Moral question, selling a car given a deposit

If you didn't have it on paper that the deposit was non-refundable I would call him and tell him pay up now or the deal is dead and come get his cash.
As someone else said before, always put it down on paper, it carries more weight in court if it should make it that far.CYA always!

 

Number 2. Its fair and honest. End of story.

 

I had a deposit situation with a 47 Plymouth. 3 months after he gave me the deposit the guy came back and I returned his deposit. the only reason he got it back is because at the time he gave me the deposit I was not activly selling it. it was just sitting in my shop.

if I had it in the paper or even told one potential buyer it was sold I wouldn't have returned it.

this guy sounds like a dreamer. give him his money back and make an honest effort to sell it. tell him to come back only if he has the money to buy in his hand.

 

Give him a deadline of this Saturday. Tell him to either come with the cash, or don't come.
If he asks about the deposit, tell him you're going to hold it until either the truck is sold to someone else, or he buys it.
If he never shows back up, keep the money.
If he shows back up with the balance, sell him the truck.
If he shows back up after the truck is sold to someone else, refund his deposit, less the money you spent advertising it and keeping it insured for three more weeks.
Seriously...you've had to keep this truck insured because he hasn't come up with the money. That's money DIRECTLY out of your pocket, due to him telling you "I want it, here's a deposit, DON'T SELL IT TO ANYONE ELSE." He cost you money.
It's only fair that he should pay you the money he cost you by making you keep insurance on it for the two or three weeks he jerked you around.
Give him the balance of his deposit. That's what I'd do; I'm never out to screw anyone, and I'd sleep just fine with that.
-Brad

 

...on the other hand, when I am activly selling an item, be it a car or otherwise, and someone gives me a deposit I write them a reciept for ** dollars NON REFUNDABLE deposit, for **item. balance of ** to be paid by such and such a date.

when you make it clear from the get-go what the deal is they are more likely to come through, or think a bit harder on what a deposit actually is

 

To me a deposit means "I am on my way to the bank to get the rest in cash and will be back in an hour or two" or it means, "it is Saturday at 8:00 pm, so please take the vehicle off the market for this one Sunday and I will be back on Monday morning after going to the bank." , not "hold the car for weeks and weeks".

I guess I am mostly all talk, because I would still have a hard time keeping some poor guy's deposit. -Jeff

 

Dead right,in any buisiness transaction ,if you don't keep your end of the deal you lose.He has lost,he is being a time waster .
Ring him,tell him the truck is now for sale again.If he wants his $500 ...go see a lawyer.
He really owes you compensation for both wasting your time and welching on the deal.
...and no nice guy ever pulls a stunt like that.

I'm betting he will turn up and offer you a sum way below the original asking price because it is all he can come up with.

 

Let me put this another way.

When I was 17 I was looking for a 1969 Chevelle to restore. Dad had one way back when.

I couldn't find one in my price range that wasn't totally thrashed.

I found a real 1971 SS Chevelle...that had a big block. It looked good but in reality it was a mess. I went to look at it, the guy took me for a ride- literally AND figuratively. Basically it needed a ground up resto. In hindsight, the price was right. I gave him a deposit, and told him I wanted to "sleep on it". (In reality, my parents wanted to think about it.) I called him back up to come look at it a second time after I'd lost the stars in my eyes and focused a bit on reality.

The second time around, I saw way more work that it needed than I'd seen the first time around. We started talking, and I told him I wasn't sure if I wanted to buy it anymore. (keep in mind I was still in H.S. and only had access to 1/2 my parents garage...and a limited amount of tools.) He got flustered...and said something to the effect of "you want me to give back your deposit?" (I think it was like $100.) I told him "No- that was my deposit...I understand I'll lose that if I decide not to buy it." And it calmed him down. I eventually called and told him I wanted it.

The next day, he brought it over my parent's house on a trailer...and big surprise...it wasn't in running condition anymore. I think my mother about had a coronary. The day after that, I found out what I had REALLY bought. A jerry-rigged nightmare. 7 years later and after spending a lot of money, I sold it and made a nice profit.

Moral to the story? The deposit means you will lose it if you don't follow through with the purchase. Otherwise, why bother even offering someone a deposit?

