I am an agent in Florida representing sellers and buyers in a sale of a mobile home. The home is old but the value is in the property ( property appraised for sale price). The buyers went with a mortgage broker who said he can get them a loan through private investors because banks won't lend money on trailers. I wrote the Far 9 contract and next to the financing contingency paragraph I checked off seller will apply for conventional, FHA and VA financing. The buyers where unable to secure financing through 3 separate private investors and the deal has died. The Sellers have aquired an attorney and he has said that becuse I did not specify the buyers where looking for investor financing the seller is entitled to the escrow. Has anybody had a situation like this? I am in a nightmare of an escrow dipute and I feel like it is my fault. We have a denial letter from the investor inside the committment period. I was under the impression that conventional financing was the same as investor financing(hard money). Thanks in advance.

You know that in Florida, resolution of an escrow dispute depends on where the escrow is being held.

If it's in a broker's escrow account, the broker must notify FREC that they have an escrow dispute and should apply for an EDO.

If it's at a title company, and it cannot be resolved by negotiation or mediation, all that's left is court.

Just because some attorney says something, that doesn't make it true.

Thanks, I am trying to find out all the information I can on this situation. I just want it to be over with.

Probably the "Seller" wasn't applying for anything.

Does your form specify that the Buyer was to make application to a "financial institution" known for providing such financing ? I doubt that an Individual Investor would suffice.


It may be that a denial letter from the Mortgage Broker, who originally arranged the Financing, would be more in keeping with the terms of the P&S than the letter from the Individual Investor. That might satisfy the Seller's Attorney; but it sounds like you may be beyond that point.

Here, anytime we have a disputed deposit situation, our P&S prescribes that we immediately place the funds into the hands of a "Court of Competent Jurisdiction". Luckily, most of my defaults have gone UN-Disputed, and I have been able (after the required waiting period) to pay the Deposit to the Seller. Here, the Listing Agency gets to keep 50% of those Defaulted Deposits (not to exceed the amount of the Commission that would have been earned), so I have at least received something for my headaches. Good Luck.