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This is only my 2nd go-around in real estate, as I've only purchased one other place besides this. So pardon my inexperience and ignorance. I put an offer on an older house in an up and coming neighborhood in a hot real estate market. The seller accepted my offer, and obviously we proceeded to go under contract.
From the start, the seller has been trying to dictate the entire transaction so that we accommodate her. We've made several concessions to accommodate her and her family, but she has ultimately done little to nothing for us. We're allowing her to stay in the home for two weeks, rent free, after closing. She has consistently pushed around closing dates that best suits her needs with little or no consideration for what works for us. She even tried to rush the inspection objection deadline, putting the deadline only a few days after we went under contract, giving us very little time to set up a detailed and thorough inspection. Anyway, I recently had an inspector come out and he came up with his list of items that need or should be repaired. Two of the major issues he uncovered was structural damage to an attached garage due to settling and an electric circuit box that was not adequately protected and labeled, as well as the breakers being near full capacity and with poor "amateurish" wiring as he put it.
We presented the issues we wanted the seller to address, and of course, she refused to address all of the lesser issues we noted. However, she did agree to allow us to bring in an electrician and structural expert to assess and quote out the electrical and structural issues that were detected. I'm nervous that the seller will refuse to accommodate us on these issues, as she has seemingly tried to strong arm and domineer this entire transaction.
So what are the typical options available when something major like this is detected in a house you are trying to purchase, and the seller refuses to address them or assist with rectifying them? I guess I'm just trying to prepare myself for the best and worst case scenarios.
Replacing/upgrading the breaker box is no big deal, even if you can't do it. The settling issue can also probably be repaired by an experienced carpenter after getting a spec/ repair detailed by a structual engineer. On two of my rentals I'm partners with my best friend who is a carpenter contractor. If you don't know a carpenter or an engineer, my advice is find a local engineer who works for himself and will personally come out and inspect the house. He can probably recommend local carpenter (who has made repairs on other houses he has inspected) that would complete his list of repairs to his liking. We have done this several times . As far as the seller, she sounds like a complete self centered b%#+?! After getting your quotes I would give her a copy and either tell that your not clear seeing until repairs are made or she reduces her price accordingly. If you really have to have the house, maybe you could accept her counter offer. I'm pretty sure once she has the professional estimate she has to disclose that to future potential homebuyers. That could work in your favor. I've never gotten emotional about having to have a certain house (my wife is a different story). It has worked very well for me . Good luck
> So what are the typical options available when something major like this is detected in a house you are trying to purchase
(1) Ask for repairs (2) ask for a reduction (3) kill the deal.
Once the inspection report comes back you are negotiating again. If you think there are too many problems then ask for the unreasonable.
The details are state-dependent. In some states (including mine) you can walk after the inspection for whatever reason or no reason. (Assuming the inspection is done on time, that is).
I put an offer on an older house in an up and coming neighborhood...
I recently had an inspector come out...
--structural damage to an attached garage due to settling
--an electric circuit box that was not adequately protected and labeled
You need a structural engineer to assess how serious this garage issue is.
If the "inspector" didn't also tell you this then don't trust anything else they said.
Quote:
We presented the issues we wanted the seller to address
...she did agree to allow us to bring in an electrician and structural expert to assess
Quote:
So what are the typical options available when...
and the seller refuses to address them or assist with rectifying them?
You find another house.
---
eta: conversation about settlement dates and possible rent backs don't start until after the basics are sorted.
Last edited by MrRational; 07-28-2017 at 05:42 AM..
I mainly agree with the advice above. Additionally:
I suggest that you negotiate a price reduction or credit rather than to rely on the seller to fix things. Although with a credit, you bear the risk that repairs cost more than anticipated, it's far cleaner.
You say 'major issues' but you should take a deep breath as what you describe doesn't sound major for an old house. I'm certainly not saying that you should just accept it but you just need to put it all in perspective. Labeling of the circuits probably comes up 99% of the time. Like the anti-siphon thing on the hose. I suggest that if there are 12 things on the list (for example) you show her the list and then you exclude the non-sense ones, focusing on the one or two that are material. Also, it might be too late now but descriptions like 'amateurish' for the wiring is very unhelpful. You need to be clear about what specifically is wrong, like if something is not up to code. How can the seller respond to 'amateurish'. She might say that she had a pro do it and it was all approved. Your inspection report and your overall position will lose credibility unless it's laid out in a very objective way, avoiding subjective descriptions like 'amateurish'.
You suggest that she's pushing you around but you're the one allowing her to do this. You might be nervous because it's a hot market but keep in mind that the seller usually has lots invested in making this work with the offer accepted. She won't want to start out new with someone else who will find the same inspection issues, she'll have to negotiate the things that you've (rightly or wrongly) agreed to, etc.
Be very careful with the two week extension living there. I think that this is very dependent on your location but there are loads of considerations here. Where I live, you don't do this as a rental agreement as that creates loads of consequences and risks. I did this once (as the seller) and it worked out fine. You may know that it's customary in the US to pay rent according to the mortgage payment of the buyer. While that doesn't make a lot of logical sense (ignores market value, total cost of ownership, mortgage amount can vary wildly depending on the down payment, etc) it's kind of a shortcut to determine a fair price for something that usually is very short term anyway. You can charge whatever you want or nothing but I would not do this casually. You need legal cover for it (again varies by where you live). you need to make sure that you don't have liability issues, insurance issues, mortgage issues (e..g not allowing rental of the place, etc). It's not uncommon to do this but you need to do it right or it can be a total nightmare.
Where I live, you don't do this as a rental agreement as that creates loads of consequences and risks.
Yes, my realtor said the same. He said you don't rent back, as renters have all sorts of rights and it could prove difficult to get them out should they not honor the agreement.
Instead you allow them the right of occupancy for that time. And occupants have no rights.
Yes, my realtor said the same. He said you don't rent back, as renters have all sorts of rights and it could prove difficult to get them out should they not honor the agreement.
Instead you allow them the right of occupancy for that time. And occupants have no rights.
Interesting point. It is officially a post occupancy agreement. So maybe that is supposed to protect us versus a rent back agreement? This is the first time anyone has ever asked us for such.
OP, sounds like you need to get much more assertive with this seller. Why have you allowed her to push you around so much and tap-danced to her needs? Where is your realtor in this situation? My husband and I experienced sellers like this one years ago in CA and we, along with our realtor, told them to kick rocks. There's no way we were going to allow some seller push us around just because we wanted to buy their house- there was always another house to look at and consider.
It's time for y'all to get some guts and let this seller know that if she isn't willing to fix these things (I'm assuming this wasn't an "as-is" sale) then you'll walk away. Start looking at other houses again ASAP to prepare yourselves. Good luck.
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