What can I actually do about a negligent realtor who's costing me thousands?

I am going to take this seriously and give you the actual escalation order, but let me be straight with you about one thing first. I only have your side of this, and I am licensed in Alabama rather than New York, so I am not going to put a label on anyone's conduct from here. What I can give you is exactly where to apply pressure, in what order, and what each step can and cannot do for you. Most people in your spot push on the wrong one first and lose a month doing it. Start with the managing broker, today, in writing. Every licensed agent works under a broker who is responsible for supervising them. Most sellers never make this call, and it is the step that most often actually changes something, because a broker can reassign the file, put a second person on it, or simply get answers out of the other side that a client cannot. Send a short written summary. Dates, what you were told, what you were not told, and what you want to happen next. Keep it factual and unemotional. Written matters, because it creates a record and because it tends to produce a faster response than a phone call does. In parallel, go get the facts yourself instead of receiving them secondhand. You are entitled to know the current status of your own transaction. Who is the buyer's lender now, and what is their clear to close estimate? Was the municipal search ordered, on what date, and by whom? Where is it sitting right now? Your attorney's office ordered it or was supposed to, and here is a practical workaround that works more often than people expect: the paralegal will usually answer email when the attorney does not. Address it to the paralegal directly. If your attorney's office has genuinely gone silent on a live closing, that is its own serious problem, and in New York, where attorneys run the closing, it may actually be the bigger of the two issues you are describing. You can raise it with that firm's managing partner before you consider anything further. Do that this week. Then look at your contract, because your leverage is in there, not in any complaint. Two questions. Does the contract have an outside closing date, and has it passed? And is there a provision making the buyer responsible for a per diem after a certain date? A lot of contracts have one and it goes unused because nobody reads for it. If your closing date has come and gone, your attorney can send a time of the essence letter setting a firm date with real consequences attached. That is the actual tool for a buyer whose lender keeps slipping, and it exists precisely for the situation you are in. Forcing that conversation with your attorney's office is probably the highest value thing on this entire list. The licensing complaint is a separate track with a separate purpose. New York licenses real estate agents through its Department of State, and that office accepts consumer complaints. Understand what it does and does not do. It investigates whether a licensee violated license law and it can discipline them. It does not get you money and it will not speed up your closing. File it if the conduct warrants it, but file it because it belongs on the record, not as a strategy for recovering your holding costs. Money is the fourth track and it needs its own professional. Recovering documented losses caused by someone's failure to do their job is a civil matter, and it takes a New York real estate attorney who is not the one handling your closing. Keep every receipt and every piece of correspondence. Start a simple dated log today if you do not already have one, who said what and when. It is far easier to build now than to reconstruct six months from now, and its existence tends to change how seriously everyone treats you in the meantime. One thing that may soften the number while this drags on. If you are asked to sign another extension, that is the one moment you have leverage, and it is the only moment you have it. Do not sign an extension without asking what you get for it. A per diem, a closing credit, a portion of the deposit released if they fail again. People sign extensions reflexively because they are afraid of losing the deal, and they give away the only card in their hand. I am an agent rather than your attorney, and this genuinely needs one. But make the broker call first. It is free, you can do it today, and it is the step most likely to move something this week. Dustin Woodley, Camelot Properties, LLC — Tri County River Region area.

You may have options, but recovering the $150/day in holding costs isn't automatic. You'd generally need to establish that the delay was caused by a breach, negligence, or other actionable conduct and that the losses are legally recoverable under your contract and applicable New York law. The first thing I'd do is document everything: emails and texts with your agent, dates you were told the municipal search had been ordered, when it was actually ordered, the lender change, every scheduled and postponed closing date, and your $150/day carrying costs. Keep invoices and proof of those expenses. I'd also escalate this beyond the individual agent. In New York, a salesperson works under the supervision of the representative broker, so contact the brokerage's managing/representative broker and put your concerns in writing. You can also file a complaint with the New York Department of State if you believe the agent engaged in incompetence, untrustworthiness, or other misconduct. The Department can investigate and, in appropriate cases, impose discipline or seek restitution, although a licensing complaint isn't the same as a private lawsuit for your damages. Most importantly, I'd get another New York real estate attorney involved if your current attorney isn't responding. Ask that attorney to review the purchase contract, closing extensions, correspondence, and evidence of the delay and determine whether you have a viable claim against anyone for your additional costs. And don't assume the agent is solely responsible just because the municipal search was delayed. In New York transactions, attorneys, title companies, lenders, municipalities, and other parties can each be responsible for different parts of the closing process. The facts and your contract will determine where the responsibility actually falls. Juan Picos Real Estate Agent JohnHart Real Estate

Meredith, your decision here would be to terminate the deal and try to find another buyer, or wait for them to close. You and your realtor can be more proactive to stay on top of the buyer, but ultimately these are your two options. Keith Jean-Pierre Managing Principal The Dapper Agents Real Estate Operations in ALL 50 States

Wow, what a pickle! I'm so sorry you're enduring this mess. You need to know WHY they switched lenders. Are they really shaky, and everyone's playing the game that they "hope it'll all turn out"? Or, did they just find a rock-star lender that's giving them a better deal? If they're so shaky they're trying another lender in desperation, you deserve to know the deal will probably fall apart. You should be told sooner rather than later. Contact the agent's broker ASAP. In writing (email) and follow up with a call. If you get nowhere doing that, then you could try filing a complaint. I'd file a complaint about the lawyer too.

