Home failed inspection.. miserably

[burbuja0512]

Nobody pushes ahead with your money unless you say so. You read the contract and you are still within your right to walk. Don't let some agent change your mind or prolong the problem. He or she may be a nice person, but a sale is all that is wanted. Send an email if you get fired up and don't want to talk. This is what I would say.

Dear Agent,

Thank you for showing me this home and submitting my offer. I have decided to withdraw my offer dated (whatever) due to significant health concerns and the expense required to bring this home up to acceptable living conditions. I expect to have my deposit check returned in person (or sent to me via USPS with tracking) within 48 hours.


Signed

I love this, but one thing I'm not quite clear on is that I believe my agent wants the buyer to walk. She doesn't think that they'll accept the lengthy list of requests we need to make it safe. Not sure why them walking would be better... She does work for a large agency, so perhaps she is following their policies??

I am feeling a bit calmer now. Today was my last day at my old job and I'll be able to spend the next few days packing and prepping for my long drive from Denver to Chicago on Sunday. Start the new job on Wednesday and will be living from a hotel for the foreseeable future The good thing is I'm taking my 14 year old DD. She'll keep me company and we'll have a great time on the weekends exploring the city.

Deep breaths..

[mrs.b]

Well, your realtor - if worth their salt - may be able to find you rental options from their list of sales. Quite a few people stuck in the housing market with a house they cannot sell consider that route if they're just asked. It gets them income on a home they may be carrying a mortgage on after closing on their desired home, and free staging. You may have to get creative to keep the dogs' damage under control and they may not like it as much (crating or dog house in the back), and you may have an extra deposit to front, but if you are able to keep it under control, deposits are returned. It can alleviate the stress of finding the perfect home on such a tight timetable.

As far as the realtor pushing to make the seller walk away, she could be trying to force the deal through. If the seller does decide to make the corrections or price reduction, you're committed or out the earnest money so she may think you'll go forward with the sale to avoid that loss. That's a commission check. Or, she may be privy to arguments by the seller and seller's realtor that they intend to try to keep the earnest money if you walk first, and she might be trying to save you the headache. If your contract definitely reads that you are able to walk based upon the housing inspection, push the issue with your realtor and see if you can get a measure of what her motivations are.

You'll find the right home! You will. When we bought our home, we were not in any rush and wanted to make absolutely certain we were not walking into a money pit. One thing our realtor suggested - and we did - was to write "Seller pays inspection fees" into the offer contract. She said it does somewhat weaken an offer, but it's a very strong indicator of whether or not a seller is up-front on their disclosures, and confident of the state of upkeep on a home if they're willing to fork in that cash. We made an offer on one home and the offer was rejected due to that clause, and we later found out it had severe structural issues. The seller of our current home agreed to the clause, paid the inspection, and the inspection turned up nothing that was not already disclosed. It gave us a lot of peace of mind about what we were walking into that the seller knew the state of the home and had that confidence.

Edited to Add:
Something else our realtor suggested and we did - not sure if it's normal or not? - is we called the utility companies for the homes we were interested in to find out the average winter and summer utility bills, and the averages for the homes on either side of the homes we were interested in. That gave a general idea of whether or not there were hidden issues (like insulation, old or poorly maintained HVAC, etc.) that an inspector may or may not be able to inspect or notice by comparing to the neighbors. We passed on quite a few homes based upon the utility cost. It can be skewed if the owners are running a lot of tech gadgets (I haven't compared us to our neighbors since we bought, but we'd likely fall into that category), but we preferred to err on the side of caution than buy a home and later discover the insulation the inspector could not see was non-existent, or the HVAC was on the verge of collapse before we ever put in an offer and had to risk earnest money. Most of the reps at the utility companies did it without much encouragement, and only a couple huffed. They can huff, though; it's a few seconds of their time to potentially save thousands and thousands for a buyer.

[burbuja0512]

As far as the realtor pushing to make the seller walk away, she could be trying to force the deal through. If the seller does decide to make the corrections or price reduction, you're committed or out the earnest money so she may think you'll go forward with the sale to avoid that loss. That's a commission check. Or, she may be privy to arguments by the seller and seller's realtor that they intend to try to keep the earnest money if you walk first, and she might be trying to save you the headache. If your contract definitely reads that you are able to walk based upon the housing inspection, push the issue with your realtor and see if you can get a measure of what her motivations are.

Very good point... I don't entirely understand it because we are a "sure thing" - we know we want a house and we're pre-qualified for a decent amount. But, the market in Chicago not being great, perhaps she's in a rush.

