refuses to sell

[jtwin]

What is the name of your state?What is the name of your state? WA

hi. Five unrelated families have separate and private homes on a large parcel of land in Pierce County, WA, and hold title to the land together as a family trust. Three of the five homes are for sale; two of the "for sale" houses belong to families who live out of the country.

About a year ago, the home I'm interested in was advertised publicly for sale and an offer was accepted. The buyer, a man, took occupation of the residence, but then defaulted on the agreement and vacated. No hard feelings. The residence was readvertised and was on the market for about five months.

Recently, I made an offer on the residence, and my offer was accepted by the owner, who then presented me to the rest of the families (the trust) as a "qualified buyer." All but one of the trustees agreed enthusiastically to the sale. The one who did not agree said he didn't agree because he didn't "like me." No kidding.

I am a woman (and a rather articulate and intelligent one) and he is a really angry and mean-sprited man with volitile emotions. He said several times (and in front of everyone) that he didn't want to sell to me because he didn't "like me" because I "remind him" of this other woman he once knew, a woman he thought was a troublemaker, and he didn't really want to live around me anyway. I do not know this man well, and have only had three or four conversations with him.

isn't this gender/stereotype sex discrimination, and against the fair housing laws?

There was no other reason given.
The seller continues to want to sell to me.
what can we do?

can I/we force the sale?

any advice you have, I need it ;-)

by the way, the one who objected to selling to me has one of the three residence up for sale ;-)

 

[HomeGuru]

What is the name of your state?What is the name of your state? WA

hi. Five unrelated families have separate and private homes on a large parcel of land in Pierce County, WA, and hold title to the land together as a family trust. Three of the five homes are for sale; two of the "for sale" houses belong to families who live out of the country.

About a year ago, the home I'm interested in was advertised publicly for sale and an offer was accepted. The buyer, a man, took occupation of the residence, but then defaulted on the agreement and vacated. No hard feelings. The residence was readvertised and was on the market for about five months.

Recently, I made an offer on the residence, and my offer was accepted by the owner, who then presented me to the rest of the families (the trust) as a "qualified buyer." All but one of the trustees agreed enthusiastically to the sale. The one who did not agree said he didn't agree because he didn't "like me." No kidding.

I am a woman (and a rather articulate and intelligent one) and he is a really angry and mean-sprited man with volitile emotions. He said several times (and in front of everyone) that he didn't want to sell to me because he didn't "like me" because I "remind him" of this other woman he once knew, a woman he thought was a troublemaker, and he didn't really want to live around me anyway. I do not know this man well, and have only had three or four conversations with him.

isn't this gender/stereotype sex discrimination, and against the fair housing laws?

**A: no and if you had actually read the law, you would understand.

*****************

There was no other reason given.
The seller continues to want to sell to me.
what can we do?

can I/we force the sale?

any advice you have, I need it ;-)

by the way, the one who objected to selling to me has one of the three residence up for sale ;-)

**A: see above.

 

[jtwin]

reply to homeguru

My state is WA.

I asked, "...can we force the sale, and "isn't this gender/stereotype sex discrimination, and against the fair housing laws?..."

HomeGuru's reply was:

"...**A: no and if you had actually read the law, you would understand.

HomeGuru,
thank you for your response. Actually, I DID read the law
...both the federal fair housing and the WA fair housing laws...both of which say it is against the law to discriminate against "protected classes" which includes discrimination on account of sex.

Sex discrimination is a wicked and pernicious thing, and goes far beyond sexual harrrassment, wherein a person uses power to force or coerce compliance with physically-centered sexual demands...it also includes discrimination on account of gender, including on account of gender preference, as with homosexuals, or "butch" women,...that is, because a person is of a certain gender class.

Now, we all know that some men simply don't like some "types" of women, and they don't like them...any of them.... because they are a "type" of woman about whom they have, unfortunately, developed a stereotype, that is, does not consider individually, as is the case with this man, who doesn't like me because I remind him of some "strong" woman with whom he has bumped heads...and obviously didn't get what he wanted.... in his past. That means he is "classifying" me...stereotyping me...LIKE HER, just as surely as someone who, say, doesn't like black people because they are black.

The point is, my reading of the law says a seller can't put a home on the market, then refuse to sell it to a qualified buyer, at the asking price, simply because they "don't like" the buyer....for WHATEVER reason they don't like them. An offer to sell is an offer to sell; a seller cannot discriminate among buyers on account of sex, race, creed, handicap, religion, etc....they can only discriminate AMONG qualified buyers, based on the offers.

if a house is offered, and there is only one qualified buyer (who offers the selling price), and the seller (in this case, a member of the trust) decides not to sell to that buyer, I don't see how that can be interpreted as ANYTHING BUT discrimination of some sort AGAINST the buyer.

OK, so maybe the man is not discriminating against me because of my gender (although his comment that its because I "remind him" of another woman indicates otherwise)...maybe he is discriminating because my skin is too fair, or my hair is too long, or my feet are too big, or I have too much education and he feels intimidated, or I don't practice the "right" religion...for whatever reason, discrimination is discrimination, no?

and an offer to sell is an offer to sell. no?

my question is, can I force the sale?
jtwin

 

[HomeGuru]

My state is WA.

I asked, "...can we force the sale, and "isn't this gender/stereotype sex discrimination, and against the fair housing laws?..."

HomeGuru's reply was:

"...**A: no and if you had actually read the law, you would understand.

HomeGuru,
thank you for your response. Actually, I DID read the law
...both the federal fair housing and the WA fair housing laws...both of which say it is against the law to discriminate against "protected classes" which includes discrimination on account of sex.

