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First of all, forget what the seller paid for it three years ago, in the middle of the housing crash -- it's completely irrelevant to what it is WORTH now.
No, it is relavent. The seller listed it for 28K more than what he paid for it in 2010. If there were no material improvements in the home and no appreciation in that neighborhood, then the asking price was too high in the first place! Given the lack of basic house maintainence and multiple essential house "systems" reaching end of life, this house probably *depreciated* from 2010.
I am willing to bet that this is your basic development home...in a tract, or a spec development. It is 25 years old and all the places which contractors that build these houses use to cut corners/generate profit are starting to show.
The seller is sort of stuck, but that doesn't mean you need to lean on them. It is sort of like a car that has 200,000 miles on it, but has been washed and waxed regularly. It looks nice, but it doesn't have too many more miles to go before a major breakdown occurs.
The same goes for this house....except the breakdowns are showing. You can offer the seller, say, $50,000 below asking if the want to dump it, of you can walk away and wish them happy holidays. I suspect they won't agree to fix things as there are major issues which need to be addressed and they probably don't have the cash, and it won't add value to the house; it will simply justify the asking price--maybe.
This house, IMHO,is not a place for a homebuyer who isn't interested in taking on major home repairs. The house is basically worn out after 25 years and ready to for a major gut and rehab, or a tear down. No seller wants to hear that.
A lot of these issues are mickey mouse and can be dealt with as you get around to it with a handy man or never lol.
The main things needed imo to be addressed are the roof, A/C and water issues(including basement cracks and gutters). As someone else said the rotting sills are indicative of water issues. That could be as simple a fix as tightening the gutters against the house until they are replaced.
Sounds like you have already gone back to the seller so my only other question/advice going forward is this.....were you present at the home inspection? A good home inspector should not be just handing you a report that leaves you confused imo. If there is a next time, be there and ask all these questions of the inspector. They should be able to tell you how serious it is(even if just the worst/best case), the normal life of anything, and ballpark what it would cost to fix it. Also, on any older home, ask how old all these major things are before you offer.
Forgot......if you buy the house and young children will be there make sure you get the garage door adjusted as a child running under a closing door could be hurt or worse.
Water infiltration from the roof, incorrect flashing, and rotting window sills are not minor issues.
I didn't say these were minor issues. If you read my previous comment, I said there were a couple of major things on her list, then I responded back to her response to me. I did not repeat what I had already said. But, yes, I agree roof, AC, and leaks are important to look at. A garage door not having the proper sensor is not a big deal, as it's a cheap fix. Rodents in the attic are not a big deal, as you just call pest control and it's a cheap fix (in addition to asking the seller to fix the roof).
Most of the list is not a big deal. She should ask for the "functionality of the home" items, and that would be roof, AC, and leaks. Other things are home owner maintenance items.
Last edited by FalconheadWest; 12-19-2013 at 12:45 PM..
Have you asked your reatlor's advice? The worst thing that can happen is the seller says no. If you are prepared to walk, I would take a second look at the list and ask for only the major repairs. Personally I would not have the seller fix it, but negotiate the price if they are willing to.
No, it is relavent. The seller listed it for 28K more than what he paid for it in 2010. If there were no material improvements in the home and no appreciation in that neighborhood, then the asking price was too high in the first place! Given the lack of basic house maintainence and multiple essential house "systems" reaching end of life, this house probably *depreciated* from 2010.
No, the purchase price is not relevant. The only thing that matters is what the house is worth now. You have no idea if the guy over paid or got a steal on it and significantly underpaid its worth.
It doesn't hurt to try and negotiate. What is the house worth? What is the house worth with the repairs? How much money are you willing to put into it?
No, it is relavent. The seller listed it for 28K more than what he paid for it in 2010. If there were no material improvements in the home and no appreciation in that neighborhood, then the asking price was too high in the first place! Given the lack of basic house maintainence and multiple essential house "systems" reaching end of life, this house probably *depreciated* from 2010.
No, dear, it is NOT. Unless you have a good handle on pricing in that neighborhood almost four years ago, it's difficult for you to say, "Oooh, he doesn't deserve any more profit than X." He may have gotten a great deal. He may have gotten a foreclosure, and ended up over his head with too much house and too little money. The ONLY thing that counts towards value is what other comparable houses in the area area selling for NOW -- not a year ago, and certainly not three or four years years ago.
And why would you want to buy a house in a neighborhood where the home values are not appreciating?
I would negotiate the high end repairs and take care of the smaller repairs if you really want the house. It obviously not remodeled and the guy probably didn't put any money in it. Its easy to say xyz repair is no big deal if you haven't seen it and are not the one paying for it. I've been doing construction for a long time. Repairs aren't as easy as they seem. Wood rot can be hidden and expensive. So can roof repairs. Once you get into a project and start tearing open walls ( if needed) you'll find the true extent of damage.
Here is a example. My recent rental remodel and repair.. Bonus room on top of a garage. A worn out exterior door to be replaced. Sounds simple right? Sure tear door out. Oops wood rot and oh snap termite damage. Start digging. A $160 exterior door replacement turned into a 7 day and $2500 repair. And it also rotted the subfloor inside the room but that was a easy fix. I just had to replace 3/4 plywood.
Seems the door was never installed correctly when house was built and allowed water to seep below the landing. It rotted the wood and then ran down the wall and decided to rot a bunch more stuff. And all I wanted was to replace a worn out door. Did I do it right? You bet I did.anyway my point is a small project can turn into a big project.
Thank you for that information Electrician4U! That is definitely eye-opening. It has been very interesting reading the various viewpoints and I appreciate all perspectives. It lets me know that there is a lot of gray (as opposed to black and white) in these real estate transactions. It has also helped me see that if I am looking at older homes, I should specifically look for a newly renovated home (including mechanics). I don't have any desire to move into a house making major repairs. I realize that nothing is guaranteed, but some things certainly have a higher probability. When I look at houses in the future, I will also start looking beyond granite countertops, hardwood floors and finished basements and take a look at the furnace, pipes, gutters, etc. :-)
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