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I'm a 1st time homebuyer and consumed with HGTV's my first place. A lot of the couples ask the sellers to pay for their closing cost. Is this common? Or is it a state-by-state thing.
I'm looking to buy a townhome in Northern New Jersey and was wondering if I should ask the seller to pay for closing costs or would my offer just get rejected for that idea.
Despite educating them on what should be considered reasonable repairs, I get buyers that request every item in the inspection report be fixed and let the seller tell us what they won't fix. Usually we arrive at some compromise.
What specifically do you consider to be "reasonable repairs"?
For example, the plunger thingy on my bathroom sink is disconnected from the rod under the sink. Is it "reasonable" to expect me to fix that?
I can't imagine a buyer spending $500 on an inspection and then walking over something so trivial.
My buyers went nuts over my house missing 4 window screens. When I bought the house 5 years ago, it had maybe 4 screens out of 21. I made a bunch, and didnt get to the 4. They were willing to walk because of these missing screens after the inspection report. I eventually gave in, but they made such a huge deal out of it, even after I was willing to do everything else they asked which included a $1200 rebuild of my chimney. They too were first time home buyers.
In my opinion, a 5 year old home should still be in immaculate condition. If they're already having serious issues, then it was a crummy build. If it has problems, they should be attended to immediately. It isn't a 50 year old home where the original construction is starting to wear and tear.
When I purchased a home, and a lot of people I know who are looking at homes, we don't WANT a HGTV home. We want to fix up the place in our style, and pay less now.
What specifically do you consider to be "reasonable repairs"?
For example, the plunger thingy on my bathroom sink is disconnected from the rod under the sink. Is it "reasonable" to expect me to fix that?
I can't imagine a buyer spending $500 on an inspection and then walking over something so trivial.
I would not be surprised if a buyer asks for the "plunger thingy" to be repaired. I don't think it's too much to ask for the sinks and plumbing to be in working condition (and is also a warranty condition in our standard contract). The seller can always decline and then up to the buyer to agree or not. I would not expect a buyer to cancel over that one item.
Unreasonable would be asking for new paint, carpet, etc. that was obvious and should have been considered in the offer. If I was a seller and all the buyer asked for was to repair the plunger thingy, I'd be very happy.
What specifically do you consider to be "reasonable repairs"?
For example, the plunger thingy on my bathroom sink is disconnected from the rod under the sink. Is it "reasonable" to expect me to fix that?
I can't imagine a buyer spending $500 on an inspection and then walking over something so trivial.
Something like that? Yes, I'd expect the seller to fix it. I think it goes both ways. Would a seller be willing to risk a sale by not fixing something as trivial as that? Don't think I'd walk over something like that, but then again if the seller balks over the repair then I might be worried that they would be difficult to work with on other issues. Plus there's probably some guy down the street trying to sell his house who would be happy to make those kinds of repairs.
As a first time buyer I think I might also be worried that if there were very many easy-to-fix problems found by the inspector it would imply that the current homeowner might not have been very conscientious about home maintenance. Who knows what might have been neglected that might turn into a big headache down the road.
Not to mention that the idea of being nickel and dimed to death over small repairs (that the previous owner should have been taking care of all along) immediately upon moving in just doesn't hold much appeal for some of us.
OTOH I think unreasonable would include things that were mostly cosmetic and not as easy to fix, a cracked bathroom tile, a small scratch in the kitchen countertop, a chip in a porcelain fixture.
Big things like a roof repair would have hopefully been taken into consideration in the listing price.
I agree. Often times buyers freak out about things just due to general stress of home buying. When they relax, they tend to become more reasonable.
I've had one buyer back out over a home inspection report in my 5 years as an agent. The seller refused to negotiate on repairs. I would never want to see a buyer spend $400 for an inspection when the home has obvious defects. So I make sure we talk about the obvious things before writing an offer.
Especially with an older/historic home this is even more critical to discuss with buyers, first timers or not. We're not talking about new construction here, though some of the older homes were actually built more structurally sound than some of the new homes being thrown up. With your husband being a contractor and while I know you've done a lot of upgrading, if there is something that is literally going to jump out at a buyer then maybe there is an easy (cheap) fix for it - as well, your list price needs to factor in things like the fact during inspection your roof just might not cut the grade. As SF also suggested, maybe have a pre-listing inspection done so you know the good, the bad and the ugly (and do not use the one where you just found out he's not licensed) Get a good one as I am assuming most buyers/lenders would look for a licensed inspector; I would.
What does hubby know abut roofs? Maybe if an inspection report came back and there were only a couple of places that need to be repaired and he can do the work - inexpensive fix. Needless to say if the entire roof needs to be replaced, leaking, etc., well your list price needs to factor in that a new buyer will most likely have to have the entire roof replaced. Inexpensive fixes that hubby can do himself, yes; expensive repairs, factor into your list price. At least that's my 2 cents worth.
Location: Sometimes Maryland, sometimes NoVA. Depends on the day of the week
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Just MHO, but, despite my post, the sink stopper? That would really make me wonder why the seller couldn't take 5 minutes to fix it before even listing.
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Plus there's probably some guy down the street trying to sell his house who would be happy to make those kinds of repairs.
Make that 2 Gold Stars
) Get a good one as I am assuming most buyers/lenders would look for a licensed inspector; I would.
