Home inspection and seller's repairs... (sale, real estate, rental)

[animaldrj]

We are getting ready to purchase an older home (circa. 1932) and the inspector recommends replacing the electric panel because there is a greater chance of it not working and a circuit to overheat. The seller states that they had an electrician look at it prior to putting the home on the market and the electrician says it is fine and he/she will back that up. I would feel safer if they replaced the panel but would rather not jeopardize the sale if they decide to not replace it. The house has other issues and we are going to invest a lot of money into updating the house; I would rather not spend a lot of extra on items I believe they should fix. Ideas?

[cp1969]

Make them an offer that is reduced by the amount that your electrician says it will take to fix the problem.

They either accept it or they won't.

[Samantha S]

You can also write into the contract that the seller has to have the work done prior to closing.

They may try to negotiate it out, but I wouldn't hesitate to put it on the table. It's still a buyers' market out there and if they are selling a house that needs work, they should be expecting to make some concessions.

[briansgi]

It depends if it passes inspection or not, if it does it's not going to be an item that is mandatory that it be fixed. If it passes inspection then you can still request that it be replaced but the owner will not have to do that. You can request all kinds of items be replaced, it's just up to the seller whether they will do it or not. I just sold my home and the buyer requested all kinds of items be replaced, none were items that did NOT pass in any of the numerous inspections the buyer paid for, so I told them NO I would not replace the items on their list. Buyer said ok and the deal went through with no issues. Ask for the sky and see how gullible/desperate the seller is!

[cp1969]

I wouldn't ask the seller to fix it. They will go the cheapest route they can; you want it fixed right.

Reduce your offer by the amount it takes to fix it right.

But most of all, be prepared to walk away. There is nothing special about this house or any other. Something as good or better will be available next week.

[Samantha S]

Originally Posted by cp1969

I wouldn't ask the seller to fix it. They will go the cheapest route they can; you want it fixed right.

You can stipulate in the contract who you want to do the work and that it has to be done to your satisfaction.

When we bought, there were some things I wanted to do or have done myself, but there were other things that I wanted done prior to closing so that I wouldn't have to mess with them. When we sold, we didn't "cheap out" on the repairs that were asked of us. Better to have it done right than have to do it again or risk prolonging or losing the sale.

Do what works best for you, but the seller has to expect some concessions unless they have listed the house specifically "as is".

[FlyersFan]

Originally Posted by animaldrj

We are getting ready to purchase an older home (circa. 1932) and the inspector recommends replacing the electric panel because there is a greater chance of it not working and a circuit to overheat. The seller states that they had an electrician look at it prior to putting the home on the market and the electrician says it is fine and he/she will back that up. I would feel safer if they replaced the panel but would rather not jeopardize the sale if they decide to not replace it. The house has other issues and we are going to invest a lot of money into updating the house; I would rather not spend a lot of extra on items I believe they should fix. Ideas?

I did prepurchase home inspections for 20 years (over 5000 inspections).....although I am from New Jersey the bottom line everywhere is that your inspector only made a recommendation......apparently he didn't find anything defective......in order to get the owner to replace/repair a panel, or anything, it must be defective in some manner that its not operatiing the way it was intended to at the time of inspection. You can't get the owner to replace something just because of age alone. Unfortunately today, due to fear of lawsuits and lack of experience, inspectors tend to more critical of items to cover themselves......again......if he can't point to something defective with the panel other than say maybe something may happen in the future don't expect the seller to do anything about it. When you retain an inspector your supposed to receive specific/detailed information you can negotiate with.....not "maybe this or that".

[Samantha S]

Originally Posted by FlyersFan

You can't get the owner to replace something just because of age alone.

Oh yes you can.

Everything is negotiable. The buyers of our house stipulated all kinds of non-essential stuff they wanted to keep (like certain window treatments) or wanted done (like sealing the sump pump). We negotiated. We agreed to some of it, they agreed to forego some of it.

But I do agree with you that the inspector's job is to give you a detailed report on the condition of the house. Recommending replacement of something due to age is just that: a recommendation. What you do with the info is up to you. You can ask the sellers to replace it, they can agree or refuse, and what happens after that is all part of the process.

[FlyersFan]

Originally Posted by Samantha S

Oh yes you can.

Everything is negotiable. The buyers of our house stipulated all kinds of non-essential stuff they wanted to keep (like certain window treatments) or wanted done (like sealing the sump pump). We negotiated. We agreed to some of it, they agreed to forego some of it.

But I do agree with you that the inspector's job is to give you a detailed report on the condition of the house. Recommending replacement of something due to age is just that: a recommendation. What you do with the info is up to you. You can ask the sellers to replace it, they can agree or refuse, and what happens after that is all part of the process.

Your spitting into the wind.....sure you can ask for it but don't expect to get it. Comparing leaving window treatments you have no further need for behind and sealing a sump pump lid to replacing an entire electrical panel on a home inspectors "maybe" is nuts.....additionally you don't get a new furnace, plumbing system, roof or AC unit just because the existing one isn't new......it has to be defective in some manner.......if your agent suggests you should then you need a new agent....otherwise every buyer would ask for every original major system in a 30 year old home to be replaced.

[Samantha S]

Originally Posted by FlyersFan

Your spitting into the wind.....sure you can ask for it but don't expect to get it. Comparing leaving window treatments you have no further need for behind and sealing a sump pump lid to replacing an entire electrical panel on a home inspectors "maybe" is nuts.....additionally you don't get a new furnace, plumbing system, roof or AC unit just because the existing one isn't new......it has to be defective in some manner.......if your agent suggests you should then you need a new agent....otherwise every buyer would ask for every original major system in a 30 year old home to be replaced.

Sorry, but I disagree with you and I've been party to several real estate transactions in recent years. You can ask for anything. And in today's market, if it's a reasonable request, it's quite likely to be granted.

I was giving examples of non-essential repairs, not making direct comparisons.

For a more direct comparison: We bought a rental house a few years ago. The furnace was not defective, it was working at the time, but it was old and we were worried that it was on it's last legs. We wrote into the contract that we wanted a new furnace and the seller agreed to put it in prior to closing.

Now more so than then it is a buyers' market. Of course, a buyer isn't going to ask for "every original major system to be replaced". But if a buyer feels that there is a significant issue with the electrical system, it's completely reasonable to ask for some allowance for it in the contract.

On a related note, it's also quite reasonable to ask the seller to provide a 12 month home warranty that covers all major appliances. Our recent sellers bought one for us and we bought one for our buyers on the last two properties we sold.

Bottom line: Everything is negotiable.