If you are in the market to lease a house and you engage in the services of a real estate estate agent, you must be careful how they conduct themselves towards you. Be sure to protect yourself. First of all, you should realize that if you contact a real estate agent who represents an owner, they have an obligation towards the owner of the home. They have a duty to be honest and fair with you. However, realize that they are going to try and “fetch” the highest price to make the owner as happy as possible.
If you use an agent that represents you, they are more likely to find exactly what you are searching for and negotiate the terms on your behalf. Here is a quick short story that may help you avoid a difficult situation.
A few weeks ago I contacted a real estate agent who represented the owner of a home. We agreed upon the terms of the house, and I filled out a lease agreement and signed the bottom of the agreement. This is a regular Texas Association of Realtors lease agreement. It states that the contract is binding when both parties sign the agreement. The real estate agent handed over the keys to me and I thought I was approved.
A few days later the owner contacted me and state that he needed some of my personal information. He wanted to conduct a background check requiring my social security number, references, and employment information to check on my income.
At this point I decided to back out of the contract. I indicated to the owner that I would like to back out of the “deal”. I asked him specifically not to cash my check. He cashed my check. He then stated I should contact his real estate agent for further contact. At this point I realized that I am in a pickle and wish I just leased a regular
Houston Galleria apartment home.
The question at this point is are both the owner and myself bound by the contract. In a normal real estate transaction for a lease such as this, there is usually an application that must be filled out so the powers that be can approve or decline the application.
It looks as though the owner may not have realized that his real estate agent handed over the keys to me. Is it too late for the owner to ask me to leave. That is a difficult question. He did not sign the contract, but his real estate agent did provide me with the keys.
I have since then communicated that the owner refund my 1st months rent, and I have emailed the owner of the home and the real estate agent that I wish to withdraw my offer. Am I bound into the contract? Please read more about leasing
Heights Houston apartments.
