Appraisal comes back lower than asking, seller is not willing to return deposit

[Jinglei Shen]

I was in a contract for a duplex, the appraisal come back materially lower than asking price, 14% cheaper, the seller made my agent to challenge the appraisal by submitting a set of comps at and beyond asking price in the same area, we ask my lender to revalue, the revaluation result came back, same price as initial appraisal. The seller is not willing to lower the price, so I decide to walk out the deal. The seller is being difficult, first said only return half my deposit, now not willing to return whole deposit using me passing the inspection date as excuse, my agent is fighting for me and said to the seller it is about financing bank is not lending at the asking price, the contract has general terms about financing, it is a standard contract my agent offered, my agent told me he is going to call the title company, hopefully title to return my deposit.  It is my first out of state investing deal, Ohio is one of state does not need lawyer to review contract, so I have not hired a lawyer to review my contract. 

Any other investor has experience this before and what are the course of actions I can take to have my deposit back?

[Sasha Mohammed]

State by state is going to vary, but general rule: if you still had contingencies intact, you should have every right to exercise those contingencies. OH is an escrow state, so i would have your agent reach out to the escrow officer and let them know you are cancelling the escrow, and which contingency you are exercising (whether it be appraisal, loan, or otherwise)... and ask when you can expect your EMD back in full. Disclaimer that I am not licensed in OH to give you any formal advice but I don't believe the seller has any say in the matter here regarding your EMD... this is the literal point of having a third party middle-man (escrow) in the mix.