John Stewart Walker, Inc.

Review: Realtor knowingly withheld information from the buyer of our home. The realtor in question, [redacted], knew that she had made an error in the testing of the water at [redacted] Road prior to our sale of the the property. She repeatedly refused to acknowledge that she did not follow protocols set out by the Virginia Department of Health which resulted in erroneous water tests.

Her refusal to communicate openly and truthfully with the buyer and the buyers agent required us to hire a lawyer to get the facts to the purchaser.

Costs associated with the water testing were held in escrow while the sale of the property was finalized and returned to us, the sellers, as we were correct in our position that there was nothing wrong with the water on the property - only in the testing of the water as ordered by [redacted].Desired Settlement: The settlement of the testing and the funds was managed by [redacted] and [redacted], lawyers both located in Lynchburg, Virginia.

However, [redacted] has not been reprimanded for her dishonest and unethical behavior. We are certain that realtors have to disclose information under their licensing code of conduct. We are also reporting this incident to the Department of Professional and Occupational Regulation in Richmond VA.

Business

Response:

As you requested, this is the response to the complaint against my business, John Stewart Walker, Inc. If there is any additional information that you may need please contact me.

Sincerely,

William M. Walker

As we discussed by phone yesterday, I was very disappointed to receive this complaint by the sellers who I represented last year. I represented them to the best of my ability from the preparation of their property for sale beginning in January of 2013 through the marketing, listing, and final closing of the property in October of 2013.

I have attached my response to the complaint along with documents that relate directly to the well water quality issue.

Also attached are responses to the complaint from the buyer's agent, [redacted], at [redacted], Inc. and Mr. [redacted], the supervising manager at the [redacted] Corp., who was the well expert consulted throughout the transaction by the sellers and the buyers.

I hope that the information provided presents a clear picture of how everyone involved worked together with honestly, integrity and professionalism to bring this transaction to a successful closing.

Sincerely,

It is disappointing after 10 years in the real estate business to have a client even remotely dissatisfied with my representation. A synopsis of events leading to the well water inspections are listed below.

• The home was listed August 8, 2013 for $214,900. The first offer was received quickly on August 15, 2013. This offer was subject to an appraisal and satisfactory inspections. After a home inspection on August 27th by the prospective buyers, the home inspection was shared and the offer was rescinded. Plumbing, electrical and termite issues to name a few needed to be addressed.

. Meanwhile, a second offer was received on August, 16th for $190,000 to which no counter offer was entertained.

• On 8-29-13, [redacted] termite and pest control was scheduled to evaluate issues brought forth from the inspection. Remediation of termites, woodbores and powder post beetles was scheduled.

• Sunday, 9-1-13, I hired an independent home inspector, [redacted], at my expense to come to the property to meet with the sellers, review the previous home inspection, advise the sellers so that remediation to areas of concern could be completed assuring that the same issues would not cause a future buyer to walk away from the purchase of the property. An electrician was secured to remediate electrical issues. A plumber was secured to remediate plumbing issues. The seller's "handyman" worked on other miscellaneous issues on the property.

• During the time that repairs were being made, agents were told that all offers would be accepted and considered on a specific date so that a "bidding war" atmosphere was created.

. 9-11-13 an offer of $200,000, FHA loan was received, presented and rejected.

• 9-11,2013 - a cash offer $10,000 over asking price was received and accepted. No appraisal was required to validate the sale price.

• According to the VAR contract section 15. Well and Septic: a) If the property is served by an on -site well or other natural water source, Seller agrees to provide Purchaser with a certificate dated not more than 30 days prior to settlement from the appropriate governmental authority, or from an acceptable private company, indicating that the water is free from contamination by coliform bacteria. c) If contamination of the water or septic system malfunction or needed maintenance is found, then Seller, at Seller's expense shall effect the appropriate remedies or repairs. The purchasers also requested that the Seller agree to furnish them with a certificate dated not more than 30 days prior to settlement that the well water was free of lead, nitrites and nitrates.

The purchasers asked permission to complete a well flow test at their expense to be completed within 7 business days of contract ratification. The purchasers ordered the well flow test to be completed by the [redacted] Company on 9-16-14 and the home inspection on 9-17-14. The purchasers also at their own expense had the septic system inspected and pumped.

On 9-16-14, the buyer's agent wrote by e-mail "[redacted] did the test on the oriqinal well next to the house. When they went to test the second well by the road, they said that the second well didn't have power and they would have to get a generator to be able to run the pump. The buyers just told them to hold off on testing the second well. Can you find out if the sellers knew that there was a problem with the second well's not having power?

On 9-20-14 the purchasers submitted a request for $250 credit to repair minor issues and permission to test the second well.