You'll find the right home! You will. When we bought our home, we were not in any rush and wanted to make absolutely certain we were not walking into a money pit. One thing our realtor suggested - and we did - was to write "Seller pays inspection fees" into the offer contract. She said it does somewhat weaken an offer, but it's a very strong indicator of whether or not a seller is up-front on their disclosures, and confident of the state of upkeep on a home if they're willing to fork in that cash. We made an offer on one home and the offer was rejected due to that clause, and we later found out it had severe structural issues. The seller of our current home agreed to the clause, paid the inspection, and the inspection turned up nothing that was not already disclosed. It gave us a lot of peace of mind about what we were walking into that the seller knew the state of the home and had that confidence.

Ohhhhhh.. I love this idea!!!! It's great!!!!! $600 bucks is a lot of money to pay and lose on an inspection, so would love to have the seller pay. If they're motivated enough and don't have anything to hide, it shouldn't matter. I know my husband and I just sold our rental home and we're getting to sell our primary residence here in Colorado and we did jump through a few hoops when we had a good buyer, but it paid off. Our rental sold relatively quickly considering that we chose to put it on the market in the middle of winter. Of course we also completely re-painted inside and out, re-stained the deck, re-carpeted and fixed all minor issues. I just think that's what responsible sellers do, but of course not everyone is responsible.

I'm so glad you guys are here to help!!! I am a stressed out nightmare right now and hearing all these different perspectives is so helpful.

[taylor]

Like others have mentioned your agent might be just as slimey as the seller. They may come from the same pedigree of slime but let's hope not. A lot of people in sales are not warm and fuzzy like you, they're cold and make your skin crawl. Also realtors are 100% commission and more than likely don't get continuous business from the same client so they have less skin in the game. Anyway, hope everything works out. Exciting times for you, new job and new city!

[burbuja0512]

Like others have mentioned your agent might be just as slimey as the seller. They may come from the same pedigree of slime but let's hope not. A lot of people in sales are not warm and fuzzy like you, they're cold and make your skin crawl. Also realtors are 100% commission and more than likely don't get continuous business from the same client so they have less skin in the game. Anyway, hope everything works out. Exciting times for you, new job and new city!

My theory on sales (and it has ALWAYS worked for me) is to be consultative - always be honest even if it's not what the client wants to hear. I have told people that they'd be foolish not to buy and I can provide reasoning, but I've also actively dissuaded buyers when the product is not a good fit. There have even been times where I've referred people to the competitor if I thought that the product was better suited for their needs, LOL but of course this is rare because if I thought the competitor had a better product, I would just go work for them!

I have found that people can tell when you're lying and that any forced sale will come back to haunt you a million times over when you're serious about a long-term career and not a quick buck. It's what I've always called "sales karma" - you can push for a quick deal in some cases, but it will never pay off in the long run. And I'm in B2B, and my industry isn't referral-dependent like the real estate business, so I'm not sure what's going on!


Update: My awesome realtor here in Denver along with the contractor she works with have reviewed my inspection. They have both said to RUN from this house and are putting together some solid arguments for me to easily get out of it and have no issues whatsoever with earnest money. Does anyone need a realtor in Denver?? Mine is awesome and I would happily recommend her and wish she could sell in other states! She's doing this work for free for me.. granted she is selling 2 houses for me, but she's REALLY upset about the inspection and is genuinely passionate about me finding a good deal in Chicago!

[burbuja0512]

UPDATE: We are OUT!!!! Thank you so much for your help and advice. I sent my Chicago realtor a firm letter mentioning that I had checked with my realtor here in Denver and my contractor and then gave the reasons that I want out and why my professionals here agree with me fully. Strangely enough, my realtor seemed relieved... I'm starting to think that she may be under pressure from the management at her office there... will need to chat with her in person once I'm out there in a few days. I'll continue to work with her I think.

My Denver realtor also recommended renting to me but I just want to give buying another try first. I know with such a large family that we can inflict serious damage on carpets. (and my Airdale terrier is so sweet but has a bladder problem.. gross but it is controlled by medication now, but occasionally will act up and we need to increase her dosage) I just don't want to spend thousands on carpet for a place we'll live in for 6 months.

I am going to be much more savvy in buying. Home inspections weren't something I took very seriously in the past - I knew they would show problems, but in my other home purchases, they weren't problems that were major. Now I really know what to look for!!!!

[LaterBloomer]

From reading, I understand that the Chicago market isn't the best. Here's a thought, but I don't know if it's kosher/works/whatever. (Maybe discuss it w/ CO realtor?) In future offers, include a contingent that the seller pay for home insurance for a period of time. Along with an inspection, that might make the process a bit less stressful.

