Right of First Refusal

Sam · Last edited by Sam on Fri Jan 23, 2009 12:29 am

Right of First Refusal refers to a provision in an agreement which states that a specified party should be given an opportunity prior to others to either accept or reject an offer.

The Right of Refusal is required at the time of property sale. If the owner decides to sell, he must hand over the property to the specified party. But if the party refuses, then it must be offered to others under similar terms and conditions.

Right of Refusal is also valid when a property is offered on lease. It is a clause that gives the tenant the first opportunity to lease additional space within a property. The space is offered at the same price, terms and conditions as those stated in a third party offer that the owner willingly accepts. If the lessee chooses to purchase or lease the premises after the First Refusal being granted, then it shall provide a notice for within a 60 day period.

An owner can exercise the Right of Refusal only when he receives an offer of purchase the property. A First Right of Refusal is provided to the tenant occupying the property, but the owner may also give it to someone else. In order to activate the Right of Refusal, the buyer submits an offer to the owner that is acceptable for the purchase of the property. The owner then submits an offer to the individual who holds the First Right of Refusal to check if he will purchase the property at the same price and terms. If the person is not interested, then the owner will proceed to sell the property to the original buyer who submitted the offer.

Guest

What if the lease is up for a property and the owner chooses not to renew it to the tenants which have a First Right of Refusal to buy the property. And afterwards the property is sold? Did the tenants still have the right Refusal Right?

jerry · Posted: Tue Nov 25, 2008 2:17 am Post subject:

Hi JuneO,

If the owner does not renew the lease and asks the tenants to move away from the property, then I don't think the tenant will in any way have the right to refusal because the tenant is not living in the property any more. In that case, the owner can sell the property to someone else.

Thanks,

Jerry

steve2 · Posted: Wed Nov 26, 2008 1:11 pm Post subject:

I agree with Jerry. The right of first refusal has been automatically exercised by the fact that the buyer did not close on it during the specified timeframe. If the agreement was for 12 months, the buyer knew they had that amount of time to exercise that right.

An exception to this would be if there were a specific agreement between 2 parties that if the property were ever to be sold, the buyer has the first right to buy it before it goes on the open market (either at market price or for a predetermined price).

Guest

What if the landlord allows the property to go into foreclosure, are tenants entitled to first right of refusal to purchase the home from the bank before or after the trustee sale date is scheduled? I'm getting mixed responses to this question from real estate agents and lenders in my area. I am in this situation at this very moment and would love to buy the home I've occupied for 2+ years. Although, I am enraged at the fact that my (soon to be former) landlord has (had) that right to take my rental payments (paid each month, on-time, in-full, faithfully) and not apply it to the mortgage obligation he'd had on the home I'd (thought) been paying for. Now as a result of his carelessness or unfortunate circumstances my home, lifestyle, financial security are now being compromised. And to add insult to injury, in California, presently, all laws relating to this type of situation are written with a gross slant in the landlords favor.
Serious Legislative Reform in need here regarding Tenant's Rights in California. I've already contacted 1 State Senator as well as a number of high-profile media personalities in hopes that one or more will take up the cause.

Guest

You can try to purchase the property at the foreclosure sale. You can even check with your landlord and his lender whether the loan is assumable or not. If the loan is assumable, then you can directly purchase the property from your lender and then assume the loan.

gmakerley · Posted: Sat Feb 28, 2009 6:25 am Post subject:

geoff, i have never heard of there being a right of first refusal for a tenant in a home being foreclosed. i don't necessarily agree with you, either, that you ought to have specific rights to the property in the event of a default on the part of the owner on his mortgage responsibility.

of course, that's for the courts or legislature to mull over and decide, should they choose to do so.

Guest

I HAVE LOAN CHASE 80% 20% WITH COUNTRY WIDE AND MY HOUSE VALVE IS 285,000.00 WITH MY LOAN AMOUNT OF 457,000.00 ..I DONT KNOW WHAT TO DO AND WITH CHASE I HAVE INTERST ONLY LOAN..?

Guest

I have made an offer on a house and there is a first right of refusal involved. The holder of the ROR is unable to match my offer and yet will not sign off. He has a 30 day ROR and my question is this: Once the 30 days have elapsed and he is unable to match the offer, is his continued refusal to sign off (which I expect he will refuse) going to prevent my purchase? Or is the time limitation upheld? Will he have any legal standing to further block my purchase?

gmakerley · Posted: Fri May 15, 2009 9:37 am Post subject:

cynthia, common sense tells me that once that 30 days has elapsed, your contract ought to be honored (assuming it's the only one on the table). but of course, common sense is not necessarily a factor in real estate transactions any more. i suggest you run this query through an attorney to get a better determination of your rights in this situation, and to get resolution about your question of "legal standing."

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