Also -- you mentioned that you've spoken to an attorney, but does the
seller know that? Frequently, a letter to the offending party from a
lawyer, on the lawyer's letterhead, making it clear that the aggrieved
party is aware that the law is on his side and intends to pursue legal
action, is sufficient to shake loose the money that is owed. In other
words, it may be worthwhile for you to pay a lawyer for an hour of his
time to fire off a quick missive to the guy who's jerking you around
and make it clear to him that if he doesn't pay up, he's going to be
facing some hefty legal bills.

Speaking of lawyers, is there any way that the would-have-been buyer could have
a lawyer put a lien on the house for the amount of money he's owed back by the
seller since the money involves the house?

I once had a friend threaten to do that and it seemed to work. She wanted to
buy a house and had put down earnest money. The seller backed out, saying a
brother-in-law of his wanted to buy the house and there would be family trouble
if he didn't sell to the brother-in-law. That was OK with her, but then the
seller also wanted to keep the earnest money. That *wasn't* OK with her.

She told the seller that she would put a lien on the house for the amount of
her deposit so that *nobody* would be buying the house until the issue was
settled. So, she told him, she hoped he wanted to live a long full life in
that house with her money.

I have no idea whether she could have actually gone thru with the lien idea or
not but she had her money back within a couple of weeks.

So would this be an option for the original poster or, if my friend had tried
to do it, would she have been unsuccessful in trying to put a lien on the
house?

Cindy