Personally, I wouldn't offer someone a deposit, and expect it back if I couldn't come up with the money within a stated period of time. That would grind on MY conscience. To me, you're supposed to figure out if you can afford something before you give someone a deposit on it. It does not buy you "research" time to get a bank loan, check your balances, etc...you should have that all lined up before you make someone an offer. On anything.

 

I had a guy string me along for a month on buying a Benelli shotgun ($$$$). He started off saying 'next week' then 'two weeks', on and on. He had given me a $100 deposit. At the end of a month, he decides he can't do it and wants his money back!! So I asked him if I had done what he wanted by holding th gun for him. He said, 'Yes.". So I asked why should I give you your money back when I did MUCH MORE than what you originally asked and I p***ed up TWO gun shows where the thing would have sold in 10 minutes!!

I kept the cash and will never take a deposit again.

Dave

 

Your first mistake is taking the deposit. You said yourself you'd have no problem selling the truck. Now that you took his deposit you put yourself in an awkward position. You can't spend the deposit and you can't sell the truck.

Tell him to come on Saturday to either pick up the truck or the deposit...Tell him if he doesn't show up on Saturday you're sending his deposit registered mail...Tell him the truck will be for sale again on Sunday but to ALL CASH buyers only...including him.

If he comes on Sunday with the balance (minus the deposit) tell him his deposit is in the mail, come back with the full amount.

 

I had this happen a couple of weeks ago. I called and talked it out and got a bunch of BS. I ended up keeping the deposit, but felt like ****. I would try to work it out but generally a deposit is non refundable. He knew that when he gave it to you, but you should of discussed exactly how long he had. Whether you gave him a day or a month when the time is up, then the money is yours

 

I don't take deposits. I will hold my car/truck until an agreed upon date, then the deals off. I sold my car but something happened before he could take possession. I called to say I couldn't sell the car until it was fixed. He still wanted to buy it. As I was fixing the car, he wanted some things added and said he would pay extra. Guess what, car was fixed and suddenly he had an emergency. Couldn't buy the car.

Worked out OK though. Ended up selling the car for more money. Had that buyer suddenly come up with the dough, I woulda told him the car was no longer for sale.

 

It all reminds me of a mate about 30 years ago in New Zealand who bought a '39 Ford off another friends mother.He left the car at her house...on the front lawn ,after paying a few dollars as deposit. 3 years later after paying it off on a 'drip feed' he sold it for a profit and it was still sitting in the same place. Some people have no morals.

 

He might also give you a little extra for your wait.

You never know.

 

A deposit usually comes with a deadline...Like: I pay you by full on monday, or I loose my deposit ...
A deposit received with no deadline agreed, that is waay harder to deal with.
My 2c....: Return the deposit, and tell him the deal is off . (asap)
Good luck selling your truck .
KLAZ

 

I'd tell him that the truck is going back up for sale. If he comes up with the rest of the money before somebody buys it then its his. If somebody beats him to it then keep at least part of his deposit for your trouble. How much to keep? let your concience be your guide.

 

I never take deposits.

 

there is no point in a deposit if you are going to give it back, you might as well have just shaken his hand. i took a $2000 deposit on a house waited 3 months, the contract length, and when i called the potential buyer had them tell me thet hadnt been to the bank yet. 3 months that cost me, so is it fair for me to lose money because they didnt hold up to their end. You have probably paid insurance and so on for your truck and p***ed up other oppurtunities to sell, is that fair to you? i have made deposits lots of times which go toward the balance, i have never backed out, but if i did i would have never expected my money back, never. a deposit is that, otherwise theres no point.

 

#2..if you get a buyer with cash and a deal is struck..than sell it..but call the guy and let him know..and its just good policy to give him back his deposit..you got what you wanted you sold the vehicle , no reason to screw the guy out of his deposit..just my 2 cents

 

I agree, no deposit, no issues. I tell people money talks, I don't normally hold a car, if they don't have the money yet they can call when they do to see if I still have it. The only time I'll take a deposit is it's say a Saturday and they want to hold it till Monday when the bank opens to get thier money. It's always put in writing a time frame so I can put it back on the market and the deposit is non-refundable.