Sex discrimination is a wicked and pernicious thing, and goes far beyond sexual harrrassment, wherein a person uses power to force or coerce compliance with physically-centered sexual demands...it also includes discrimination on account of gender, including on account of gender preference, as with homosexuals, or "butch" women,...that is, because a person is of a certain gender class.

Now, we all know that some men simply don't like some "types" of women, and they don't like them...any of them.... because they are a "type" of woman about whom they have, unfortunately, developed a stereotype, that is, does not consider individually, as is the case with this man, who doesn't like me because I remind him of some "strong" woman with whom he has bumped heads...and obviously didn't get what he wanted.... in his past. That means he is "classifying" me...stereotyping me...LIKE HER, just as surely as someone who, say, doesn't like black people because they are black.

The point is, my reading of the law says a seller can't put a home on the market, then refuse to sell it to a qualified buyer, at the asking price, simply because they "don't like" the buyer....for WHATEVER reason they don't like them. An offer to sell is an offer to sell; a seller cannot discriminate among buyers on account of sex, race, creed, handicap, religion, etc....they can only discriminate AMONG qualified buyers, based on the offers.

if a house is offered, and there is only one qualified buyer (who offers the selling price), and the seller (in this case, a member of the trust) decides not to sell to that buyer, I don't see how that can be interpreted as ANYTHING BUT discrimination of some sort AGAINST the buyer.

OK, so maybe the man is not discriminating against me because of my gender (although his comment that its because I "remind him" of another woman indicates otherwise)...maybe he is discriminating because my skin is too fair, or my hair is too long, or my feet are too big, or I have too much education and he feels intimidated, or I don't practice the "right" religion...for whatever reason, discrimination is discrimination, no?

and an offer to sell is an offer to sell. no?

my question is, can I force the sale?
jtwin

**A: I appreciate your feedback, however nothing in your post proves fair housing discrimination. Now if one of the Sellers stated, " I am not selling to you because you are a woman and I hate women", then you would haver a cause of action.

 

[HomeGuru]

There is more to your story. What is it? Are you a lesbian, have tatoos and piercings, practice satanic rituals, are you a retired porn star, play in a heavy metal band, are you ugly, overweight, smell bad, need your underarms shaved, have a beard, are you the size of a miget, drive a semi or a Harley, are you an animal lover and have 56 dogs and 32 cats..............what is it about you that ppeole perceive as out of the ordinary or not quite the norm?

 

[jtwin]

I understand where you are going, guru ....and, to answer your curiosity, there is nothing physically "extraordinary" about me (although I am rather beautiful in the classical sense, if a bit tall.) I am however, very well educated, and extraordinarly articulate, and do tend to staying on point in matters of information ;-)....what I 'look' like is not the point.

the point is: if a seller offers a single family residence for sale, and a qualified buyers makes an offer that is acceptable (that is, offers the asking price), and that is the ONLY offer on the table....can a seller refuse to sell because they don't "like" the person....for WHATEVER reason?

The buyer and seller are not forming a household.
The seller is vacating the property.
Isn't it irrelevant what the personal habits (type of music, type of religion, color of paint) the buyer prefers? If the seller refuses to sell because he thinks the buyer might not be accepted/acceptable by the neighborhood (say, might paint the house orange ...or "might" breed children of a different color...or might ANYTHING)...isn't that "block busting"

The seller's responsiblity does not extend past the purchase transaction, unless, of course, the seller misrepresents the property or its condition, etc.

so, can a seller refuse to sell to a qualified buyer, when the buyer's offer is the only offer on the table, and it meets or exceeds the seller's asking price?

 

[HomeGuru]

I understand where you are going, guru ....and, to answer your curiosity, there is nothing physically "extraordinary" about me (although I am rather beautiful in the classical sense, if a bit tall.) I am however, very well educated, and extraordinarly articulate, and do tend to staying on point in matters of information ;-)....what I 'look' like is not the point.

**A: Ok, I love classic beauty.

*************

the point is: if a seller offers a single family residence for sale, and a qualified buyers makes an offer that is acceptable (that is, offers the asking price), and that is the ONLY offer on the table....can a seller refuse to sell because they don't "like" the person....for WHATEVER reason?

**A: yes, the Seller can refuse to sell for any reason or for no reason whatsoever. There is no law requiring a Seller to sell even at ASKING PRICE.

**************

The buyer and seller are not forming a household.
The seller is vacating the property.
Isn't it irrelevant what the personal habits (type of music, type of religion, color of paint) the buyer prefers? If the seller refuses to sell because he thinks the buyer might not be accepted/acceptable by the neighborhood (say, might paint the house orange ...or "might" breed children of a different color...or might ANYTHING)...isn't that "block busting"


**A: no..........

***************

The seller's responsiblity does not extend past the purchase transaction, unless, of course, the seller misrepresents the property or its condition, etc.

so, can a seller refuse to sell to a qualified buyer, when the buyer's offer is the only offer on the table, and it meets or exceeds the seller's asking price?

**A: once again yes. And I acknowledge that you have been doing a fair bit of research in this issue. More power to you.

 

[BelizeBreeze]

Just poking my head in then I'm escaping....

All but one of the trustees agreed enthusiastically to the sale.

Remember that statement?

 

[HomeGuru]

Just poking my head in then I'm escaping....



Remember that statement?

**A: and remember the Alamo, 9/11 and Hurricane Katrina.

 

[BelizeBreeze]

**A: and remember the Alamo, 9/11 and Hurricane Katrina.

Hell, I don't even remember if or when I lost my virginity

 

[HomeGuru]

Hell, I don't even remember if or when I lost my virginity

**A: yes, we know, we know.