RICHMOND
Residential Sales
Terms &
Conditions
Residential Sales - Terms & Conditions
This is a legal document. Please take time to read it carefully and ask any questions relating to the terms and conditions below before signing our corresponding Instructions to Act.
1.0: Terms and Conditions of Business.
1.1:
In accordance with the Estate Agents Act 1979 and the Estate Agents (Provision of Information) Regulations 1991 this Confirmation of Instructions Agreement sets out the conditions under which Cantell & Co will act as Agents for the Clients in the sale of the property.
2.0: Definitions.
2.1: Client.
Means the person or persons whose details are set out under the heading ‘Client Details’.
2.2: Agent.
Means Cantell & Co Estate Agents.
2.3: Commission or Fee.
Means the agreed percentage of the total sale price of the property or an agreed fixed fee.
2.4: Charge.
Means any costs other than the commission or fee above, agreed in writing with the Client.
3.0: Agency Agreement.
3.1: Important Notice.
This is a legal document. Please take time to read it carefully and ask any questions relating to the terms and conditions below before signing our corresponding Instruction to Act. When you sign the document you are hereby authorising us to act as your selling agents from the date of this Agreement and we shall enter into all negotiations on your behalf on a ‘subject to contract’ basis.
3.2:
The type of agency is clearly referred to within the Confirmation of Instruction form attached. There are three types of agency which are defined as follows:
3.3: Sole Selling Rights.
The Client will be liable to pay the commission to the Agent, in addition to any other costs or charges agreed, in each of the following circumstances:
- If unconditional contracts for the sale of the property are exchanged with a buyer introduced in the period during which the Agent has sole selling rights, even if the purchaser was not found by the Agent but by another agent or by any other person, excluding the Client unless it is apparent that this interest came from our marketing.
- If a purchaser first introduced by the Agent goes on to buy the property (whether or not through another agent) in circumstances where that purchaser was re-introduced less than six months after the date this Agreement ended.
3.4: Sole Agency and Joint Sole Agency.
Where the Agent acts on the Client’s behalf as Sole Agent/Joint Sole Agent, the Client will be liable to pay fees to the Agent/Joint Sole Agent in addition to any other costs or charges agreed if at the time unconditional contracts for the sale are exchanged:
- With a purchaser introduced by the Agent during the period of the Agents Sole/Joint Sole Agency or with whom the Agent had negotiations about the property during that period, or;
- With a purchaser introduced by another agent during that period.
- If a purchaser first introduced by the Agent goes on to buy the property (whether or not through another agent), in circumstances where the purchaser was re-introduced less than six months after this Agreement ended.
3.5: Multiple/Dual Agency.
Where the Confirmation of Instructions form shows that this is a Multiple or Dual Agency, the Client may appoint other agents to act in competition with Cantell & Co. If the Client has more than one agent working for them, they will pay whichever agent introduces the purchaser. The Client will be liable to pay commission to that agent in addition to any other charges or costs agreed. Cantell & Co may enter into an arrangement with the other agent/s and agree to share the fee:
- If at any time unconditional contracts for the sale of the property are exchanged with a purchaser introduced by the Agent or with whom the Agent has negotiations about the property during the agency period.
- If a purchaser first introduced by the Agent goes on to buy the property (whether or not through another agent), in circumstances where the purchaser was re-introduced less than six months after this Agreement ended.
4.0: The Agent’s Charges.
4.1: The commission the Client pays the Agent is based on the total value of the transaction. The amount will be either the percentage rate or the agreed fee detailed in the Confirmation of Instructions form. All Agent’s charges will be subject to the addition of VAT, unless otherwise specified.
5.0: Settlement of Commission or Fee.
5.1: The Commission or Fee is payable as a result of the circumstances outlined herein and becomes due at exchange of contracts or (if there is no contractual exchange) upon completion of the sale.
5.2: The responsibility for payment of the Commission or Fee remains with the Client named on the Confirmation of Instruction form. The Agent will submit his account to the Client’s solicitors who should settle the payment no later than 5 working days after completion. The Client should instruct their solicitor to pay the Commission or Fee out of the proceeds of the sale, within the aforementioned time scale.
5.3: If the account remains unpaid after the payment due date referred to above, the Agent reserves the right to charge daily interest at the annual rate of Interest of 2% above the National Westminster Bank base rate, from the date the payment is due until payment is received in full.
6.0: Double Commission Warning.
6.1: If the Client has instructed another Agent on a Sole Agency/Joint Sole Agency/Multiple Agency or Sole Selling Rights basis, the Client must check whether by instruction Cantell & Co as well, the client will be liable to pay more than one Estate Agent’s Commission or Fee.
7.0: Termination of Agency.
7.1: Either party can terminate this Agency Agreement by giving 14 days’ notice to the other in writing. The 14 days’ notice may be given at any time to terminate the Agency, at the end of, or after the last day of the initial period, specified within the Confirmation of Instruction form. The Client agrees that all outstanding charges will be paid to the Agent within the 14 day period.
8.0: Marketing Issues.
8.1: The Client consents that the details of the Client’s property will be advertised on any property website and/or other media.
8.2: If it is felt that during the marketing of the Client’s property that the appointment of a Sub-Agent would assist with the sale, written authorisation from the Client would be sought. The Sub-Agent is a person who receives and acts upon instructions from the Principle Agent rather than directly from the client. Remuneration would be by separate agreement between the Agents concerned. Sub-Agent’s fees are the responsibility of the Principle Agent.
8.3: Cantell & Co may ask for permission to erect a ‘For Sale’ board at the property. Any board would comply with the Town and Country Planning (control of advertisement) Regulations 1992 as amended. The Agent accepts liability for any claim arising under those regulations in connection with the board, unless the action arises as a result of a further board being erected by another Agent. In this respect the Client agrees to notify Cantell & Co immediately if any other board is displayed or erected at the property.