 

Business is business. The "buyer" defaulted on the contract once already and you let him off the hook. When he gave you the first promise date, he was most likely just hoping he could come up with the money by then. If that is true, then he is not bargaining in good faith. If he does it again, there has to be a consequence.

What will you do when he backs out of the deal completely?

 

I'm still holding a $100 deposit after about 23 years. I called the guy, wouldn't return my calls. I finally called and talked to him and he said I was bothering him. That was the LAST deposit I will ever take. From now on it's ALL the $$ for ALL the product.Take your number 2 option.

 

Door number two is the right thing to do but with a slight twist. You can only expect to hold his deposit as a purchase option for him and not perpetually. Keep it for sale. The minute someone else comes up with the full amount he either pays the full balance or the second buyer is the new owner and he gets his money back. Best to explain it to him.

 

This is very interesting read. I have never had reason to take a deposit on anything yet. From what I have read here the most important thing is to always have a written agreement with everything spelled out.

I am unaware of any specific law that says that deposits are nonrefundable. I realize that that is the proper thing, but remember that without written do***entation, the other guy could be thinking something totally different -- there was no agreement as to what the deposit really meant. The reality about real estate deposits (in MN) is that their nonrefundable status is written into the contract, and do have outs for the buyer. In fact when I was selling I would always keep showing the house until the day that the deal closed and the money changed hands.

I know we can all act tough, but in reality, what if you keep the deposit (having no written contract), and the guy gets totally pissed and decides to take it to court. Now he is going to be a total a** and tells the court that he gave you $1000 cash. Are you really confident that this issue has been resolved that ALL deposits are nonrefundable? What if the jerk wins and the court decides that he did give you $1000 -- its his word vs yours (well we know who's word we would trust, but the judge doesn't know anyone here).

Here is what I would do -- if there was no contract. I would offer the guy back his money (as said in the same form that he gave it to you) But I would now have him sign a do***ent saying that he received the payment (dollar amount spelled out) what it was for and why it was returned and specifically that it was the FULL amount that he gave you originally.

I would think if the guy was offered his money back he would be agreeable to those terms, and it will protect you from him coming back later.

JMHO though

 

Your "contract" is as good as the paper it's written on. I did a similar deal with a guy here at work. He paid only 1/2 and after many months (he had the truck too ) he was laid off and I had to take him to court. He didn't show and now he has a lein on his house. I learned a valuable lesson here.

Never make a deal without a written contract with committment dates and repurcussions for failure to comply with the contract.

In your case, call the guy, give him til Saturday or you'll sell it outright to someone else. Give the money back just like you'd want to get your s back.

 

Option #2; unless you truly have a full price offer from someone else, you're not really out anything. You said you weren't expecting any action on it until you listed in the Trader rags. Out of courtesy, let him know you're going to list it and 1st buyer with cash gets it. If you don't let him know, he's thinking your still holding it for him.

 

In your case, call him, remind him that the deadline is coming up, and if he no longer wants or cant complete the deal, his money needs to be picked up. In the future , ALWAYS , on a deposit deal, draw up a simple agreement, and indicate that the deposit is NON REFUNDABLE, have said do***ent notorized...your *** is covered...I sold the same 340 Demon 4 times due to failed deals, but in each case, the (non) buyers were given notorized copies of the agreement. Hope things work out for you.

 

I only give a deposit when I can't get the money to the person right there and then (like its a sunday and the bank machine will only let me take out so much), or they are holding the car for me to pick up at a stated time/date (like if its an out of state car buy). I then show up with cash and pay and take the car - everyone is happy.

Otherwise...my deposit is gone.

 

I have a little diff idea... draw up the deposit contract now, and when he doesn't have money on saturday, the NEW contract specifies the $500 will hold it for just one more week... that covers you and if a week goes by you keep it. Might be shady, but I would imply that I'm keeping the deposit regardless....

I def. would not return the deposit unless the car sells for his price or greater, any less and that amount gets pulled from his deposit...

but i'm a ****, so take that with a grain of salt i guess!

 

I think that you have fulfilled you half of the agreement, but next time get it in writing. In Maryland you must have a written contract for any transaction of $500 or greater. The purpose of this deposit was to "buy time" which you have been more than fair. If you return the full amount you are being a very, very nice guy. I personally would keep 10% ($50) for the inconvenience.