Here we go … walk through and closing TODAY! (Spring Hill: appointed, houses)

[jambo101]

Home totally flooded?i guess if you really like the house and everything will be fixed to a high standard you can wait till its all fixed up and move in.
I personally would take this as an omen and worry about other aspects of the house being ready to be in need of repair,i'd continue looking for other options in the neighborhood.
What was the opinion of the professional home inspector on the home when you first got interested in this particular place?Did he mention anything about condition of Plumbing,Electrical.Structural concerns? it would also be in your best interest to have him come back and redo that inspection after the renovations are done if you are still interested in this particular house..
You may think this house was perfect but maybe this incident was meant to get you into an even more perfect place.. Good Luck.
http://www.google.ca/#hl=en&safe=off...iw=853&bih=492

[Sunscape]

Originally Posted by gulfer

Be thankful it happened when it did and not 24 hours later!

Someone must be watching out for you.

So sorry this happened....

[DUNNDFRNT]

Originally Posted by floridagirl777

Thanks, everyone! You will seriously not believe what happened today. I was so concerned about there being a glitch with the financing, but there were no issues with that. Instead, we got a call from our realtor this morning telling us that the toilet in the upstairs bathroom of the Safety Harbor home had broken. When we got to the house, it was like a total NIGHTMARE. Water was everywhere upstairs and pouring from the ceiling onto every floor of the lower level. The owner had not been home for two days, so the toilet tank water basically kept pouring out unchecked … saturating the entire home. The entire interior of the home is going to need to be gutted because everything … and I mean EVERYTHING is wet and soggy … drywall, flooring, ceilings, cabinetry, etc. It literally was like a scene out of a really horrible movie. I still keep thinking maybe I'll wake up because it feels like an awful dream.

So needless to say, we did not close today like we'd hoped. I've closed on several homes in my relatively short lifetime, and NEVER have I had anything like this happen.

I'm not sure what will happen from here. The owner had a restoration team out there shortly after discovering the problem and they are trying to get things dried out and carpets removed so her insurance adjuster can come out and begin the assessing damages.

We LOVE this house. Other than the interior being outdated (low popcorn ceilings, dark carpets, small kitchen, etc.) it was perfect for us. The neighborhood, layout, location, style of home, and best of all the price. The owner said she has excellent insurance coverage and would have it completely renovated and pay for a mold inspection … she said we'd get to pick all of our new flooring, colors, and cabinetry … essentially we will have a completely remodeled home when all is said and done at no cost to us … other than our time. It will take several weeks, I'm sure.

So, is it worth the wait, or should we start the whole house hunting process over again? Ugh. The thought of that just makes me feel sick to my stomach, especially when I look at some of the inventory that's left in Safety Harbor. We have a free place to stay with my husband's family and we were able to store our things for the time being, so at least we will have a roof over our heads until we make a decision about what to do.

I would get a contractor to give you a quote, to fix everything with the finishes of your choosing, then negotiate that money in the closing, so that you can take charge of the timeline. The insurance company gives you a check thats going to take time, if you can get the sellers to float the money, then you can get started sooner. I closed on a house a couple of months ago and I was on pins and needles myself, there is no inventory where people actually want to live, (where I wanted to live anyway), A contractor can put up sheetrock and flooring in a week. Also negotiate a housing allowance, for the time you are out of the house, or at least bring that up as ammo in the negotiating.

[floridagirl777]

Thank you, everyone for the kind remarks. I am trying to keep a positive outlook here, but it isn't easy.

What was the opinion of the professional home inspector on the home when you first got interested in this particular place?Did he mention anything about condition of Plumbing,Electrical.Structural concerns? it would also be in your best interest to have him come back and redo that inspection after the renovations are done if you are still interested in this particular house..
You may think this house was perfect but maybe this incident was meant to get you into an even more perfect place.. Good Luck.