9.0: Offers.
9.1: The Agent will promptly forward details in writing of all offers received from potential purchasers at any time until contracts have been exchanged, unless the offer is of an amount or type which the Client has specifically instructed the Agent, in writing, not to pass on.
9.2: A written or computerised record of all offers received will be kept (including that date and time that the offers were received by the Agent and the Client’s response). This record will be available to the Client upon request. The Client must promptly inform the Agent of all enquiries or discussions which the Client may have with any prospective purchaser, which are not made via the Agent.
10.0: Access to Premises.
10.1: If the Agent holds the key to the property, the Agent must accompany all viewings. If the Agent is arranging for someone to view an occupied property, the Agent must agree the arrangements with the occupier beforehand.
10.2: It is the Agent’s usual practice to release the keys to certain professionals, such as surveyors acting on behalf of the purchasers, who require access, the Agent must agree the arrangements with the occupier beforehand. In order to avoid delaying the sale, once the Agent has established their identity, they are permitted to inspect the property unaccompanied. The Client must advise the Agent in writing if this is not acceptable. The Agent will continue to seek permission to allow unaccompanied visits by any other third parties, such as contractors or representatives of any utility companies.
11.0: Extra Services.
11.1: By Law the Agent must tell the Client if the Agent or any connected person intends to earn any commission or fee from offering the Client or the buyer other services. If the Agent or any connected person earns money from any of these services, the Agent or connected person would keep this commission fee.
Unless instructed otherwise Cantell & Co would offer all applicants and prospective purchasers its full range of estate agency services including the valuation of their present property, a sales service and any ancillary professional services.
12.0: Personal Interest.
12.1: Under the Estate Agents Act 1979, the Agent must declare whether there is a personal interest in the sale of the property. To enable the Agent to fulfil this obligation, the Client is requested to indicate any personal association with the Agent. If the Client is, or thinks there maybe, a close relative or friend or have any business interests with anyone involved with the Agent, the Client should let the Agent know immediately. This will need to be confirmed within the Confirmation of Instructions form.
12.2: If you have a personal interest in your property and it is apparent that this interest did not come from our marketing, we will not charge a fee unless we are engaged in negotiations or the progression of the sale.
13.0: Client Property Details.
13.1: The property details the Agent has prepared are attached to this agreement. If the details are not attached they will follow shortly. Under the Property Misdescriptions Act 1991 anything the Agent says or prints about the Client’s Property, as the Client’s Estate Agent, must be a provable fact. It is very important that the Client reads these details carefully and lets the Agent know if there is anything that the Client thinks the Agent should have included or that is wrong.
13.2: Please remember that the Agent cannot say anything about the Client’s Property that the Agent cannot prove. For example, the Agent cannot say that property has under floor heating, if there is no evidence of it. Any alterations the Client might want to make must meet the requirements of the Law. In all cases the final decision will rest with the Agent.
14.0: Discrimination.
14.1: The Agent will not discriminate against any person under the definitions of the Sex Discrimination Act 1975, the Race Relations Act 1976, the Equality Act 2006 or the Disability Discrimination Acts. The Agent will not discriminate or threaten to discriminate against any prospective purchaser of the Client’s property because that person is, will not be, or is unlikely to be accepting services that the Agent will, directly or indirectly, provide.
15.0: Copyright.
15.1: The Client agrees that the copyright in all particulars, brochures, photographs and other promotional material prepared by or at the direction of Cantell & Co shall belong to Cantell & Co.
16.0: The Property Ombudsman.
16.1: The Agent is a member of the TPO (The Property Ombudsman) and follows the TPO code of practice. The Client agrees that the Agent may give information about the sale of the Client’s property to the Ombudsman, if the Client has registered a complaint and they ask for that information. The Client also agrees that the Agent may give the Client’s contact details to The Property Ombudsman, (if they ask for it) to help them monitor how the Agent is following the code of practice.
17.0: Money Laundering.
17.1: Under the Money Laundering Regulations 2003 and the proceeds of the Crime Act 2002, the Agent is legally obliged to verify the identity of the Client through sight of legal photographic identification (e.g. Passport, photographic driver’s licence) and documentary proof of address such as a recent utility bill.
18.0: Data Protection.
18.1: The Agent is registered under the Data Protection Act 2018.
19.0: Unoccupied Premises.
19.1: Cantell & Co accepts no liability or responsibility for the maintenance or repair of, or for any damage to, the property at any time. If the property is vacant during adverse weather conditions, frost damage may occur to water and heating systems and sanitary appliances. Our Clients are strongly recommended to take all necessary action to protect their property from any such risks and to ensure that they have adequate insurance cover.
20.0: Energy Performance Certificates.
20.1: Energy Performance Certificates are a legal requirement. We will arrange and pay for an EPC to be undertaken, if needed.
21.0: Notice of Right to Cancel.
Where this contract is signed by a consumer client within the home or within their place of work, the Client has the right to cancel the contract. Cancellation will be accepted if it is sent or delivered to us in writing within 14 days of the date of the contract.
Complaints Procedure
In the unlikely event that you should have any issues with the service provided by Cantell & Co, in the first instance please speak with the representative concerned. If you remain dissatisfied, please write to the Managing Director at 11-13 Worple Way Richmond TW10 6DG, who will acknowledge your complaint within three working days and respond fully within 14 working days.
Should you still not be satisfied you can then refer the matter to The Property Ombudsman. The Property Ombudsman, Milford House, 43-55 Milford Street, Salisbury Wiltshire SP1 2BP I Tel: 01722 333306 I Fax: 01722 332296 I Website: www.tpos.co.uk
