former construction defect-how will it hurt sale of townhouse (Realtors, listing, for sale)

[fay111]

Hi, I'm new to the forum and have a question for the realtors. We will be listing our townhouse soon. Five years ago we discovered some major construction defects. We had them fixed - and know we fixed them correctly - used a well respected engineer, a construction firm that specialized in this type of work and a master plumber. I know we have to disclose this and wondered how much this would scare people off, even though we know it's been fixed properly.

[Derek ATX]

It's hard to say not knowing what the defect is.............or, was.

[fay111]

townhouse was built on a slab - the slab failed due to building defects - and also broke most of the pipes in the unit. New piping was put in and the slab replaced as well as the substructure underneath it.

[Derek ATX]

Was there water damage as a result? I think this will effect your final selling price even with the repairs but I don't know about your specific market conditions. One of the problems is that it is a town home so there are other similar units around you that one could buy without the risk of a recurring problem

[fay111]

there was no water damage - the pipes that broke were sewer pipes - raw sewerage collected underneath the slab (what a nightmare). Obviously, it was pumped out. The engineer recommended not replacing the slab - we now have steel i-beams with wooden floor joists - there is no danger of the problem recurring the way the engineer designed the new plan.

We do have one of the largest units in the development with one of the best views and it is an end unit - it is completely updated - kitchen is 3 years old - new bathrooms, hardwood floors. We do plan to price it a bit below other units for sale, even though ours is larger and in better condition than most.