Foreclosed New Home, No Occupant in 4 years (vents, negotiation, accepted)

[lakerseven]

I am looking at a foreclosed new home by builder that has remained empty for four years. What should I be concerned about? Without someone living there, do I worry about heating/cooling, pipes, etc.? Would warranties for appliances start from 4 years ago? Builder is out of the picture.

[rjrcm]

Originally Posted by lakerseven

I am looking at a foreclosed new home by builder that has remained empty for four years. What should I be concerned about? Without someone living there, do I worry about heating/cooling, pipes, etc.? Would warranties for appliances start from 4 years ago? Builder is out of the picture.

Depending on where it's located and the impact of weather conditions, you should definitely be concerned about plumbing and the heating/cooling systems, and perhaps other issues if there has been no ongoing maintenance. Have the home professionally inspected if you move forward with a purchase.

I would not expect the appliance warranties to still be valid. Consider buying a home warranty package that will cover them.

[Modification Specialist]

Originally Posted by rjrcm

..... Have the home professionally inspected if you move forward with a purchase....

Good advice...

Further

It is important to understand when buying a home, nobody is going to be holding your hand. Do not give any Realtor or Seller any personal financial information. People start sizing you up as soon as they see you. You are telling what your terms are, do not fall victim to their terms. "" Oh we need to include this charge for....(tihslliB - spell backwards).

When you first my contact - one of thing first thing to find out, how motivated the seller is to work with you. It Is A Buyers Market out there, the sellers know that and they hope you don't .....

1st offer - Say - "My 1st offer is 30% less then the price. You are seriously interested in the home, but there are other properties you are looking at. "Will you come down off the selling price?". Almost any home you look at the price has been upped so they can bring it down to make the sale.

Yes - 30% less then the asking price you are insulting them. By telling them you are interest, and by this is your 1st offer. your is room for a higher offer, if they lower there price. Starting low, you can go up. Starting high, cannot go down.

2nd offer - this is after they reduced the selling price. This when you want to do a Home Inspection. It costs around $300 to $400 bucks, that you got to pay, it's worth it. The report is yours and you do not have to release it to the seller.

The report will give you yet another bargaining tool. Looking at the defaults - this is what you are going to say - "By replacing the .... it is going to cost me this much... Your second offer you say "My 2nd offer is 15% from the last offer".

The report is showing the condition of the home from the foundation to the roof and in between. You point out so called "Very Serious Problems", you are placing doubt in the sellers mind about how much it is going to cost the repair to be able to sell. If they want to sell it, they bring the price down further.

It can go on and on, to get a lower price. I am just illustrating my point. Working with Bank owned property's - it might be harder to negotiate, it is important to rember you can go up on your offer. Making your first offer to high, you can not go down. Also take you time, do not make an offer and later regret it.

The amount you are going to pay will be determined by your skill of negotiation. If they won't work on your terms (it's a buyers market), say "See Ya" , they are the ones not working with you. In this type of market, the ball is in your court!!!

Good Luck...

[rjrcm]

Originally Posted by Modification Specialist

...2nd offer - this is after they reduced the selling price. This when you want to do a Home Inspection. It costs around $300 to $400 bucks, that you got to pay, it's worth it. The report is yours and you do not have to release it to the seller....

Actually, I wouldn't pay for an inspection until I have an accepted offer and contract. Your contract should have an inspection period where you can cancel if you don't like the results of the inspection.

Whether or not you have to give the seller a copy of the inspection report may be indicated in the contract. Our standard AZ Realtor contract requires the buyer to give the seller copies of all inspection reports.

[escanlan]

Originally Posted by lakerseven

I am looking at a foreclosed new home by builder that has remained empty for four years. What should I be concerned about? Without someone living there, do I worry about heating/cooling, pipes, etc.? Would warranties for appliances start from 4 years ago? Builder is out of the picture.

It appears that you are in my neck of the woods. Is this the Frisco or Allen areas that you were looking into from before? We do see brand new homes that have been repossessed from the builder and I did one that was empty for two years. However 4 years is a bit unusual. Are you sure it was started and finished 4 years ago? When was it repossessed? If you can PM me an address I can do a desktop inspection and see what I can find for possibilities. You would be surprised how much I have found before I even go out to a property for an inspection.

I would definitely recommend a thorough general inspection of the property in your option period. These are some of the potential issues that could be there, but not necessarily are, after sitting for 4 years.

• Most importantly is in our expansive soils if they have not maintained a foundation watering program there could easily be foundation movement from minor to significant levels. Just as an FYI the home I did that sat empty 2 years must have been extremely well built. There were even signs that foundation watering was not being performed. I was simply amazed that I did not find anything other than very minor movement signs on that one.
• Seals in plumbing fixtures can easily dry out and fail after usage in a short time. The potential is they have already dried out and failed.
• Standard water heaters can have seals failing as well as stagnant water issues inside.
• If the home was not properly winterized, or the utilities kept on, then there can be the potential for plumbing damage from extreme temperatures.
• In the last 4 years we have had significant weather events (hail, high wind, etc.) that can potentially have damaged the shingles or caused other issues on the roof. I doubt anything was done to repair damages unless they were highly visible from the ground or causing issues.
• If there were defects in roof installation, particularly flashing details incorrect, there could have been slow water penetration issues and damage over those 4 years.
• In 4 years the caulking around windows and doors could have failed if they did not properly maintain it. Builders don't use high grade, long lasting caulks and sealers that can withstand these Texas heats and sun.
• If there are issues with attic ventilation, and the air handler/evaporative coil, is located up there (standard in Texas new builds) then there could always have been built-up humidity issues. Not only can potentially cause mold growth in closed HVAC cabinets, on evap coils, if the system air handler is not run regularly.
• Because it has not been occupied then insect and vermin entry/damage can go unchecked.
• Without running the HVAC system regularly, opening and closing doors and windows, then interior humidity levels also can go unchecked causing mold or other potential issues.

These are some of the potentials but it does not mean they are there. But you should be aware of them. I think the most disconcerting issue is why did it not sell in those 4 years? It could have been the builder was asking to much, was too stubborn and it finally bit him in the rear by foreclosure.

As for the appliance warranties they typically start when the item is purchased/installed. I seriously doubt any of the items are still warranted if they are that old. I would also recommend that you look into purchasing a really good home warranty for not only appliances but also for the other systems and the structure as well. It would be the best money you spend for at least the first two years of ownership.

It's well worth having it inspected though. If you are going to make an offer on it make sure that all the utilities are to be turned on before your option period starts so that a proper inspection can be done. By turning them on make sure that not only are the main valves for water and gas are on but that all plumbing valves under sinks, toilets, etc., are all on as well and water is present. Run all of your faucets and fixtures for a minute to see what comes out and to activate the fixtures at least once. Don't forget to have the water heater main valve on and the heater running. All of the breakers should be turned on as well before the inspection. Try the heating system before the inspection and set the thermostat to 70 degrees and leave it until the inspection.

Since that home sat so long if you can get the utilities on at least a day, preferably longer, before the inspection that would certainly help you. The longer they are on before the inspection, and if you follow the steps above, the better. If you can get them on a few days before then check the home at least once or twice before the inspection day. If there is a catastrophic failure of plumbing or other system you should see it. At that point you can cancel the inspection and back out of the deal if you don't want to go any farther. That can save you money on inspections, etc. Also if you do continue with the inspection and have that heater running a couple days at 70 degrees it should help stabilize temperatures in the home. That would make performing thermal imaging (Thermography) easier and better if you have it performed.

If you have specific questions email me. As I said above if you can email me an address I can do a quick desktop inspection to see what can be seen.

Good luck!