Meredith, the most useful lever you have is not the agent, and it is not the licensing complaint. It is her broker, and a time of the essence letter from your attorney. Those two move faster than anything else on the list. Start with the broker. In New York a salesperson is licensed under a broker, and that broker is responsible for supervising her and carries the errors and omissions coverage that would actually pay a claim. A complaint sent to the agent goes into a drawer. A written letter to the broker of record, laying out the missed lender change, the municipal search that was not ordered, the dates, and your accruing carrying costs, lands on the desk of the person who has both the authority to fix it and a financial reason to. Find the brokerage's principal broker by name, send it in writing, and ask for a written response by a date you specify. Do that this week. Second, and this is the one that stops the bleeding: your closing has been dragging since July, and in New York the standard tool for that is a time of the essence letter. Your attorney sends notice setting a firm closing date with reasonable notice, and after that date the buyer is in default. That changes the entire posture, because right now the buyer has no cost to delaying and you are carrying 150 a day. Whether it is appropriate depends on your contract and the facts, which is precisely your attorney's call. But it is the question to put to him in one sentence: are we in a position to serve a time of the essence letter, and if not, why not. Which brings up your attorney not returning calls. That is a separate problem and you should treat it as one. Send a written message, email is fine, stating the specific questions and a deadline for response, and note that you are considering substituting counsel. If nothing changes, you can retain a new attorney and your file must be turned over to them. New York real estate closings run through counsel, so an unresponsive attorney in the middle of a stalled closing is not something to wait out. On recovering the money, be clear-eyed. To recover the holding costs from the agent or brokerage you generally have to show a duty, a breach, and that the breach actually caused those specific damages. Failing to tell you about the lender change and misrepresenting that the municipal search was ordered are exactly the kinds of facts that support that. What will make or break it is documentation, so build it now: Get the builder's written per diem schedule showing the 150 a day and what triggers it. Save every text and email with the agent, especially anything where she said the search was in process, and note the dates against when it was actually ordered. Write a dated timeline while it is fresh. Alla and Brenda pointed you to the New York Department of State, and that is worth doing. Understand what it is and is not: DOS licensing complaints are about discipline, and the department can investigate and revoke a license or refer a matter on. It is not a mechanism for getting your money back. File it because it should be filed, but do not treat it as your remedy. I am a real estate professional, not an attorney, and I am not going to tell you what your claim is worth. What I will say is that the order matters here: broker letter and time of the essence question first, because those can still change the outcome, and the recovery claim second, because that one can be pursued after you close. Poughkeepsie is not my market, I work the Palos Verdes Peninsula and the South Bay in Los Angeles, so I will not pretend to be your local agent. If you want a referral to a strong Hudson Valley agent or need help finding real estate counsel up there, say so and I will point you to someone. I am sorry you are dealing with this, Zoltan Peresztegi. Zoltan

Mereedith, I'm sorry this happened. You should start documenting everything: emails, texts, promised timelines, closing extensions, and especially the $ 150-per-day charges. Before assuming the Realtor is legally responsible, have an independent NY real estate attorney review exactly who was responsible for the lender communication and municipal search. If the delays resulted from negligence by your agent, broker, attorney, or another party, you may have a claim for documented financial damages, but you'll need to establish that their actions actually caused those losses. I would also contact the Realtor's managing broker immediately and ask that the matter be reviewed, including whether an errors-and-omissions insurance claim is appropriate. You can also file a complaint with the New York Department of State regarding a real estate licensee, and attorney-conduct complaints go through New York's Attorney Grievance Committees. Those complaints can address misconduct, but they generally aren't a substitute for pursuing financial damages. With your costs increasing every day, I wouldn't wait; get an independent attorney involved now. Brenda Ashby | REALTOR® | JohnHart Real Estate | DRE License # 01700249

Meredith, I'm sorry, that's a miserable spot, and the silence from both your agent and your attorney is the part I'd fix first. Today, email your agent's managing broker directly. Brokers are responsible for their agents, and a written timeline showing the lender switch you weren't told about and the weeks the search sat unordered tends to get a response fast. Copy your agent. If your attorney still won't call back, you're allowed to hire a different one who can pick up the file and press the buyers on the closing date. On recouping the $150 a day, that's a claim against someone, and only a real estate attorney in Poughkeepsie can tell you who and whether it's worth pursuing. Keep every text and email; if the broker brushes you off, the state licensing office takes complaints too. I'm licensed in California, so I can't speak to New York's closing process, and the search question in particular is one your local attorney will answer in a minute. Alla Novytska, Realtor®, JohnHart Real Estate, DRE #02254775