[NAP]

Great news! When you have your meeting with your realtor, make sure that she is completely on your side. Also, try to get an idea of why she showed this property to you, in the first place. It seems that she should have known about some of the issues and made sure you avoided it altogether. If she can't show you what you want, you may need to do some looking on your own or get a different realtor. For various reasons, we've ended up finding the perfect homes for us on our own. One time the realtor specialized/focused on an area that was not a good match for our family and refused to show us places in a different town nearby. Everything about the home we bought in the different town was just right for us. Try to make sure that you are not getting steered in the wrong direction, by a simple lack of awareness of the area on your part and a lack of understanding of your wants/needs on her part.

So glad you are free of that property and can move on!

[cookderosa]

UGH.. SO as you all know, we're moving to Chicago because I start my new job on March 5. We couldn't have the entire family make it out there in time for my start date, so DH and I flew out a few weekends ago to go house hunting and after some negotiation, we put in an offer on a beautiful house in a large neighborhood.

Things started a little rough because in spite of a VERY dated kitchen and strange bath colors (fire engine red bath/toilet in master, bright blue in kids bath and pepto-bismo pink in another) the seller wanted top dollar and a price equal to comps in the area. We managed to haggle and only got a 5k concession for new paint and carpet and were willing to deal with the other issues because it's a great house right next door to a park and a block away from a pond and several other parks. I'll even share the link since we won't be living there! 639 Matthew Ln, Carol Stream, IL 60188 - Home For Sale and Real Estate Listing - realtor.comÂ

Anyhow.. all was moving forward with the closing scheduled at the end of March and then we got the inspection results. OMG!!!!! Yes, we knew there were cosmetic issues, but holy cow the place is falling apart!! Major mold issues, heater that's been leaking, with a filter that hasn't been changed in what looks like YEARS, AC totally broken, staining and leakage throughout, appliances totally broken, electrical problems too numerous to mention, foundation issues, and I could go on, but I'll spare you all the details.

So sad and a bit angry that we are now out $600 bucks for home inspection and no closer to finding a home. I have insisted that my agent forward the full inspection report to the seller and his agent so that he will be forced to modify his disclosure statement. I also wrote a long email that I have requested to be sent to the owner explaining in detail how much it would cost to make the home livable and have suggested that he is posing a major danger to his current renters. No, it doesn't get me my $600 back (and all the excitement that our family had) but it will hopefully force the guy to be more responsible. Or at the very least, he couldn't claim ignorance if something happens to his tenante. After all, he is renting this place and it's not safe to live in!! And on his disclosure paperwork, he claims that everything is just fine. UGH.. what a slimeball!!!

Thank goodness for home inspectors!! I'm so glad we didn't buy this money pit!!!!! Back to the drawing board!

Listen, it's $600 but it's a blessing. Our home passed all the inspections we had (well, septic, whole-house) but we STILL had major issues....of course the issues were all outside the scope of what we paid for = no recourse. In that price range you should be able to find something that nice in as nice of an area that passes with flying colors. I fell for you, really. (((hugs))) It's a process.

[cookderosa]

Very good point... I don't entirely understand it because we are a "sure thing" - we know we want a house and we're pre-qualified for a decent amount. But, the market in Chicago not being great, perhaps she's in a rush.



Ohhhhhh.. I love this idea!!!! It's great!!!!! $600 bucks is a lot of money to pay and lose on an inspection, so would love to have the seller pay. If they're motivated enough and don't have anything to hide, it shouldn't matter. I know my husband and I just sold our rental home and we're getting to sell our primary residence here in Colorado and we did jump through a few hoops when we had a good buyer, but it paid off. Our rental sold relatively quickly considering that we chose to put it on the market in the middle of winter. Of course we also completely re-painted inside and out, re-stained the deck, re-carpeted and fixed all minor issues. I just think that's what responsible sellers do, but of course not everyone is responsible.

I'm so glad you guys are here to help!!! I am a stressed out nightmare right now and hearing all these different perspectives is so helpful.

Something that has always helped us sell our homes fast (I've sold 6 by owner!) is having our home pre-inspected and report on display at the opens as well as available upon request. This doesn't REMOVE their option to inspect, but it's attractive to buyers. So, suggest to your agent that you're very interested in homes that have gone through a pre-inspection. There are so many advantages: some issues have likely already been taken care of, you know upfront what's what, and most importantly, it saves TIME! I'm sure you lost a lot of time on this house. x 5 more houses and you'll be so worn that you'll buy anything with a front door. It's worth asking, there may be a few already in-house, especially since she works for a big company- they love to help each other.

Edit- one final thing, absolutely 100% require a home warranty be included. Your agent probably already will request it, but demand it. It's only going to cost them 500 bucks and though it won't be worth using for minor issues (might have a $100 deductible then pay 80/20 or similar) it will cover all major systems, and THAT is important. Furnace, air, electrical, etc. That way, it feels like you're breaking even on the inspection a bit.