Sorry to hear of this setback, but as others have said, it may be a good thing. Maine has its own set of rules to live by, I've found, so it's probably better that you get up there and rent for awhile before purchasing. I haven't spent much time in the Augusta area, we're mostly downeast or in Bangor. I love Maine and we'll probably end up living there at least part-time. I think it's odd that in some parts of the country, and a lot in Canada and UK, it's considered presumptuous for a buyer to ask for an inspection. When I'm spending that amount of money, I absolutely want to know what the concerns are. If the seller refused an inspection contingency, I'd think he had something to hide. When we sold recently the buyer, after inspection, presented us with 2 pages of what they wanted done. Replace windows, have electrician check the whole house and replace all outlets, have roof inspected separately, etc. After a bit of huffiness on my part (this was a 1958 tract house, what did they expect?) we just said no to most of them and fixed only what truly needed to be fixed. The FHA appraisal, on the other hand, might be a problem. Why are you going FHA? I know some people who simply refuse to consider buyers who are FHA or VA, because of the more stringent requirements (no peeling paint, even on outbuildings etc).

It is likely to late now, but " two wire nuts present in a breaker box" is not acode violation. Breaker boxes are also listed as junction boxes, and you can extend wires (or join two wires that then connect to a single breaker) inside the box as required as long as you do not exceed the fill rules for the wring gutters. Most boxes have huge wring gutters and you would have to work very hard to approach their ifll limit in a residential setting. When you bring an essentially incorrect 'finding' to the negotiating table you are likely to taint everything else you ask for. Unless the possibility of FHA financing was called out in the offer you submitted (thus effectively making the FHA rules part of the contingency) the seller has every right to reject your request for any repairs. An experienced RE agent would have likely told them not to accept an offer contingent on FHA financing. For the most part their is no rule that ANY repairs must be made by the seller, safety or otherwise. I have purchased houses with all sorts of gross defects, right down to sections of floors marked off as unsafe to walk on. As long as it is readily apparent and no steps have been taken to conceal a defect you can sell 'as is'. Some places like to revoke COs at sale, giving them a shot at a warrantless (as in no search warrant needed) inspection of the house for code enforcement and tax valuation. By blocking a CO they can force repairs, but often cannot control who must make or pay for the repairs. The revoked CO and refusal to issue a new one can stop the whole selling process cold sometimes since it represents a serious reduction in the value of the property. It is no longer suitable as a home. Since repairs are almost always cheaper than suing the government, the sellers capitulate.

Hi Val, is it possible that their short sale attorney, who is still involved, has been given signing authority? More than possible, it is likely. We are thinking of countering the bank at $294,000 - does this seem reasonable? "Reasonable" is a negotiations emotional term. The bank's shortsale negotiator has a *very long* spreadhseet of properties she's juggling, and has zero resources to apply emotionally. She's basing her "minimum acceptable amount" on some formula relating to the feedback their bank has had from an appraiser, the outstanding balance of the defaulting note, and how the note-owner has instructed them in terms of 'being flexible to which breaking point.' Successfully negotiating a shortsale (not just "the purchase of a home from a bank") is a specialty... if you're not normally specializing on this as a business, and don't have an agent who does (most vanilla realtors simply do deals the same way they did last year,) then you're in wayyyy above your heads (and the bank's negotiators know it.) As a retail buyer, with a retail Realtor®, your best hope is to succeed in buying the home of your preference at a retail price. IF you want the BENEFIT of a somewhat lower price, you'll have to specialize (or hire someone who specializes) in shortsale negotiations. People who specialize in ss nego's rarely have any interest in commissions... you either hire them as an equity partner, or you simply allow them to "mark up" the final price of a successful purchase to net them a reasonable profit on whatever they actually acquire the place for (and I don't know any specialists that would do any deal for under $10k profit... it simply takes too long, too much hustle, and the batting averages are too low... you have to be willing to fail repeatedly in order to win.) BOTTOM LINE; If you were told you'd get a "better deal financially" by buying a shortsale home in a traditional fashion, you were duped. You CAN get the home you desire... but you'll end up paying basic market usually. I know that's not what you prolly wanted to hear.... hopefully it helps you avoid more pain though. Cheers, Dave Donhoff Leverage Planner (Private real estate shortsale specialist... Coaching other investors, negotiating for my own portfolio only.)

FHA does not do home inspections. This is a common misunderstanding. An FHA appraisal tends to be more like a home inspection. The appraiser has a checklist that is used and the home must meet minimum standards in several categories. For example, the roof must have at least 5 years of life left, (or something like that). The home must also be inspected for wood destroying insects by an approved bug inspector. The difference is that the appraiser will often mention relatively minor items that need to be fixed, but contribute to the longevity of the house. Personally I think the reason so many see the FHA appraisal as nitpicking is because one has already had an actual inspector out. Sellers "thought" they were done with that. The FHA appraiser does not mention anything a good home inspector would not find. The difference is that some repairs--e.g. no handrails on stairs--must be completed for the loan to fund. http://www.fhahandbook.com/appraisal-guidelines.php