If I made an offer on a townhouse but on the wrong square footage being provided to me, what are my rights?
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If I made an offer on a townhouse but on the wrong square footage being provided to me, what are my rights?
My offer was made based on their advertised sq ft of 1435 ft. The appraisal came back at 1353ft. The floor plans for the unit show 1394 ft. When I asked the realtor where they were getting the advertised 1435 ft they said off tax documents. I verified that is correct, however I feel I was mislead by the listed additional 41 feet that doesn’t exist. Do I have any rights to get my escrow and other closing cost back or am I locked into the contract and if I back out I lose my deposit and other closing cost?
Asked on January 20, 2016 under Real Estate Law, Mississippi
Answers:
SJZ, Member, New York Bar / FreeAdvice Contributing Attorney
Answered 8 years ago | Contributor
The real issue is whether you saw the premises or bought it sight unseen. If sight unseen, you may have a case for a price adjustment, based on the misrepresentation; but if you viewed the premises before finalizing the offer, a court would conclude that you offered based on the evidence of yor senses (what you saw) and therefore are locked in.
It is almost certain, though, that for a difference of 41 sq. feet, or only around 3% (give or take) of the sq. footage would you be able to safely get out of the contract: that discrepancy is too small--i.e. not "material" enough--to justify terminating the contract. A small price reduction is the best you can count on.
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