would you walk away from a house with a water leak? (lawyer, neighborhood)
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we found an undisclosed water leak into the lower floor during the house inspection... there is no mold seen in the opening, but it also seems to be leaking a little bit when the faucet is turned off... also, we saw another one being recently fixed in the other part of the house...
would you decide that the mold is there already and walk away from the house, or would you request the pipe to be fixed and stay under the contract?
we found an undisclosed water leak into the lower floor during the house inspection... there is no mold seen in the opening, but it also seems to be leaking a little bit when the faucet is turned off... also, we saw another one being recently fixed in the other part of the house...
would you decide that the mold is there already and walk away from the house, or would you request the pipe to be fixed and stay under the contract?
we just can't make our mind on how to proceed...
thanks a lot in advance!
If you are willing to walk away from a house because of a faucet that " seems to be leaking a little bit", then you must not want the house. It may be something as simple as tightening a nut, or putting on a piece of thread tape. It's an easy easy fix. In fact, many contracts may not even allow you to back out for such a minor issue. And you can't just assume that mold exists, especially when you hav no evidence of such.
If, in fact, you like this house and want to buy it, then have the leak fixed, and hire a professional to do a thorough inspection to make sure there are no other issues, including and especially mold.
I meant a hole in the ceiling downstairs through which water is sipping from the bathroom upstairs... house inspector did only a visual inspection, he he didn't see any mold in the opening... if the leak is there even for a week, the mold spores are in the flooring structure already... the house was vacant over the winter, so nobody knows when it all started...
should we even bother with the further investigation or it'd be wiser to walk away?
should we even bother with the further investigation or it'd be wiser to walk away?
Depends on how good of a deal the house is. If it's a one-of-a-kind house that you really love, that you're getting a great price on, it definitely warrants further investigation to see what the extent of damage (if any) is. If you're not thrilled with the house, and there are 10 more just like it in the neighborhood, it might not be worth looking any further. In either case, I'd think opening up a bigger hole down below the potential leak is a worthwhile venture, and something the seller should be willing to do.
yeah, like Bob says....if you can't find a location like it, and the house, overall is decent, just ask for concessions and a fix and move forward. but if you have a funny feeling about it, i'd walk away.
i'd also say open it up and see what else is in there if you can. seller should have disclosed it...no way they did not know about it...so i would think, what else are they hiding?
This might be nothing at all, or it might be a very expensive problem. Why gamble on your family's health?
If you really like this house, and/or if it is a really good deal, then have your lawyer negotiate for an extension of time on the inspection. That shouldn't be a problem considering the potential gravity of this situation.
Once your extension of time is in place then have someone take another look. You don't want to deal with a home that has mold contamination.
If it was me, I would walk only because it could be a sign that other parts of the home weren't being maintained properly either. Water dripping through the ceiling is a big deal to me. That's something that has to be fixed immediately.
I think others gave the best advice. If this house is a smoking deal and has everything you want and is in a prime location for you, then it is probably worth pursuing it further. If there are plenty of other homes that meet your needs and don't have the issue, then by all means pursue one of those instead.
Does the house have city water or well water? If city water, you may want to find out from the water company what the hardness of the water is, and whether or not they would recommend a water softener. (I know people who were plagued with leaks for many years and needed to have a water softener installed, which is not cheap). If it's well water it would be a bit more complicated as you would need to have the water tested. It depends on what exactly is leaking.
Does the house have city water or well water? If city water, you may want to find out from the water company what the hardness of the water is, and whether or not they would recommend a water softener. (I know people who were plagued with leaks for many years and needed to have a water softener installed, which is not cheap). If it's well water it would be a bit more complicated as you would need to have the water tested. It depends on what exactly is leaking.
I was hoping to get some answers like this to better understand our options. Could you please explain more? How does the source of water affect the consequences of the water damage?
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