Seller refusing to make some pretty important fixes
John Ryan
8 years ago
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8 years agoJohn Ryan
8 years agoRelated Discussions
Difficult / Emotional Seller - inspection results
Comments (85)gweekie - Sparksal, welcome to Minnesota! (another "neighbor") I agree with you 100% with all the issues you raised. Here's to getting everything fixed, a speedy closing, immediate occupancy, and last, but not least, enjoy your new home! Thank you so much and thanks for your personal email! rose - I hear that! Selling the house has killed my back; I was glad it hasn't sold yet as moving twice would not do me any favors. They do a lot of good things with hips these days, unlike back surgeries where everyone I've spoken to that's gone in is as bad or worst. I haven't met one person that's felt better after back surgery. Hopefully once you are settled you can take care of it. I'm hoping the hip replacement fixes the problem with my back. The orthopod in Tucson, as well as my physiotherapist think that b/c my hip is so stubborn and doesn't want to rotate, that my lower spine is picking up the slack and that's why it hurts so much. I have also heard from others who had the exact same problem that their back issues completely disappeared after having the hip replacement. Glad to hear things worked out. Any clue as to why it tripped in the 1st place? I'd imagine there is too much stuff on one breaker. I imagine it was too much on the breaker. From the photos in the garage attic, the tonnes of extension cords and no junction box probably overloaded it. It's all almost over. It's been a really long few months for you, I'm sure you miss your hubby and are looking forward to spending some quality time with him in your new house. Yeah it has been a long haul and I've missed him alot. My BP has remained normal since I went on those meds. My doc in Tucson wants me to stay in them for a few months til things settle down and then get monitored to hopefully go off them once I find a doc here. kjmn - sparksals, another welcome to MN to you! I usually only lurk on these boards but I just wanted to let you know that I've never heard of a seller staying in a home after closing. It's not customary to do that here at all. Of course you would never wish the seller any ill will, you merely want to purchase what the seller has represented to you in the first place. Good luck to you and happy gardening - spring will be here before you know it!! Thanks KJ. I certainly don't wish the seller any ill will. She has just been extremely difficult and dramatic. All I wanted was to ensure that the seller has properly represented the home when the inspection determined things were not disclosed. pattycakes - I guess we can't expect everything to be all ice cream and roses, eh? Honestly, I did expect dissenting opinions, because as was stated upthread, that is the joy of a free country with freedom of expression and opinions. kgwlisa - I think you're right and the reason people may have reacted negatively to your post was because you called this seller a "dickhead" even while painting a picture of her that was sympathetic to some posters here. Fair enough. I dealt with a true dickhead seller. He used all kinds of manipulative tactics to squeeze every dime out of us that he could (in a hot market). He played mind games at every turn, "lost" the certified check earnest money (10% of the house price, certified check is not customary because it is held in escrow and will clear before anything can happen but his ambulance chaser brother lawyer insisted) that then took a month to replace while entertaining other offers even after he accepted ours and in general was a complete horror to deal with up until the final moments of closing. That sounds horrible! I hope there were no unfortunate surprises after you closed on the home. This seller isn't a dickhead. She's in a really bad spot, my guess that she didn't have the money to do the repairs is spot on and the repairs turned out to not be nearly as big a deal as you initially thought they were. As I said before, you had every right to stick to your guns, but there was no reason to be unkind toward this woman and I do believe that attitude is what some people reacted to. JMHO. I totally understand she is in a bad spot. I've been in bad spots before, even with my most recent house sale in Tucson. Prices were dropping FAST. No lookers, lots of stress anticipating showings and nothing happening. Fear of losing a boatload of money that would put us in aposition of not being able to afford another home. Fear that we'd get a difficult buyer (we were very lucky, she is very nice and loves the house). Fear that something would be discovered at inspection that we didn't know about that could kill the deal. Fear that her financing would fall through. But, with all that, I cooperated. I didn't have my realtor tell hers that I was in a tizzy and to not ask any questions. I disclosed everything honestly. I cooperated with the process and did not draw things out. I wanted my house sold in a difficult market. I do understand she's going through a difficult time, but the least she could have done was been at least a little bit cooperative. I was patient yet frustrated and came here to vent. I was worried about the HI and that the home was not honestly represented. I honestly believe my feelings have been completely justified. Luckily, it seems everything is going to work out. I have never had such a drawn out negotiation process before in my life. marieta - it certainly is stressful. I can totally relate! Good luck in your closing and your new condo! mfbenson - Okay, but that's an insult to the term "DIY". I do my own wiring when necessary and it is always at or above code. Then again, the only terms I can think of for the kind of wiring job you describe aren't politically correct. Sorry, didn't mean to insult DIY for