Refunding Money Down On A Home Purchase

Added August 30, 2007 by Ilyce R. Glink

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Summary: A home buyer put a down payment on a home and then was denied financing. Now the seller refuses to refund the down payment. A financing contingency in the contract will determine if he can get his down payment back.

Q: My son put $1,000 down money on a house that he wanted to buy. The mortgage company said that he didn't have enough credit so they turned him down.

His Realtor said that he wasn't entitled to get his hand money back because he was in default because he didn't have all of his information to her on time. She never specified a date that the information had to be to her.

The bank denied him his loan before the closing date. I would like to know if he is entitled to his money back because the bank denied him his loan. Thank you in advance for your help

A: It depends on what his contract says. If his contract included a financing contingency (which is standard), then if he was unable to get financing within the specified period of time and complied with the terms of the contract then, yes, he is probably entitled to get the cash back.

But if he just went and signed any contract they put in front of him without having an attorney or anyone knowledgeable look at it, and it didn't include a financing contingency, then he probably isn't entitled to get his money back.

If he can't get his cash back, he'll probably learn a couple of important lessons: Don't sign legal documents without having an attorney read them first and explain them to you and only work with a top real estate agent whom you've researched and has been recommended highly to you by other buyers.

A final lesson might be, don't rush to put down cash because someone tells you to. Your son probably worked long and hard for that money, and now may have to forfeit it because he wrote a check without fully understanding the consequences.

Good luck. I suggest your son read my book, "100 Questions Every First Time Home Buyer Should Ask 3rd Edition" which is available online at Amazon, at local bookstores and probably even in his local library.

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