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I think the home warranty thing is a real issue. Our contracts here in Idaho didn't have the home warranty addressed in the contract until a few years ago, then after it being on our contract for a few short years it was removed because of the problems it created. Now the controversy is should agents advise clients to buy one even though those words aren't there? I'm not entirely clear what issues came up with it being address in the purchase contract, but I"m against it being there because I don't think our contracts should be selling or pushing a product. I've never pushed them, but left it up to the client.
I did have clients get an air conditioner replaced once and they were happy, but another client found it didn't cover what he thought it would. I've never bought one myself and the only advice I would give is to read the policy carefully before buying as you should any insurance policy.
Agreed with the statement completely. Thanks for sharing this informative thoughts here.
One home purchase in 2001 came with a warranty from one of the well known big 3 and soon after we moved in the fridge went south. They sent a repairman who diagnosed a faulty start capacitor, and rather then use the correct part he installed a generic oversized start capacitor that blew the compressor (according to the second repairman that they sent). The second repairman decided to replace the who compressor but didn't do it properly, resulting in brazing debris choking the whole system. This was according to the third repairman who came out. He said the fridge was irreparable and we then waited 6 weeks before the insurance company finally decided to cough up for a new fridge. It took a lot of perseverance, calls, emails and finally a lawyers letter to get that replacement fridge. Did I mention we were without a working fridge for just over 2 months with a newborn and a toddler in the house?
Second time, another new (to us) house in 2010 and another seller supplied warranty from the same darn company (we did not have a choice BTW). About 1 month after we moved in we noticed that the A/C was not working well, not really getting cold and running a lot. Out came another prize specimen who spent a long time on the phone with the insurance company before literally driving away without even bothering to talk to us. Just 20 seconds after he did a runner, the phone rang. The insurance company were calling to tell us that the claim was denied as it was a incorrectly installed. The knuckle dragging repairman had told them the system was soldered and thus incorrectly installed. Turned out all that was wrong was a pinhole leak that was properly repaired by a professional company that I called on my own dime. Their opinion was that it was silver soldered, not lead soldered, and this was a perfectly acceptable practice given the age of the A/C.
I absolutely swear that the first repairman and the insurance company were concocting a lie to ensure that they got the call out fee but didn't have to do any work. When I googled the HVAC company that the insurance company sent, I found complaint after complaint at the BBB with exactly the same issue. I wrote a very scathing review of that first company that earn't me a layers letter saying I was defaming the HVAC company. I replied through my lawyer that it was a true and accurate account of my dealings with the company and protected speech and if there was anything that they felt was factually incorrect then point it out and I would consider changing my review. Nothing further was heard from them.
Location: East of Seattle since 1992, 615' Elevation, Zone 8b - originally from SF Bay Area
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If you are buying a 30 year old home with the original furnace, or whole-house AC then it may well be worth it because you are on borrowed time. Better yet, ask for replacement in the negotiations. Like aftermarket car warranties, they have too many ways to get out of paying so establishing a home repair savings account makes more sense.
I have one and I think I will renew again. It is worth it to me to get a contractor there quickly. One year I had my ac go out in the middle of July in the Carolinas. I put in a service request and the man was there 2 hours later. He said they put all their warranty calls on priority and the waiting list for non-warranty calls were running an average of four days.
I had one for a year when I bought my last place. I did not renew it. They have to do all of the repairs, at least the one I had. You can't call someone else and show the receipt. Service calls were higher than anyone else charged.
Have never bought a home without a home warranty, the main reason being that since the buyers have never lived in the property, they have no idea (despite the inspection) what could go wrong during that first year of residence. Just not worth the risk, and certainly worth the few hundred bucks that the home warranty costs.
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