We sold our house "buy owner" to a buyer that also was not using a broker. We had all contracts signed (he signed an "as is" contract), and our mortgage broker pre-qualified him to buy our home. Yesterday, he (through his girlfriend) informed us that he no longer wants to go through with the deal. He does not even have the guts to call us directly himself. Can we sue to force him to buy our house? He does qualify to buy. The reason we got from his girlfriend was just that he is having "cold feet" about the deal. We are in Florida. I welcome all comments! Thank you!

did you take an earnest money deposit? The easiest answer I can give you is to look at your contract. How is it written, everything comes down to the contract and what the language in certain paragraphs state

What does your contract say? Most contracts give the seller a right to go after damages or keep earnest money in the case of buyer default, but I've never seen one that allows for a sort of "reverse" lis pendens.
Read your contract thoroughly. If you think that the buyer is in default according to the contract, contact your escrow holder to cancel escrow and request the buyer's earnest money, or contact a real estate attorney to go after whatever damages (normally this is a smaller amount than the earnest money) you believe are due to you.

Then, call a Realtor and get your house on the market!
--A

*I am not a lawyer. This is not legal advice.*

Generally, when a party defaults on a valid, binding contract, the other party can sue for "specific performance." In this case, you may be able to sue to force the buyer to purchase the home.

In reality, even if successful, it would probably cost you a significant sum of money and a lot of time. Meanwhile, you still haven't told your house.

The easier course is often to make a claim against the escrow deposit. If the buyer disputes your claim, then the escrow account holder (probably your title company?)will probably file an interpleader with the court for the purposes of determining who should get the money. At this point the escrow holder is removed from the equation and the courts have the final say. This may also take a while to do, if he disputes it.

As has been mentioned, carefully look over the contract and contact a local real estate attorney. The sooner you can resolve the issue, the sooner you can get your house back on the market.

Good luck!