Cold Feet: Request to Release Earnest Money

[Tony Cardello]

Hi all,

I'm in the process of buying a duplex that needs a lot of work. Things have gone well so far but the sellers have presented me with an unexpected bump in the road.

The seller has requested that I release my earnest money. The reason they have conveyed is they are concerned I will get cold feet in the next month as we wait for the sewer and electrical work to be completed. Contractors are booked out far in advance in my city making it difficult to get the work done in a timely manner. This has pushed our initial closing date from the 8/23 to at least 9/28. While I understand their concern that I will back out before then, I have my own concerns with releasing such a large sum of money or even a portion of it. I'm curious if anyone has had an experience similar to this as either a buyer, seller or a real estate agent.

Thanks in advance and let me know if you need any further clarification.

[Nick G.]

Hey @Tony Cardello, you really will want to defer to your agent on this one, I have no idea how these things normally go in your market or what rights and protections are afforded to you in Oregon.

However, I can tell you that if anyone ever asked me or my clients here in CA to do such a thing, I'd tell them to take a hike.

What happens if the work isn't done properly? What happens if, unrelated, the roof randomly caves in? What happens if anything happens that results in you needing to leave the escrow despite your best intentions?

I don't know how it works in Oregon, but those would be my feelings.