acre also.

The property is currently for sale -- the house and its lot for $339,900 and the separate lot for $119.000. On the separate lot are our $3,000-$4,000 wooden shed with a loft and our double carport. We use the entire property, but the two parcels are separately deeded.

We have two potential buyers interested in the buildable lot.

Should we sell the lot now? Should we sell the house and its lot separately? (Not that there's a house buyer waiting in the wings.) Should we hold out and sell the entire property together?

Answer: You have raised a classic question which explains why real estate is a localized commodity.

To answer your question sensibly one must know the local market. You have to speak with your broker and ask if there's a strong market for homes like your's on a single lot. You also have to ask if the separate sale of the second lot would significantly reduce the value and sale potential of the main property with the house. Once you have answers from an experienced local broker you can then make a decision.

Question: I'm in a contract to buy a home and the seller asked for one price and we agreed upon that price if it appraise for that price. The lender will not give us a loan for more than what the appraisal value for and we aren't going to purchase a home for more than it appraised.

So since we are in contract with the seller he has to lower the price and sell it to us, right? We are not backing out of the contract so he is forced to sell to us for what it appraised for. Is there any consequences involved for an owner to try to get over on a buyer by not wanting to close the deal because it appraised at a lower price?

Answer: Not so fast. What does the agreement say? Typically -- but not always -- a sale agreement with an appraisal clause will provide that a buyer must go through with a sale if the appraised value is equal to or greater than the sale price.

However, such clauses typically do not say that a seller must reduce his price in the face of a low appraisal. Instead, what generally happens is that the buyer must provide additional cash above the appraised value to purchase the home, the seller may elect to lower the sale value or some combination of the two.

However, if the seller decides not to lower the price, then the buyer can add additional cash or, typically, withdraw from the agreement without penalty.

The logic of such clauses is that a lender will finance a home on the basis of the sale price or the appraised value, whichever is less. If the appraised value is less than the sale value, then the lender will only finance the smaller sum -- which means to pay a price higher than the appraisal the buyer must bring additional cash to closing.

Before going further you need to have the agreement reviewed by either your buyer broker or an attorney to determine the specifics of what it actually requires of the seller. The betting here is that the seller will not be compelled to lower his price.

Question: Four months ago an agent from another company office sent me a referral agreement to list her customer's fiance's townhouse nearby. After working with my customer for two months, he (my customer) asked me to help the couple find and purchase a home in the other agent's area. He explained that he and his fiance were not happy with the other agent's services and they really wanted me to work with them on the new purchase.

I clarified with the customer that there was no exclusive buyer's agreement with the other agent. And they asked that I not disclose to the other agent that I would be helping them, rather than the other agent, because they feared she would sabotage the other listing for sale. As the original referral reflected an agreement for a listing only, I did not feel an obligation to notify the other agent as my customers had requested. After we found a new home for the couple and wrote a contract for sale and purchase, the other agent demanded a referral fee for the new purchase.

As she is already to receive a fee when the listing sells, do I owe her a second fee for this transaction too? And if so, when does it stop?

Answer: If your agreement with the referring agent requires you to pay a fee should you list and sell the property, then plainly the other agent is due a fee if the property is sold. If the agreement is silent about representing the clients in the purchase of a property, then in my view the first agent loses.

Unless there's a written agreement to the contrary, the agent does not have a lifetime claim or "ownership" of your relationship with the clients beyond the single act of listing their property. If there's such a written agreement then the clients should know about it -- so they have the opportunity to go elsewhere.

Imagine that the clients called you in six years and asked that you to sell the property that you have been asked to find for them. Would you even consider a referral fee to the original agent? Would the other agent call?

Speak with your broker and attorney for specifics.

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