Do I have any recourse against a broker whose lies cost thousands me in expenses, etc.?
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Do I have any recourse against a broker whose lies cost thousands me in expenses, etc.?
Attempted to rent a co-op in NYC. Their broker said he could definitely get us in within a week of submitting the application, citing inside relationships with the board of directors. It took over a month for 2 such board members to coordinate their schedules to meet with us. Instead of moving from one apartment to the next, we had to put everything in storage. Moving costs increased by $1200, I took off a month of work for nothing, and other hardships were endured. Any recourse?
Asked on July 18, 2017 under Real Estate Law, New York
Answers:
SJZ, Member, New York Bar / FreeAdvice Contributing Attorney
Answered 6 years ago | Contributor
Most likely no, you cannot get anything from him. The basis for such a claim would be "fraud": that the intentionally lied to you to get you to do something. But:
1) You'd have to show it was a lie--being mistaken is not fraud.
2) You'd have to show it was "reasonable" for you to rely on a claim you get in within one week, since the law does not let you legally rely on unreasonable (e.g. unbelievable) assertions--and since it is not reasonable to expect to be get into a co-op in only a week, given the need for board approval, your reliance would be found to be unreasonable and you could not recover money.
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