A recent state Superior Court decision underscores the sanctity of contracts and interprets the Pennsylvania Code escrow provisions as they relate to real estate brokers. This case, Ramalingam v. Keller Williams Realty Group (No. 2185 EDA 2014, filed July 20, 2015), is labeled as nonprecedential. Nevertheless, the court’s application of the law, especially in the context of an appeal from a bench trial, is highly instructive.
On Sept. 30, 2009, Govindaraju Ramalingam (the buyer) entered into an “agreement of sale for new construction.” The home was to be built in Media by CLM Builders Inc. (the seller). Notably, a miscellaneous provision in the contract called for the buyer to pay the escrow deposit directly to the seller and to be used toward the construction of the buyer’s specific property.
