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Some families give their land to property developers, who promise to pay after new homes are built and sold. The Gløersen couple have been waiting for the money for three years.
– We think it is very difficult, says Marianne Gløersen.
She and her husband were looking to sell their house in Askew, just outside Oslo, in the winter of 2021. They decided to separate part of the plot and sell it on its own.
Jannik Holm of real estate agent Schala & Partners contacted Gløersen on Facebook.
Holm, who qualified as an estate agent and sales manager, was sacked from his job as an estate agent by Finanstilsynet in 2011.
Suggest to pay later
Holm put them in touch with a potential buyer for the plot of land, Per Håkon Malum of the real estate company Eplehagen Eiendom.
He told the couple that the company could build three houses on the plot and sell them. To do this, Glesson would have to immediately move the plot to Eppelhagen.
– We wanted to get the money right away, but the agent thought it would be wiser to wait until the house was built. That way we would get paid for the plot and also get our fair share of the profit from the property sale, says Marianne Gløersen.
– The agent explained that developing such a plot would require a lot of money and it could not be done if Epplehagen had to pay an advance for the plot.
The couple was convinced. They were promised 7.5 million Norwegian kroner for the plot of land. In addition, they agreed that Eppelhagen would split the profits from the sale of the house – 60% to Eppelhagen and 40% to the couple.
Therefore, in contrast to normal real estate sales, they are dependent on the completion of the construction project in order to get paid. In addition, the price of the home must be high enough to cover the construction loan and the price of the plot.
The homes were originally scheduled to be completed in 2022, but the project was cut short. Construction at the site stopped in the fall of 2023 because contractors had not yet been paid.
Eppelhagen has other construction projects it is working to complete, but which have also seen delays. On Friday, the company received 78 payment notices totaling 3.9 million Norwegian kroner. Creditors include contractors, architects, tax authorities and two Norwegian municipalities. Another plot owner had filed for bankruptcy at the Oslo District Court in August.
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Criticism
Three years after the agreement was signed, the house was not yet completed, and Gloersen and her husband hired an attorney to resolve the matter.
They also lodged a complaint against Schala & Partners with the Real Estate Services Complaints Commission when they realised the deal was riskier than they had initially thought.
Here, Schala & Partners was criticised for not informing the couple of the risks of the project and for not having received adequate guarantees of the sale price. The tribunal found that the agency and Jannik Holm had breached good brokerage practice and concluded that the remuneration should be reduced by 65%.
Holm told E24 that he is contractually prohibited from speaking to the media and referred to his boss, Terje Rindal, who said they are taking the case very seriously and are in dialogue with all parties involved.
The couple fear they may have to find funding for the plot but hope the broker’s insurance will be a saving grace.
– It takes a lot of time. You kind of get lost in it. “I feel like I’ve lost two years of my life,” Marianne Gloersen said.
General Manager: – Super Offer
Per Håkon Malum, general manager of Eplehagen Eiendom, told E24 that the reason the houses have not been completed and Gløersen has not received payment is that the company is short of money.
– We think we have reached and still have an agreement that is good for both us and the seller, he said.
Epplehagen proposed to build three houses on the plot. Malum said this increased the value to NOK 7.5 million.
– They made about NOK 5 million by providing this solution. It was a super deal.
– But where is the five million?
– This is not a serious question. Malham said, you know this is a property with a deferred land settlement of $7.5 million.
– Where is the 5 million? Yes, they are implementing the project.
Per Haakon Malham
Managing Director Eplehagen Eiendom
Malum estimated that the houses are 80 to 90 percent complete, but said no work is being done on the houses now because they don’t have the money to continue the project.
– I think it is very sad that Gløersen chose to criticize this. They knew exactly what they were doing, but now they have forgotten it. Really, there is nothing we can do about it. There is no violation of the contract with Gløersen.
Malham said of the company’s financial situation:
– Eppelhagen has initiated the necessary renegotiation and refinancing processes to meet our obligations. The company has a share issue in 2023 due to the need to increase its stake in the company and is currently considering different forms of measures. This will be resolved, he wrote in an email.
Queue Conflict
Gløersen is just one of many landowners in conflict with Eplehagen Eiendom.
– I don’t understand how it works, says Ståle Nygård.
In March 2022, he sold part of his plot of land in Rellingen to Per Håkon Malum and Eplehagen Eiendom, who wanted to build a detached house on the plot.
Nygaard will receive 2.5 million Norwegian kroner for the plot of land itself, as well as half of the profits from the sale of the house. Half of the settlement was paid when the agreement was signed.
The remaining purchase price of NOK 1.25 million will be paid when the house on the plot is built and sold. Nygaard said it was completely unknown when that would happen.
– Today, there is a half-finished house on the plot. Construction work has completely stopped. No construction has been taking place on the site since November last year. On top of that, it is almost impossible to reach Malham and Eppelhagen. He says he doesn’t answer calls or text messages.
“One thing is what the case is going to cost me financially. What’s worse is all the frustration it’s going to cause me and how it’s going to affect my life,” he added.
Svein Høgtorp, general manager of Bygg-Team Romerike, confirmed to E24 that construction work at the Nygård site had stopped because Eplehagen owed the company money.
– The total amount is about NOK 1.5 million, Høgtorp said.
He further stated that Eplehagen also owed the company about NOK 600,000 for work it had carried out on Marianne Gløersen’s plot in Asker.
Per Håkon Malum of Eplehagen Eiendom confirmed that the project was stopped due to lack of funds and that they were in debt to Bygg-Team Romerike. He said they were in “close dialogue” with the supplier:
– Malham wrote that the company is taking the necessary steps to address the issue.
Arrested after lawsuit
In late 2023, a group of plot owners filed a lawsuit against Eplehagen Eiendom. They had not received payment for a plot of land that Eplehagen was supposed to buy for NOK 4 million and that the landowner had transferred to the company.
“The parties agreed that a mortgage should be registered on the property in accordance with the purchase price. However, the mortgage was not registered, but a mortgage was registered with Intrum Capital AS in the amount of NOK 1,760,000, but the purchase price was not paid as agreed,” the Oslo District Court ruling said.
The plot owner won in court and was arrested on another plot owned by Epplehagen.
Paid 500,000 yuan for the goods
The contract between Schala & Partners’ Gløersen and Jannik Holm shows the broker had agreed to receive a commission of NOK 480,000 for the transfer. This is equivalent to 6.5% of the NOK 7.5 million sale.
Jannik Holm
Schala & Partners Real Estate Agents
Holm told E24 that he is not allowed to speak to the media under his contract and mentioned his boss, Terje Rindal, who is Glesson’s agent for this assignment.
He referred to the decision of the Complaints Committee.
“We accept the decision and have reduced our compensation in accordance with it. We take this matter very seriously and are in dialogue with all parties involved,” Lindahl wrote in an email.
– The cases you mentioned are still ongoing, so it is difficult to make any comments on the outcome as of today. We do not want to comment further on these matters other than we are in dialogue with all parties.
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