We entered into an agreement with a realtor and how to terminate it. Unilateral termination of a contract with realtors: how to act correctly

Realtors can no longer charge a penalty for unilateral refusal of a service
It is a common practice among real estate agencies to charge a penalty to a client if he unilaterally breaks the contract for the provision of services. The Supreme Arbitration Court ruled that this practice was illegal.
The Civil Code directly allows the customer to unilaterally refuse the service. Thus, the Supreme Arbitration Court of the Russian Federation came to the conclusion that he can use this right, and this should not be qualified as non-fulfillment or improper fulfillment of the terms of the contract, requiring compensation. An attempt to introduce a penalty provision into the text of an agreement is contrary to the Civil Code.
Experts emphasize that the court's decision is obvious; it only duplicates existing legislative norms.
These realtors explain that the system of collecting penalties was designed to protect them from fraud on the part of the client. Thus, a client, having used the services of a real estate agency and found a suitable partner for the transaction, could refuse to cooperate with the agency. The penalty prevented this from being done.
Nowadays, a real estate agent can charge only the actual costs incurred in the event of a unilateral termination of the contract by the customer. However, lawyers believe that the penalty can be called differently. The contractor may stipulate his right to payment for the work he has already completed. Apparently, experts assess the situation, from now on realtors will more often use a contract or agency agreement instead of the usual form of agreement.

The second “blow” to realtors was dealt by the Supreme Arbitration Court of the Russian Federation regarding a controversial issue: the legality of including in the contract for the provision of services a provision on the collection of a penalty from the customer for unilateral refusal to fulfill the contract. Now real estate agencies, as the ones that most often include the corresponding clause in the contract, will have to abandon such a form of protecting their interests as paying a penalty. The contractor can only count on compensation for actual expenses incurred in the event of a unilateral refusal by the customer to fulfill the contract.
The Supreme Arbitration Court of the Russian Federation qualified the inclusion in the contract of provisions on the payment of a penalty as a restriction of the right of a party to unilaterally refuse to perform the contract, which contradicts the provisions of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation. The customer’s unilateral refusal to fulfill a contract for the provision of paid services does not constitute a failure to fulfill or improper performance of an obligation due to the fact that the possibility of refusal is directly and imperatively provided for by the Civil Code of the Russian Federation. “This position of the Supreme Arbitration Court of the Russian Federation is consistent and fully meets the requirements of the law. However, it is often possible to use a different legal structure that best reflects the interests of the party, says Lyudmila Sokolovskaya, a lawyer in the corporate and arbitration practice of the law firm Kachkin and Partners. “For example, the consequences of canceling an order by the principal will be not only the obligation to compensate the attorney for the costs incurred in executing the order, but also to pay remuneration in proportion to the work performed by him.”

Often, when selling or renting an apartment, people turn to a real estate agency. They come there for many reasons. This is also a desire to insure against numerous scammers. This includes making a profitable deal as quickly as possible. However, signing a deal with a buyer or tenant often drags on for many months. In this case, a completely natural question arises: how to terminate a contract with a realtor unilaterally? Here's a real life problem.

Due to family circumstances, I will be forced to permanently move to another city. I still have an apartment here that I would like to sell. For this purpose, I contacted one of the local real estate agencies so that they could find a buyer for my home. Within a month after the conclusion of the contract, at least some activity was observed on the agency’s part. So, 2 or 3 people even came to watch. However, for several weeks now I have not seen any action from realtors, while every day is precious to me. Therefore, I am seriously considering terminating the contract. Please tell me if I can do this unilaterally, given that in the contract the agency provided for a serious penalty for such actions (3% of the apartment price). Alexander, Izhevsk.

So, it should be said right away that the client of a real estate agency should not be frightened by such a condition of the contract regarding the payment of a penalty. The whole point is that the relationship between the client and the realtor is fully embedded in the norms of legislation governing the execution of the contract, the purpose of which is the provision of services.

For a real estate agency client who has suffered from unfair actions, we recommend that you refer to the provisions of both Article 32 of the Law on the Protection of Consumer Rights and Art. 782 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation. All these rules provide for the customer’s right to unilaterally terminate the contract for the provision of services. Moreover, in this case we are not talking about any penalty. The only consequence that a unilateral refusal of a contract with a realtor may have for a client is compensation for the actual expenses incurred by him to perform specific work.

