A signed purchase and sale agreement is a binding contract obligating the seller to convey title at the agreed price on the closing date. Legitimate grounds for the seller to exit unilaterally:

• Buyer default: buyer fails to deposit earnest money, abandons the transaction, or misses a contractual deadline without an extension. If the buyer defaults, the seller is released and typically keeps the earnest money as liquidated damages.
• Mutual cancellation: both parties agree in writing to cancel with an agreed earnest money disposition.
• A specific seller contingency in the contract: rare, but some contracts include a seller's right to cancel if they cannot find replacement housing (a home sale contingency on the seller's side).

NOT legitimate exit grounds: receiving a higher offer after signing, changing their mind, financial hardship that doesn't constitute legal impossibility, or personal circumstances. These are common real-world reasons sellers want out — none are legal grounds to cancel a binding contract.

When a seller refuses to close without legal basis:

1. Specific performance. Because real property is legally "unique," monetary damages are often deemed insufficient. Courts regularly order specific performance in real estate disputes — compelling the seller to convey the property at contract terms. This is the buyer's most powerful remedy but also the slowest: litigation takes months, legal fees accumulate, and the closing may occur with a hostile seller. Best used when the property is genuinely irreplaceable and the buyer has the resources and patience for the fight.

2. Actual damages. Document every financial loss caused by the seller's breach: additional rent paid while waiting, moving and storage costs, rate lock extension fees, inspection and appraisal costs already paid, and any price premium on a substitute property. Easier to pursue than specific performance but requires itemized documentation.

3. Earnest money refund and exit. If the property isn't worth the fight, demand the earnest money back (the seller cannot retain it when the seller is in breach, not the buyer) and move on. The buyer may still pursue additional damages beyond the earnest money even after accepting a refund in many states.

Because outright refusal carries legal risk, sellers who want to exit often use less direct tactics:

• Refuse repair requests after inspection, hoping the buyer exercises the inspection contingency to exit on their own (the seller can then claim the buyer chose to leave)
• Delay access for the appraisal or fail to provide HOA documents, creating timeline pressure
• Make demands outside the contract terms and hope the buyer agrees to cancel
• Fail to complete agreed repairs by the specified deadline, generating disputes

If a seller seems to be engineering the deal to fail: document every communication in writing, maintain all your contractual obligations on time, and consult a real estate attorney immediately. Your legal position is strongest when the seller is clearly in breach and you have not waived contingencies. The attorney consultation typically costs $200-$500 and is the best investment in a contested transaction.