Couple ordered to pay €150,000 after bypassing estate agent in south of France
Court rules they negotiated a lower price on €2.5m property
A couple who negotiated a reduced price for a €2.5million property after bypassing the estate agent who had shown them the house have been ordered to pay the agent €150,000 in damages.
They must also pay a further €3,000 in compensation following a ruling by France’s highest court, the Cour de cassation.
The property, described in court documents as a “luxury villa in the south of France”, was initially put on the market in 2017 for €3.17m.
The estate agent, based in Antibes, Alpes-Maritimes, had signed a non-exclusive mandate to handle the sale, with a 6% commission.
The asking price was reduced to €2.99m in early 2018, with the 6% estate agent’s fee still payable by the buyer.
Couple returned for second viewing
In April 2018, the agent showed the property to the couple, who were interested enough to return for a second viewing two days later.
The following month, they signed a promesse de vente (preliminary sale agreement) directly with the seller for €2.5m, without the agent’s involvement.
The agreement contained a clause stating that the buyers would be liable for any claims brought by estate agents holding sales mandates for the property.
However, when the acte authentique (final, legally binding sale deed) was signed on August 29, 2018, references to the buyers being liable for estate agency fees had been removed.
The agent subsequently took legal action to recover his commission.
The buyers initially won, with the court ruling that there was no contractual relationship between them and the estate agent. They also won on appeal, arguing that they were entitled to negotiate a lower price directly with the seller.
Highest court rules in agent’s favour
The Cour de cassation overturned those decisions.
It ruled that the removal of the clause concerning the estate agent from the final sale deed demonstrated “a desire to act fraudulently to the detriment of the estate agent’s rights” (une volonté d’agir en fraude aux droits de l’agent immobilier).
The couple were therefore ordered to pay €150,000 in damages, corresponding to the commission the agent had lost, plus €3,000 in compensation.
The estate agent did not wish to comment when contacted by The Connexion.