It should be noted that unilateral termination of the contract does not depend on preliminary compensation of costs to the contractor. In this case, the realtor has the right to make a separate requirement to the client. In this case, the expenses incurred must be justified and must be documented.

How to terminate a contract with a realtor?

In order to unilaterally terminate a contract with a real estate agency, you must send an application to the realtor to terminate the relationship. It should describe the circumstances of the conclusion of the contract and the shortcomings that were made in the work of the realtor. In addition, the application should indicate the date on which the agreement is terminated unilaterally.

This application must be submitted to the real estate agency in person against signature. If the realtor refuses to accept it, then the document should be sent by mail in a valuable letter with a list of the attachments. From the moment of termination of the contract, the client has the right to solve his problems in other ways. It is possible that he will find a buyer or tenant for his apartment on his own.

Terminating a contract with a real estate agency often takes a lot of time and nerves from the customer. Qualified support from a specialist will help protect the client from such problems. Therefore, when you come to the office of the Argument Plus Legal Center, you will not only be able to tell the lawyer in detail about your relationship with the realtor. Our employee will provide you with detailed oral or written advice, and will also prepare an application for termination of the contract. In addition, you can also shop in our online store without leaving your home.

Today, more and more people are turning to the services of realtors and real estate agencies. Often there is simply no time to independently search for housing or, conversely, its buyer. And not always a person knows about all the nuances of real estate trading.

But behind the convenience of real estate agencies, troubles can also be hidden. To avoid them, you need to carefully read the contract and clearly define the responsibilities of the parties.

Of course, the reputation of the realtor or the company he works for speaks for itself. It is worth giving preference to those companies that have been operating in the market for a long time and are members of professional associations. But you should be wary of agencies offering to move quickly to concluding an agreement.

Conclusion of an agreement

The agreement between the customer and the realtor (contractor) is a key document that defines the entire process of their interaction and their responsibility.

Each agency may have its own form of agreement. The following are also discussed separately with the customer:

Commission.
Agency agreements.
Contracts of assignments.
Agreements on additional paid services.

The Civil Code regulates relations within the framework of such agreements and determines their content. Mandatory information of the contract is:

The contractual relationship itself, which is described in the introductory part.
Subject of the agreement.
Obligations of the parties.
Deadlines for their implementation.
Cost and payment procedure.
Conditions for termination of the contract.
Responsibility of the parties.

Each part of the agreement defines the stages of the relationship between the parties.

What is important to pay attention to?

There are a number of important nuances that need to be checked in the contract with a real estate agency.

On the part of the executor, the document must be signed by the director or his deputy who has such authority. If the agreement is signed by an ordinary agency employee, it will not have legal force.

The charter and other documents referred to in the text of the agreement must be publicly available.

The subject of the agreement must contain a clear description of the services of realtors and their payment upon completion.

It is also important that the property in respect of which the services of realtors will be provided is described in detail, and its characteristics are indicated in detail and unambiguously.

It is important that the real estate agency undertakes to check the property for encumbrances, and also collect all the necessary documents and register it in the event of a purchase.

Completion deadlines must be specified for each stage of the contract.

It is also important to specify the list of services for a certain fee, so that the contract does not contain abstract broad concepts, such as “real estate services” in general.

All additional fees must be negotiated and depend on additional services.

When making an advance or deposit, you need to understand the difference between these concepts. The advance payment is returned upon termination of the contract, regardless of the reasons for termination. is returned in double amount if the contract is terminated due to the fault of the agency, but is not returned if the contract is terminated by the customer himself.

You also need to describe in detail the options for terminating the contract. In particular, can it be terminated unilaterally and what liability of the parties is provided for in this case.

The contract must be equal. In order to make sure of this, you need to check the clause on the responsibility of the parties.

Termination of a contract with a realtor unilaterally without paying a penalty or fine

In order to avoid financial losses when terminating the contract, this must be provided for when concluding it. In particular, it is necessary to spell out in detail and unambiguously the possibility of unilateral termination of the contract.

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Also, all its points must not contradict the law. The agency cannot intimidate with fines and penalties. It is possible to terminate a contract with a realtor without paying a penalty, because by law he is obliged to return all money, except for what was paid for services performed.