people who are absolutely capable of doing those projects. When it comes to DIY'ers who are in over their head, like I think this previous owner was, that is what I meant. cearbhaill - What flummoxes me is than no one thought to flip the breaker on the garage electrical before everyone got all in a tizzy! That would have been almost anyone's first thought. Rose is right. I think I used the wrong terminology. It was because of the overloaded circuits/plugs in the garage attic. gweekie - Sparksals, there is really good health care in the twin cities and I encourage you to get this checked out once you move. I am having a partial joint replacement in my left hand this coming Friday - had the same procedure on my right hand in June, and it has really made a huge difference in my life! My only regret was that I didn't have it sooner. Also consider checking out the Mayo Clinic in Rochester - which is where I had my surgery. good luck with your surgery gweekie! That's next on the list once we are settled - to find a GP and then an orthopod. This is one of the pains of moving to a new city. It took me over a year to find my GP in Tucson. Hope it doesn't take that long because I don't think I can tolerate waiting another year for this surgery. kec - I've heard great things about the Mayo. I will definitely check it out. It was in the 40's last week and dipping down to -2F midweek. My poor pups are going to be freezing again. Poor things. Right now, I'm occupying myself tryign to figure out paint colours for the masterbedroom and kitchen. I was going to put new carpet in, but decided to hold off. I hoped to put it in prior to the move to make things easier, but as always with buying a house, that makes money a bit tight and with the weather, I don't want it ruined by the movers walking in and out, even if they can put down runners....See MoreSeller making this purchase a nightmare
Comments (66)I typed up a lengthy reply, I must have not hit submit message. Long story short, no checks, had to threaten to send cops to her house to get mailbox key and STILL don't have key to pool/basketball court/etc. She wants to bring keys to me on Monday when she knows I'm moving in. My best translation: she wants to see how I'm decorating the house. I blew my cool over the mailbox key and at that time stated she was not to come to MY house at any time for any reason. I'm not saying anything about the other repairs, as far as I'm concerned this is done. I'll contact the HOA and tell them she refused to give me the pool key and get another and I'll pay for the other repairs if I have to....See MoreSeller refuses to lower price or make any repairs
Comments (22)Cass66ragtop, how refreshing to read a post where someone actually understands the object of a home inspection. Buyers, home inspections are to educate you on the systems of a house. No house is perfect, NOT EVEN NEW CONSTRUCTION. You may want to try to re negotiate if there are health related (radon or bacteria in the well, mold etc) or safety related, dangerous electrical, structural, gas leaks etc. But it is not the sellers responsibility to give you a credit so you are moving in to a "new home". I've had buyers make offers on homes and actually say to me, after the home inspection, we'll negotiate a lower price. It seems to be what people think the inspection is for these days. Homeiecat I hope your agent didnt tick the seller off enough to stop any negotiations at all. You are a first time buyer and relying on his/her expertise, he went down the wrong road here and most likely put you in a bad negotiating position. It sounds like he is willing to fix the gas leak because that is a "safety related issue". If the roof is leaking you may be able to get that also, but it sounds like it is not but may be nearing the end of its life cycle (sometimes you can negotiate this, most of the time it is figured into the price of a home based on condition). Im afraid with trying to re negotiate for $9000, your agent may have just ruined any possibility of working with this seller. I wish you luck....See MoreSellers - Keep Your Power & $, Refuse to Sell for Lower Price !
Comments (54)That speaks to the importance of equity, doesn't it? When you go to sell, equity is everything. People really go out on a limb when they take on a home where their expenses to maintain it max them out. And, if the market isn't appreciating, then the only equity they are building is what they are putting toward their principle. We all know that after a year of making large payments, you might own the doorknobs. Equity is the only portion of your home investment you have some liquidity with. How many of you who have purchased homes in the last ten years took out a conventional loan and put at least five percent down on your homes? How many have built up equity and then used it up with a Heloc, or refinanced because you bit off more than you could chew comfortably? I find it really scary to see the constant ads and billboards urging people to use the equity in their homes for debt consolidation. I also get uncomfortable when I see some of those shows on home improvement channels where an expert comes in to appraise a home's worth so that the owners can feel free to use up that cushion to spend more money on their homes and feel "safe" doing it. If and when they do use it up, their homes revert a more expensive home needing to bring more on the market to just meet the debt. I am nearing retirement. I have gambled on real estate for a long time now in a modest manner, but the whole goal in the game has always been to increase the equity I have in my property(ies). It has allowed me to work at a job I like, when so many of my friends who are as old or older than I "can't afford to quit" a job they dislike because they keep spending their equity like it were somebody else's money....See Moreblueheron
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