This is a tale of the unethical behaviour of an estate agent in the north of the island, and the rather ‘irregular’ practice of a notary chosen by the buyer. For obvious reasons those involved have to remain anonymous.

I had a small flat in Portomaso which I wanted to sell. I put it on the books of a ‘good’ agent (could be an oxymoron), but it was not sold. I then, by chance, at a dinner party, met a pleasant woman who works for an agency with a number of outlets, not only in Malta, but also in the UK. She was keen to have the flat on their books. I agreed reluctantly since the local agent had failed to sell after a year. She insisted on a 5% commission, with no negotiation. I asked her to do two things – not to have the sale handled by a certain woman in their aggressive company and, preferably, to avoid selling the flat to a Maltese who would speculate and try to negotiate the price down to a minimum. What I did not know at the time was that this agency gives no service to the seller (after making the deal and once the commission is assured,) but only to the buyer. This is indeed what happened after weeks of constant hassle by the pushy shall we call her ‘Miss Piggy’, the very person I had specifically said I did not want involved in the sale. She tried very hard to reduce the selling price to a ludicrously low level (as I had predicted).

At the beginning, most of the pursuit by the agent was related to selling the flat, which was ‘Miss Piggy’s’ job. She was relentless and I was constantly harassed about lowering the price further.

Furthermore, despite my repeated requests not to sell to Maltese, she continued to ignore my wishes. I resisted a potential Maltese male buyer who made a ludicrous offer. It then started again and finally I agreed to the lowest possible offer, well below the price I had been advised the flat would fetch.

The preliminary agreement was signed with a knowledgeable power of attorney acting for me. He was concerned about the ‘substitution’ clause, which is in many agreements and insisted on by the Maltese woman purchasing the flat. She was obviously very well versed in such matters.

This clause mentions ‘substitution’ and when it was questioned, the purchaser stated that she might want to substitute her daughter’s name as the latter was uncertain whether she wanted the flat or not. She insisted on the clause and the person who had my power of attorney, fearing I would lose the sale, reluctantly agreed.

There is evidence to suggest that she had already bought another flat, and that this was a speculative deal aided and abetted by the agent who had been harassing me for a lower price. What I did not know was that ‘substitution’ can mean or does mean the possibility of resale, and that is how a large number of properties are speculated upon by the Maltese. An easy (and surely dishonest) way of making money.

The definition of ‘substitution’ in the Oxford dictionary is ‘the action of replacing someone or something with another person or thing’, but it does not say anything about resale or selling. That is a new interpretation but that is what it also means in real estate language in Malta. Once this clause is inserted, one signs away one’s right to the proposed buyer to resell and make a quick profit.

The agreement was signed. I was strongly advised to change the locks, so whether anyone went in or not in my absence, I do not know. Neither Miss Piggy nor the notary had keys. My manager let them in by appointment as instructed.

I learnt from my experienced advisor that the buyer had the right to one more visit.

Although the agent said that the buyer would settle within a month and ‘had the money’, this appeared not to be the case. There was no sign of payment or of finalising the purchase. A couple of months later, the notary (not the agent) was trying to fix a date for the signing of the final agreement. However, he was told that the buyer was returning to America and could not attend the final appointment. We had not been told that the prospective buyer, a mature Maltese woman, was suddenly leaving for America – or indeed, why. I thought it strange and questioned it but no explanation was given.

 I left Malta and could not return before another three months. The patient notary arranged for the final meeting to suit me. I heard nothing until two months later when ‘Miss Piggy’ asked that the buyer be allowed to visit the flat to ‘take measurements.’ I agreed and naturally assumed it was the buyer I knew about. My manager, however, met ‘Miss Piggy’ with a mature couple who were not the original buyers. They left after five minutes without taking any measurements.

Neither my manager nor I knew anything about this second buyer who had bought it in July from the first buyer, shortly after signing the preliminary agreement. The truth emerged at the time of the completion of the agreement. Miss Piggy had lied to get into the flat and the notary chosen by the buyer was ‘opaque’ and omitted to tell me that the buyer had changed and that there was now a new buyer.

The next I heard was that the buyer wished to change the figures on the final agreement. I was suspicious and declined. I had pressure from the notary but I repeatedly asked if the buyer had changed. Finally, the notary admitted that there had been a resale of the flat. My manager confirmed that the original buyer had changed. I certainly do not think this is right or proper behaviour for a notary who is supposed to be even-handed to seller and buyer, even if this behaviour appears to be within the laws of Malta.

I thought the notary was really acting for the buyer in his opaqueness, and when questioned at the time of the signing, he denied this. He said that he had known the original buyers for years and the daughter as a child. Yet, the next day, at the ‘second signing’, he denied they were personal friends.

 That is Malta for you.

I was informed that the purchaser had appointed a power of attorney as she could not attend the final signing on a prearranged date. Another request then came to change the figures. And on the eve of the agreed date of signing came a request to add an extra name. ‘What is the name on the document?’ I asked because I had not yet seen a single document. Late that night, at 10.30, before we were due to sign, comes a final agreement in draft form from the notary with the new names, seen by me for the first time, and with the addition of the husband’s name but without any basic personal data such as passport, ID card number etc.

I attended the signing as agreed and the notary said: ‘I’m afraid the signing is not going to take place today because the buyer has instructed the power of attorney not to sign.’ Why, I wanted to know. ‘Because you have denied access to the property, and, you won’t agree to the changing of the figures.’ ‘Miss Piggy’ was as usual lying. I had to point out that it had been up to her to phone me to make arrangements for a viewing by the ‘power of attorney’ who was from another agency and said that the buyer (from USA) had insisted on a change in figures. It is very likely that ‘Miss Piggy’, from the estate agency, had told them it could easily be arranged. I declined as it would affect my UK tax, and I did not, by now, trust any of them. I asked the notary (after some more opaque talk) if he would tell the two purchasers that I was ready to stop this deal if they were. The power of attorney said he had been in discussion with the second purchaser in the US for most of the night. I asked the notary to give her my phone number so that she could talk to me directly and I could apprise her of the real facts about my lack of help in the circumstances. This worried the agents. I telephoned my lawyer who told me to leave the meeting with my professional advisor. Later in the evening, the notary asked to reschedule to the following day and said that the purchaser had stated she ‘would pay my increased UK tax!’

Estate agents need regulating. Foreigners who think they know the meaning of substitution will not know about the second purchasing deals where agents buy property and make money on the back of an innocent seller; give no service or help once the commission is in sight. All I received from the estate agent was one email reminding me to pay the commission. I was told constant lies by the agent and the first buyer who quickly placed the flat back on the market but then withdrew it in case the seller (myself) saw this at another estate agent. I believe someone in the same agency resold my flat; hence ‘Miss Piggy’ was engaged to show it to new clients so I would not know this.

Well, fellow ‘foreigners’, this is Malta for you. It is a wonderful island but beware of estate agents. ‘Miss Piggy’ and her friends sold my flat for €25,000 more than I received for it. Profits are for agents trying to get the foreign seller to undersell. What a racket! Agents are only interested in profits and ‘sales’ without providing any service. It was different when I first bought this property. I had a better-behaved agent then. Surely there must be one or two left on the island who behave as they should, with honesty and decorum.

 

Jonathan Walker

Bristol, United Kingdom