When answering the question of how to terminate a contract with a real estate agency for the sale of an apartment, you need to understand that this can be done at any time. To do this you need:

serve notice of termination to agency employees. You must receive notification of receipt from them;
send notification by registered mail. It is important to keep a copy of the notice and receipt of mailing of the letter.

It is important to use these particular methods of written notification, since in the event of litigation, they will be evidence of the customer’s actions. Oral messages about termination of the contract will not be taken into account by the court.

As mentioned above, fines themselves cannot be imposed for terminating a contract. But if the contract states that the customer agrees to pay them in the event of termination of the contract due to more favorable terms of the transaction, then the realtor can apply such sanctions. This once again proves the importance of taking into account all circumstances when concluding a contract.

It should also be remembered that the relationship between customers and service providers is regulated by the Federal Law “On the Protection of Consumer Rights”. This also applies to real estate services. The rights of the customer in this case are protected more than the rights of the agency. He is entitled to:

Reservation of rights that do not infringe on the interests of the parties to the contract.
Protection from payment of a penalty upon termination of the contract, since it may worsen his position, which is prohibited by law.
Refusal of the company's services with payment for services already provided.
Refund of money by the agency if it did not provide services within the prescribed period.
In case of termination of the contract, the advance must be returned within 10 days.

If the real estate agency refuses to return the advance payment, it will be fined by court decision.

How to terminate an exclusive contract with a real estate agency

Any agency tries to conclude an exclusive contract to work with a specific property. In this case, they receive a monopoly right, that is, the client will not be able to contact other real estate companies to order services for that same house or apartment.

Main responsibilities under the exclusive agreement:

On the agency’s part – ensure the purity of the transaction and advise on all marketing and tax issues.
On the client’s side, the agency transfers ownership rights, which gives it the opportunity to work without competition with other companies.

Typically, the framework of such an agreement protects the client from fraud, allows you to analyze the situation and conclude a successful transaction.

Termination of such a contract is a rather complicated process. The agencies try in every possible way to avoid this, especially since they often have obligations to several parties to the transaction at once.

Therefore, in practice, it is possible to terminate an exclusive contract without paying fines only if there is a gross violation of the law or the terms of the contract by the realtors themselves. But the customer must have documentary evidence of such violations.

How to terminate a contract with a realtor? The head of the Voronezh Legal Center "Zakon" Oleg Rukavitsyn advises: in ourIn legal practice, similar situations often occur. Citizens find realtors who are tasked, for example, with finding buyers for an apartment or finding an apartment to rent. After some time, the customer of the service begins to doubt that realtors are not taking any action to find clients.How,in this case and on what grounds, it is possibleterminate the contract with the realtorand get your money back?

It’s good if your contract specifies specific actions that realtors must take to find buyers, and the grounds must also be stated termination of the contract . But if this clause is not in the contract, you should not despair. After all, according to the law, the rules for terminating a contract are determined by Art. 450 Civil Code:

Changes and termination of the contract are possible by agreement of the parties, unless otherwise provided by this Code, other laws or the contract.
At the request of one of the parties, the contract can be changed or terminated by a court decision only:
- in case of a significant breach of contract by the other party;
- in other cases provided for by this Code, other laws or agreement.
It should be remembered that a violation of the contract by one of the parties is considered significant, which entails such damage for the other party that it is largely deprived of what it had the right to count on when concluding the contract.
In the event of a unilateral refusal to fulfill the contract in whole or in part, when such refusal is permitted by law or by agreement of the parties, the contract is considered respectively terminated or modified.

If realtors violate the terms of the contract, it can be terminated in accordance with the Law “On Protection of Consumer Rights”:
In accordance with Art. 28 of the said law: ". If the contractor violated the deadlines for performing the work (providing a service) - the start and (or) completion dates for performing the work (providing the service) and (or) intermediate deadlines for performing the work (providing the service) or during the performance of the work (providing the service ) it has become obvious that it will not be completed on time, the consumer has the right to choose:

assign a new term to the executor;
entrust the performance of work (provision of services) to third parties for a reasonable price or perform it on their own and demand compensation from the contractor for expenses incurred;
demand a reduction in the price for performing work (providing a service);
refuse to fulfill the contract for the performance of work (provision of services).

