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Old 10-26-2016, 08:47 AM
 
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I would get a mold inspection done today, pronto and if mold is found then I would nix the deal or require the homeowner to fix it before closing on the house.

A realtor is not an inspector and while some are very knowledgeable, he/she likely isn't going through the level of inspection that a professional would. It's a few hundred bucks, I would do it today.
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Old 10-28-2016, 04:02 PM
 
2,414 posts, read 4,213,051 times
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Originally Posted by midtod2016 View Post
I recently bought a house on the west side of JAX that is set to close on FRIDAY of this week. The home was built in 1993 by Mercedes home builders and has a stucco exterior. I called the Duval County inspector's office and they are fairly certain that in that time period, it was a hard coat, not synthetic stucco.

There is wood rot around the lower right corner of a front window and someone took their shoe and kicked a hole in some softened drywall there. Also dry rot around the rear door frame.

The realtor says this is because this foreclosed property was not maintained, they should have caulked around the doors/windows and his crew can do that, replace the dry wall and everything will be fine. We also would add gutters (the window affected is at a point where water would cascade right down it). The roof is original and he proposed using a stain/water sealant that is rolled on if I didn't want to add another layer of shingles.

The inspector claimed there were water stains (but no wetness) here and there inside but two friends shot video and pics and didn't see any. The realtor argues that IF there was moisture in the house, there surely would be MOULD because it's been locked up with no air conditioning on for several months. There is no mould, no termites.

In your post you indicated you would likely know the construction method used. I noticed that Mercedes was sued by home owners who claimed problems with water intrusion, but they reorganized and are still in business. The realtor says a lot of home builders have been sued and it's no big deal. It's a very nice house, I got a good deal on it, but I also worry because there are indeed some fissures or cracks on the stucco. Realtor says those can be caulked, not to worry. I considered having an infra-red/moisture meter test but decided not to spend the money.

I am panicking because the deadline for me to wire money is in TWO DAYS. Any advice? Thanks.


Sorry I am just now seeing this. You would, if it's not too late, be best served to delay closing and have this home completely inspected by a professional. Your real estate agent is BS'ing you into buying the house so they can make their commission, end of story.


Mercedes Homes are famous for having poor designs and water intrusion, even after housewrap became a code requirement, which it was not in 1993.


I have a very close friend of mine who was not even able to sell their house because of moisture damage to their home off of Hodges Blvd., and it was built to the newer codes.


Bottom line is, if there are areas that have deteriorated where you can simply kick in the sheetrock because of the wood underneath being rotten, chances are highly likely that this home has major moisture damage that is still hidden.


On top of that, you cannot simply lay another layer of shingles on a roof anymore, it's a code violation and it's ILLEGAL! All new roof repairs have to be brought up to the new codes which can get expensive.


Based on everything I've heard you say, your Realtor is shady, and you should walk away from this house. That's just my opinion, but everything in your post raises a HUGE red flag for me. I hope this all turns out for the best for you.


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