Real Estate Sale

[slug]

I sold a property a few months ago and have received 3 of the 4 payments that were due. The last payment was due to be in the buyers lawyer account at the end of July. The Offer of Purchase says that if any of the payments due are not received within 15 days then the offer is null and void and that any monies previously received were non refundable.
In the meantime the appliances were stolen and even though they were not included in the sale I agreed to pay a fair amount for the buyers to buy new ones along with an allowance for some damage caused by the robbery.
Another problem is that the central air conditioning unit is not there. It was not there when I purchased the property so, obviously, it would have not been there when they made the offer. The Offer of Purchase does not mention any air conditioner being included in the sale. Now they want me to have a new one installed. That, of coarse, is out of the question.
So, I guess my legal question is this: Since the first issue (not having the final payment) precludes any problems that happened afterward, is the offer now legally null and void? To me the answer is obvious, but here, you never know. And how complicated, time consuming, and expensive could this become? Would the buyers have to file suit against me? Would the property be in limbo and therefore not be able to be sold until all of this has been resolved?
Just to be clear, I am more than willing to sell the property as agreed. I am not looking to take advantage of anybody. But it appears to me that the buyers are either very naive or trying to pull a fast one.
Any comments would be appreciated.

[CFA123]

What's your lawyer that drew up the contract have to say about it?

[slug]

The "Offer of Purchase" was drawn up by the real estate company.

[JDJones]

Yep, I agree, get your lawyer involved.

While you are not out to get "free money" from anyone, believe me, that's the way that a lot of folks operate here.

There's a well known finance house on the North Coast that will be more than happy to keep a buyers money if the buyer doesn't make good on their promise to pay, and they are within their rights to do it.

I have heard the phrase "friends are friends, but business is business" more than once.

If it were me, I'd replace the appliances, and fix the damage caused by the break-in. That's fair.

The A/C???? Heh heh, folks in hell want ice water....

What is the buyer saying, by the way? What's the reason for not paying?

[Black Dog]

Originally Posted by slug

The "Offer of Purchase" was drawn up by the real estate company.

It's normal for a real estate company to draw up an offer letter but then you should have signed a contract with a lawyer!

[slug]

The contract says essentially the same thing as the Offer of Purchase.
It is evident to me that I am on sound legal ground but I can see the day when I am sued, made out to be the bad guy, and tied up in court forever.
The buyer, through his lawyer, simply rejected my offer, and have heard nothing more from him in a few days. What is puzzling here is that his client stands to lose a considerable amount of money.

[Robert]

Originally Posted by slug

What is puzzling here is that his client stands to lose a considerable amount of money.

Maybe he thinks this is a way of stalling the last payment?

I echo others advice, go get a "decent" lawyer if you already haven't.

[slug]

Thanks to all for your comments.

[Fabio J. Guzman]

You should not sell or buy real estate in the DR with just an offer to purchase. The reasons are many and can be found in previous posts.

Dominican real estate law is different from American real estate law

[MikeFisher]

and in case of a robbery,
if such robbery occurs after the deal is done/first payment done, i would guess it is bad luck for the buyer, not for the seller.
Mike