The consumer also has the right to demand full compensation for losses caused to him in connection with violation of the deadlines for completing the work (rendering the service). Losses are compensated within the time limits established to satisfy the relevant consumer requirements.
Thus, send a written complaint to the real estate agency with reference to the above articles, indicate your requirements, set deadlines. The employee must put an acceptance mark on your copy of the claim (signature/full name/date/seal).

As an example, I will give one of the cases that this year was handled by our lawyer at the Zakon Center, Galina Polukhina, in the interests of a resident of Voronezh, who gave his hard-earned 7,000 rubles to an unscrupulous realtor - an individual entrepreneur - for the selection of housing, but in the end did not receive any service. Our lawyer prepared a pre-trial claim, which the “realtor” ignored, so a statement of claim was prepared, which was submitted to the Justice of the Peace at court precinct No. 12 in the Kominternovsky district of Voronezh. This claim by absentee court decision, which has now entered into legal force, was fully satisfied. Our principal returned his 7,000 rubles, plus a 50% fine in the amount of 4,000 rubles was collected from the pseudo-realtor, as well as legal expenses in the amount of 2,000 rubles, for a total of 14,000 rubles. The operative part of this court decision is attached.

Dear Voronezh residents! If you are concerned about the question - how to terminate a contract with a realtor? If you need our professional assistance in asserting your legal rights in relations with an unscrupulous realtor, then the specialists of the Voronezh Legal Center "Zakon" are always ready to help you with this. Consultation with a lawyer is free, regardless of the complexity of the case.

How to refuse a realtor and the provision of services if an agreement has been concluded for the sale of an apartment (after signing), if you change your mind about selling, how to refuse cooperation when buying an apartment after viewing, if you yourself have found a buyer.

We will analyze the conditions when a client has the right to terminate an agreement with an intermediary and a real estate agency when purchasing or selling housing, whether it is possible to refuse a realtor if buyers are found and other situations.

How to refuse the services of a realtor

There are several options for refusing the services of a realtor when selling an apartment:

without concluding a contract;
with a signed contract.

Reasons for refusal, based on practice:

the seller himself found a buyer;
changed his mind about selling;
the buyer found the owner himself.

The consequences of refusing the services of an intermediary may include financial reimbursement of the real estate agency's costs, which include:

paying for the hassle of collecting documents;
advertising for the sale of living space;
fines and penalties for refusing to cooperate with the agency before the expiration of the contract;
consultations;
housing cost assessment;
development of marketing activities for the sale of housing;
organization of viewings, negotiations;
whatever the real estate company comes up with, the list can go on and on.

So, everything listed above is the “wish list” of the real estate agency. According to the law, it does not have the right to charge fines from the seller or buyer, and expenses for services provided are reimbursed only when they are actually proven.

The basis on which some money may be demanded from you, as a buyer or seller, is a signed agreement.

How to refuse a realtor when selling an apartment

Do not sign the act(s) of completed work! No matter what the brokers tell you about his “information” status! If it so happens that you signed a piece of paper without looking, which turned out to be an act, then you will have to file a claim in court to declare the act void. Otherwise, brokers may win in court and will have to pay them not only the amount of the commission, but also a fine for using their money.

Read the agreement (contract) carefully and make sure that you pay only when the transfer of rights has occurred, and not earlier.

If you miss sanctions and fines, they are not legal (source: Review of judicial practice of the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation No. 4 (2016)).

If the contract states that you trust the intermediary to perform any actions on your behalf (power of attorney), then write a written notice indicating that:

unilaterally refuse the services of a realtor;
revoke the power of attorney, indicating the clause of the agreement where it is stated.

Make sure that the intermediary does not have evidence (which he can present to the court and it will be accepted) that he has found a buyer for you. For example, this could be an “information” agreement (discussed below, where we consider the situation with the buyer) or a certificate of completion of work.

The seller has a better chance than the buyer to pay the real estate specialist proven and actually incurred expenses, especially if the contract and the certificate of completion of work are signed.

What payments can a realtor demand if the contract is signed and the work certificate is not signed?:

payment of a check for advertising your property, if the check is received from an ad aggregator, for example, AVITO and other paid services;

If you paid any financial resources when concluding an agreement with a realtor for the sale of an apartment, you can refuse the realtor’s services and return the money, in accordance with Part 6 of Article 13 of the Law “On Protection of Consumer Rights”.

