Complaints

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• Initial Complaint

  Date:14/09/2022

  Type:Sales and Advertising Issues
  Status:

  AnsweredMore info

  Complaint statuses

  Resolved:

  The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.

  Unresolved:

  The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.

  Answered:

  The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.

  Unanswered:

  The business failed to respond to the dispute.

  Unpursuable:

  BBB is unable to locate the business.

  Ottawa House Buyer says, “sell your house fast” and “we buy … for cash” and “the easiest way to sell your property in Ontario”. It is not that way in Ottawa. I first contacted Ottawa House Buyer and ****** ******* who emailed me on July 6/22 that they would have their rep (****) work with me. In Ottawa they do not buy your property, nor do they identify investors with proof of funds to buy. Here, their one and only part-time sales rep is **** ****** who does not live in Ottawa or even in Ontario. On July 28/22 she arrived, looked around and we agreed on an amount. No cash offered for the house. She completed an Agreement of Purchase and Sale marked “Toronto Teal Estate Board” (not Ottawa) that had multiple errors which my lawyer had to direct her to fix. No update from **** for eight days. She then brings in her one and only “investor” with no identification for a “walk thru” on August 26/22. Then another wait. **** emails on September 2/22 that her so-called “investor” decided not to proceed. Over a month wasted just with her as interest rates rise. No fast sale. No sale at all. She also claims to be affiliated with ***** ****** ***. “the industry leader for private sales” providing “an easy and stress-free way for people to sell real estate”. Not my experience. ******* ************ ** ************ . Or. Online form. No postal address. Two months overall and no sale. From first contact with **** ****** to her saying her one and only ‘investor’ declined to purchase was one month wasted with her. This is not fast. It is slower than a traditional real estate MLS listing. This is not the advertised “we pay cash for your house”. This is an incompetent, drawn-out process designed to produce failure for the homeowner. Do not do business with Ottawa House Buyer unless they deliver immediate cash for your house and can correctly complete an Agreement of Purchase and Sale. It may be different in Toronto, but this is amateur hour here with Ottawa House Buyer and ****

  Business Response

  Date: 11/10/2022

  I spoke with our team and can confirm we worked with this lead. 

   

  This was the message from our Sales Rep ****:

   

  "I remember this well.

   

  There was an initial delay because the Seller and I were negotiating the pricing.

   

  She was told that we worked with investors and they had to approve the sale. We brought in two of our younger investors, which the Seller believed they weren't real investors but were voyeurs (her word).

   

  Regarding her "multiple errors", I believe the GEO (Geowarehouse that has information about the property that we use) still had her husband's name on the GEO (he passed away about a year ago). I used the data on the GEO. 

   

  This client is hurting and very sad about the loss of her husband. In my opinion we did nothing wrong, we were upfront about our timeline, very communicative, and notified her within the time frame that we weren't moving forward. I did not use the phone to notify her because I couldn't always get a hold of her when I called. The client really liked what we were offering (cleaning out the property ect), however we could not find suitable investors for this property. We even looked for any alternative solutions to try and help the seller, but were unable to come up with anything.

   

  I am sorry the client is upset - however she is upset more because she is unable to move her property in the time frame required."

   

  Regarding the complaint that our rep wasn't from Ottawa, **** lives across the river in Gatineau, 10 minutes away. Calling that an issue is making a mountain out of a molehill. 

   

  If you need any more information about the complaint I'd be happy to provide it in a timely manner. 

   

  Thanks,

  ****

  Customer Answer

  Date: 18/10/2022

  
  ********** ********
  
  I am rejecting this response because:

   

  This response from the business is full of inaccuracies and needs to be corrected. Here is my rebuttal..

  First off, spare me the false hearts and flowers about “this client is hurting and very sad about the loss of her husband.” This is utter rubbish. He died 19 months ago, and I have moved on as **** well knows since we discussed my plans to continue my travels and her past experiences abroad.

  And what alternative selling solutions did they “look for”? None. They wanted a quick flip property in a market of rising interest rates.

  My initial contact with the “Ottawa House Buyer Team” was July 5, 2022.

  Next contact was on July 27, 2022, from ****** * to arrange a meeting with ****

  On August 9,2022, I emailed **** that my lawyer had a number of corrections that needed to be made to her documentation and noted them to her such as buyer’s lawyer, closing schedule and final walk through. She also clearly noted the City of Ottawa had the revised ownership for **** ****** ******** solely in my name as registered by ***** ********* *** of Ottawa. I recommend the House Buyer ‘team’ review their legal errors.

  On August 12, 2022, my lawyer contacted **** with eleven (11) errors in her offer. **** emailed could we met on Monday.

  We met on Tuesday, August 16, 2022

  On August 18,2022, **** forwarded “the signed contract for **** ****** *****.” to me and my lawyer with $10K deposit.

  There was no delay in negotiating price. The initial offer was $580K and we quickly agreed to $600K in a few minutes in person.

  On August 26, 2022, **** had her “investors” walk thru. The age problem exists with **** not with me. My problems deal with their lack of identification (none was provided), no proof of funds, no checklist of essential elements. They were looking for a house that was ready for an immediate resale flip.

  On September 2, 2022, **** informed me the “investors” were not interested. No reason was given.

  I work in my home office and **** is the only person who has not been able to contact me by telephone. If that is true for her then she needs to use the voice messaging capability and leave a message for a call back. It works. Consistently.

  Overall, this entire process took two months, the same amount of time it would have taken a realtor to sell the house in that market. **** ***** ***** **** provided no faster a selling process than a real estate agent. Their advertising claims they do and that is false. In addition, their Agreement of Purchase and Sale was riddled with errors and omissions and required advice from my lawyer to fix it as noted above. Not very professional.

  Ottawa House Buyer and other fast cash for your house buyers are part of ***** ****** ***. and its group of companies *************************** which is also information not provided in their advertising.

  To wrap up, **** does not live in Gatineau, she lives in Chelsea, Quebec, which is a lot more than “10 minutes away” unless **** is aiming to break the land speed record.

  This company needs to have its *** rating downgraded.

  ** ** *****

  
  
  Sincerely,
  
  ** *****