Our inspector actually made a note about the hairline crack in the toilet tank. His words were, "You will want to replace this toilet when the house is yours because this crack could break open and spill water everywhere." Because it wasn't a major repair, it was put on the "to do" list when we would take possession. It wouldn't have been that bad if the owner had been at home when it happened … the water could have been shut off quickly and the damage wouldn't have been very extensive, but the owner was gone for the holiday and the toilet tank just kept refilling and spilling for several hours. The rest of the inspection revealed that the home was in good working order. There was a small issue with a two foot section of roof, but that was taken care of since that was labeled a "major repair."

Yes, we will have the house thoroughly re-inspected once everything is re-done. I am beginning to wonder if this wasn't some sort of sign as you mentioned that this house may not be the best thing for us after all. Then again, all of this could be a huge blessing in disguise if it gets renovated beautifully.

I would get a contractor to give you a quote, to fix everything with the finishes of your choosing, then negotiate that money in the closing, so that you can take charge of the timeline. The insurance company gives you a check thats going to take time, if you can get the sellers to float the money, then you can get started sooner. I closed on a house a couple of months ago and I was on pins and needles myself, there is no inventory where people actually want to live, (where I wanted to live anyway), A contractor can put up sheetrock and flooring in a week. Also negotiate a housing allowance, for the time you are out of the house, or at least bring that up as ammo in the negotiating.

Since we didn't own the house at the time of the water damage, the owner's insurance company will be footing the bill. Our insurance company won't be involved at all since they aren't the ones insuring the home. The owner assured us that she has excellent insurance and that we'd be able to choose our own flooring, cabinets, paint colors, etc. There will also be a mold inspection done. When we left yesterday, the emergency restoration folks were already there starting the work of drying out the house and pulling up the soggy carpets. The housing allowance thing won't really be necessary because we have a free place to stay for as long as we need.

My main concern is the financing. What happens if this takes months to repair? Will we have to re-apply all over again? My broker and real estate agent are working on drawing up paperwork for us to sign that will "protect" us. I'm not sure what that means exactly.

[algia]

WOW...That sucks!

Definitely ask for home warranty, if you didn't already. That should cover all this mess.

[kbrkr]

floridagirl77, this is just awful news. If the owner/seller will provide a 3 year Home Warranty to guarantee against wood rot, mold, electrical damage, etc. I would still consider the house. Without the warranty, I would walk.

[crazynip]

That totally sucks that this happened. Good thing you didnt sign the papers first.

You probably want to walk away from this one... water damage is bad news. There is stuff you will not see, like MOLD. Mold can completely destroy a house and your health.

WALK AWAY...

Places like SERVPRO which is who they probably hired to clean it up will only do basic cosmetic repairs, they wont do mold remediation.

WALK AWAY, FAST!!!

[floridagirl777]

Originally Posted by crazynip

That totally sucks that this happened. Good thing you didnt sign the papers first.

You probably want to walk away from this one... water damage is bad news. There is stuff you will not see, like MOLD. Mold can completely destroy a house and your health.

WALK AWAY...

Places like SERVPRO which is who they probably hired to clean it up will only do basic cosmetic repairs, they wont do mold remediation.

WALK AWAY, FAST!!!

What if the owner paid for a mold inspection and the inspection came back totally clean? Our realtor said there is a test that costs around $2000 that will check for black mold. She said the owner should be willing to do that for us since there was so much water damage.

[gulfer]

Something to think about is the timing. Yes, they will get people in to fix, yes they will get mold inspectors in, but sometimes mold takes time to 'GROW' (for lack of a better word). I am sure there are professionals that guantee the work, just be sure everything is written down, documented, with warranties. I really like the comment about the three year warranty. Be sure none of these issues will become your financial problem down the road.

I understand you still wanting the house. There are certain things to me that are worth the extra hassle and one of them is a HOME A REALLY LIKE! They are all unique, even the location.

BEST OF LUCK - and again, sorry that this happened to you!

[crazynip]

Originally Posted by floridagirl777

What if the owner paid for a mold inspection and the inspection came back totally clean? Our realtor said there is a test that costs around $2000 that will check for black mold. She said the owner should be willing to do that for us since there was so much water damage.

I would say walk, mold develops over time. Any test they do today will be useless 2 months from now once the stuff has time to grab hold and grow