To do this, write a notice of unilateral termination of the contract with the real estate agency, send a valuable letter with an inventory (registered or with notification) in which you state your desire to terminate the agreement and request a refund, plus set a deadline of 10 days. If you do not receive a response after the specified period, you file a claim in court, in which you demand to terminate the contract and recover the money paid.

How to refuse a realtor when buying an apartment

A typical situation: a buyer searches for a suitable option on the Internet, finds the property he is looking for, calls the specified number and ends up with a realtor. He makes an appointment for a viewing, arrives, but is not allowed on the doorstep and is not shown the apartment until he signs the contract. At the same time, the intermediary convincingly broadcasts that the signature does not bear any obligations, because This is a report for the owner.

However, after carefully reading the contract, the buyer will discover that there are obligations, namely, to pay the intermediary a commission if a transaction is concluded with the seller.

How do you like the situation? So what should we do?
You can sign the contract under duress, because otherwise they won’t show you the apartment (you are actually standing next to the house, not on the threshold, and therefore you won’t be able to find an apartment without an intermediary. Sign, because you have nowhere to go. There is a rule by which you can to pull up such a realtor: Part 2 of Article 16 of the Federal Law “On the Protection of Consumer Rights”, which does not allow the imposition of services; liability for this is provided for under Article 14.8 of the Code of Administrative Offenses of the Russian Federation.

In order to attract a realtor under such an agreement for infringing on your rights, the agreement must clearly state the conditions for its execution, for example, the wording that the apartment is shown if the buyer agrees to pay the real estate agency commission in the amount of such and such and agreement is expressed by signing agreement.

I don't know if I explained it clearly. In general, the construction of the offer in terms of the showing specified in the contract should be such that you are forced to sign the agreement, otherwise the apartment will not be shown.

You understand that in words the realtor tells you one thing, but the contract says something completely different, therefore, insist that amendments be made to the contract. Say that you don’t mind signing it and want to see the apartment, but let them write what they say in words!

Turn on the “fool” until they either make the changes you need or show you the property without a contract.

Something else to consider before viewing, when you are asked to sign such an agreement - ask the real estate agent to show the agreement with the owner. If there is no contract, and they sell you an “information” contract, go look for the owner or agent with whom the owner works under the contract!

Brokers practice double commission, i.e. They take money for services on both sides of the transaction and this is often clarified during a personal meeting with the owner, when the buyer makes an advance or deposit.

The legal aspect of refusing the services of a realtor when buying an apartment

The agreement that the agent may push for the buyer to sign before the showing is an agreement for the provision of paid services. Article 782 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation states that you can refuse the services of a realtor after signing the contract by paying him the actual costs.

Clause 11 of the Resolution of the Plenum of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation (06/28/2012) No. 17 “On the consideration by courts of civil cases in disputes regarding the protection of consumer rights” explains that all relations between realtors and the parties to the transaction are regulated by the Law “On the Protection of Consumer Rights” (hereinafter referred to as the FCPP) .

In turn, Art. 32 of the Law “On the Protection of Consumer Rights” states that the buyer can refuse the services of a realtor when purchasing an apartment at any time, compensating for actual expenses that are provided for in the signed agreement.

Fines, penalties and demands to pay for the service in full, leave an advance payment with the agency, and as compensation are insignificant requirements, according to the Law “On Protection of Consumer Rights”. Intermediaries simply take advantage of the legal illiteracy of the parties to the transaction.

What can be attributed to the actual waste of the intermediary:

ticket for travel on a tram, metro, bus, train;
etc.

Therefore, in fact, you will have to pay the intermediary for travel to the apartment and back. He is unlikely to provide evidence to the court for a large amount, and therefore he will be denied compensation for damages, as is now the case in the vast majority of cases.

How to refuse the services of a realtor after viewing an apartment

In order for the court to be on your side, it is imperative to provide factual evidence of the correct refusal of the services of an intermediary. To do this, send a letter to the address of the real estate agency. Letter formatting options:

with notice;
valuables with an inventory;
custom.

Please include a handwritten notice in the letter. The day you receive this notice will be considered the date you officially cancel your Realtor agreement.

If agents threaten to sue you after your refusal, bear it calmly. If you are summoned to court, be prepared to file a counterclaim with the demands made.

You found out whether it is possible to refuse the services of a realtor if an agreement has not been concluded and if it has been signed, advice and legal recommendations.