On 9-20-14 an e-mail was sent to the sellers to get their permission to let [redacted] perform the water tests necessary to satisfy the terms of the contract. They agreed. The water was taken from water inside the home that was serviced from the first well not the second well being tested that day.

9-26-14 A letter and report (attached) from the [redacted] Corporation with bacteriological sample test results reporting the property failed total coliform and e.coli and recommended an ultraviolet light system at the expense of $1 ,300. When the purchasers were notified of the need for this system on the first well servicing the home, they asked for a credit instead so he could decide at a later date whether to invest in the first well or the second well. The seller and purchaser were advised at this time to speak with [redacted] directly with any questions or concerns regarding this issue. Mr. [redacted] spoke with them both at length several times. The purchaser's request to satisfy the well condition by addendum is attached. The selling agent was advised by the purchaser's agent through e-mail that the purchasers were upset by the contamination issue and that it could be a deal breaker.

10-7-13 After speaking with [redacted], the seller scheduled chlorination and treatment of the well water. The seller did not want to honor the purchaser's $1,300 credit request and therefore sought legal advice. After subsequent tests were performed by [redacted] and found absence of total coliform and e.coli, an amendment to the contract was made by their legal counsel (attached) and was agreed upon.

The evaluation of the second well at the purchaser's expense showed adequate well flow but a leak in the system and electrical issues that the purchasers were willing to absorb at their expense.

In summary, the scheduling of the water quality tests was done in compliance with the VAR contract guidelines. All water quality advice and issues were directed to the professionals whose expertise it is in that area. The buyer's agent was informed throughout the transaction of all issues related to the property through open constant communication that I provided.

Attached to this summary are letters from the buyer's agent and the well company attesting to the fact that I am in no way responsible for withholding information from the purchasers of the property as accused.

The sellers should be extremely grateful for my help in securing a cash buyer for $10,000 over asking price with no appraisal to validate the sale price and one who was willing to accept the property in it's current condition despite these issues and others unmentioned.

Respectfully submitted,

[redacted], Realtor at JSW, Inc.

Consumer

Response:

I have reviewed the response offer made by the business in reference to complaint ID [redacted], and have determined that this proposed action would not resolve my complaint. For your reference, details of the offer I reviewed appear below.

1-This is not a we said/she said scenario - the clear rules for well/water testing are determined by the Virginia Department of Health and they were not followed.

We had to hire a lawyer [redacted] to convey this to the buyers when our realtor flatly refused to do so.

2-Once we uncovered the problem with the water test [redacted] Corp knew that a mistake had been made. They acted very professionally and returned to retest the water at no charge as they knew an error had been made.

3-[redacted] exhibited unprofessional behavior on a number of occasions e.g.: allowing potential buyers into our home without appointments to look around - her direct quote was that they were 'realizing their dreams'; giving our keys to the buyers agent before the sale was closed and telling us that we could not contact her directly - the closing attorney [redacted] had to intervene and retrieve our keys; giving false information to other buyers' agents during the selling process, telling one and this is a quote: "The sellers can't be bothered" [to have the house shown] - in fact we were told that the realtor who was sent that message had filed a separate complaint.

4-The realtor is delusional to believe that she contributed at all to the price we ultimately received for our home. If we had followed her advice on asking price and then hired her 'friends' to make unnecessary improvements that she suggested we would have sold the home at a considerable loss.

5-Ultimately, and importantly, the real issue is that there was never anything wrong with the well water. This was confirmed by the [redacted] when he returned the money which we had placed in escrow to cover any (perceived) issue. We had to hire a lawyer (aforementioned [redacted]) to tell the buyers to retest at their convenience - a retest that we paid for. We wanted to buyers to know that the property they purchased has fresh clean water. [redacted] refused to acknowledge at any point that she had made a mistake - one that would have cost us money and misinformed the buyers.

When we asked her to solve the problem she had created this was her reply:

"If

they do not receive the $1,300.00 credit from you as verbally agreed –

you will most likely lose them. They will in no way consider other tests

and treatments at this point. It’s your decision.Either

move forward, sign the addendum and sell your home as agreed or you and

only you will be responsible for the demise of this very generous and

clean contract.To

say that the failed water test is my fault is like saying that the

carpenter bee infestation or the electrical outlets not working or the

plumbing leaks were my fault"

[redacted] was not blindsided by any of this, on March 1, she was sent

a photograph of the check which returned our funds that had been held

in escrow while the lawyers resolved the matter as she had obstructed

the information getting to the buyers previously.

This realtor has acted in an extremely unprofessional manner. Luckily we were able to hire a lawyer to work around her - others may not have the same options and should be warned.

Regards,