Daniel John Byrnes

We are buying a house on Staten Island and Mr Byrnes came in a package with the brokers. We were told he is a nice local guy and did hundreds of closings with our broker, what can possibly go wrong. He is our attorney and he is only looking out for our interest. We agreed. This is our first house an...d we just did not know any better. Well, guess what? Everything went wrong. The contract we signed was just a standard contract, just like everybody else been signing for years. The riders were standard, all the clause were standard. but our situation was not standard. We relocated from Europe, had only 2 months of temp housing. Took a trip to NY to find and buy a house 3 month ahead of time. And specifically said that we need to close on Sept 15 or we are out on the street. Also we have no warm clothing since the closing was to be not later that Sept 15. We were assured that everything will be fine. The closing was set on "on or about" date and we were told that we'll be in the house on Sept 15. A week before closing the seller said he wants to bail out as decided not to sell anymore. We were devastated. Started asking Daniel for advice. He did not bother to respond to any of our emails or calls. He is an attorney for only "the good times". But when the going get tough he is always busy at closing. We were clueless what to do. Had to consult some other attorneys and finally, when we found the one we liked, we fired Daniel Byrnes. Unfortunately the damage was already done. The way our contract is written, we are screwed big time. We have lost time and money and still are not in the house almost 2 months later. We had to rent another temp apartment, buy dishes and clothing, because we can't move anywhere permanently and sign a lease. We had scheduled closing 2 times already and every time, at the last moment sellers ask for something else, we don't have a choice but to agree and when it comes to the final day it starts all over again. Our contract is states that the sellers are entitled to stay at the house after closing, for less money than hotels cost, with no guarantee they will ever move out. They are not liable for anything, we have to pay for mortgage, apartment we are renting, storage where all our things are. And if the seller wishes so, he does not have to move out at all, as he is not bound by anything. We would have to evict him through courts and lawyers where again we are liable for all the payments.Most of all, if he or his friends or family members get any kind of injury in your house, they can get you for every penny you've got, cause they can not be enforced to even get renters insurance. Our current attorney said that those "standard" contracts are no longer used. Because of those standard contracts buyers end up in court, loosing tenth of thousands of dollars, time and nerves. And nobody gives a damn. Nothing bad ever happens to "Nice guys". So buyers, please!!!!!!! for your own sake, beware that for every 100 good closings, there is always a bad one and YOU MIGHT BE IT, JUST LIKE WE ARE NOW. Don't go to nice guys, get a good lawyers who really will look out for your interest , who will not ignore you, will return all your calls and will answer your emails. Time is of the essence clause to make sure you are not being strung by the difficult sellers , like us. And finally, please beware of Daniel Byrnes.