Are the sellers being unresonable? *Update Pg 3*

[Chicago526]

If you would have to replace the furnace and do the sewer repair in the near future plus have to deal with radon and asbestos you'd have to live in the house for a number of years to make those investments worth it. Do you like the house THAT much?

I like it enough to fix the sewer line and radon with the sellers money. I don't like it enought to do that AND deal with the furnace, with or without their money!

It's a 48 year old house, we knew there would be SOME problems, but this is turning into a bit too much!

 

[Microcell]

If you can get out, and your gut is telling you to do so, then I would. We went ahead and bought our first house even though the seller did a couple of dishonest things, and we had a confrontation with them after we moved in (he came back to get his stuff- without letting us know he was going to leave it there until after we moved in) and it left such a bad taste in our mouths that we sold two years later.

 

[Chicago526]

Well, no news from the sellers yet. My lawyer says I can get my earnest money back if I want out of the deal, and I've e-mailed my realtor a list of homes in my price range to see this weekend if needed.

I'm not doing anything until I hear back from the sellers. I want to give them a chance to work with me on this. But I want this resolved by this weekend, I'm closing on my condo Aug. 26 so I need to get going if I have to find another house!

Wish me luck!

 

[HayGan]

I would DEFINATELY be looking for another place!!! This place has way too many issues and I can't believe that the sellers are being so stingy being that it is an inheritance situation Given the issues regarding this house there should definately be a discount from appraised value (several issues that the appraiser would not have taken into consideration)

Good luck house hunting

 

[JudicialTyranny]

It is debatable whether or not the EPA's "action" limit on radon of 4 pCi/L is really a problem healthwise.

However, the real issue is not what you or I think about that limit, it's what a future buyer thinks about the limit.

For example, let's say the test comes back at 4.5 pCi/L and you say "close enough" and don't require the seller to do remediation.

That may have helped the deal go through, but years down the road when you try to resell, the buyer may not be so forgiving and then *you* will be stuck paying for remediation to sell the house.

So strictly from a cost point of view, it is better to get the seller to remediate now so you don't have to pay for it later.

 

[malibuconlee]

Lots of older houses will have the old 9 x 9 tiles that are made of asbestos underneath the carpet and pad. It really doesn't pose a risk, from what I understand, as long as you leave it alone. It's when it's broken up and the particles are airborne that it causes problems.

If it's an estate sale, the heirs should have just put an X thru the sellers' disclosure and written that they have no knowledge of the home. I'm surprised the Realtor put in that it was a newer furnace when it was obviously so old.

 

[DVC-Don]

I'd walk away.

 

[mom2boys]

You probably won't get a quick response if you are buying from a "group". The grandkids will probably not want spend their own money to get the house to the condition it should be in. I'd be looking at other houses ASAP.
Good luck!

 

[RitaZ.]

I would start looking at other houses right away, if you find something that you like better, then make your decision.

Good luck!

 

[offwegotoneverland]

Our first home had issues on the inscpection and then more on our final walk through (water damage).

We should have run screaming in the other direction...instead we took the measly 500.00 credit and bought the house from he double hockey sticks. We spent over 25K in fix ups (on a 150M house) and sold it for 175 if we hadn't had our legal costs and commission paid for due to a work transfer we would have lost our shirts. (and if you count interest on the money we borrowed for some of the repairs we did). dh is not ever allowed to use the phrase I can fix it honey and he wasn't allowed a vote on our new house (I had to promise to never discuss the evil home with him again it was a fair deal).

Don't buy it if you have any qualms about the repair cost it's just not worth it if there is no additional value in the property from your appraised value.

 

[ducklite]

I would be running so hard and so fast that my feet wouldn't leave footprints in the sand.

Remember the movie "The Money Pit"? 'Nuff said.

Anne

 

[puffkin]

I bought an older home from an old lady who was in a nursing home. We bought it at auction, so the house was sold "as is". There were no kids. The neighbors knew some stuff, not everything. We got VERY lucky with our home, there weren't any major problems (just needed updating). However this house sounds like there are some MAJOR problems. I would walk.

At least do yourself a favor and go see other homes while the "grandkids" discuss this. That way, you won't miss out on something great. If you don't find anything and they are willing to work with you, then I would continue to deal with them while keeping your other options open.

 

[Papa Deuce]

I'd want $10,000... seriously, or I would walk away.

 

[Chicago526]

Well, I can't go house hunting until Saturday anyway, so there's not harm in allowing them to "come to their senses" about it over the next day or so. But I've spent the morning looking at other homes and e-mailing them to my realtor. If they don't cough up a lot more money, I will be walking!

Oddly enough, my co-worker thinks I'm being unreasonable, that all "old house" will have issues and I'll never find on in prefect condition. That I should just take the $1000 credit and then pay out of pocket for the rest. If the total cost of repairs was $2000, I might do that. But it's gonna cost WAY more than that to fix this place up. I think she's nuts! It's one of the reasons I posted this, I wanted to make sure I wasn't the nutty one!

Thanks for all the feedback! I'll let you all know how it goes.

 

[mtblujeans]

To kinda' give you some perspective, the first house we bought, 13 years ago, had been a rental and the owners gave us a $2000.00 credit to repair/replace wall holes and carpet damaged by the renters.

I think the problems you are looking at here deserve more than the $1000.00 they are offering. I think you have the right state-of-mind that you can walk away if you need to.

 

[RitaZ.]

Oddly enough, my co-worker thinks I'm being unreasonable, that all "old house" will have issues and I'll never find on in prefect condition. That I should just take the $1000 credit and then pay out of pocket for the rest. If the total cost of repairs was $2000, I might do that. But it's gonna cost WAY more than that to fix this place up. I think she's nuts! It's one of the reasons I posted this, I wanted to make sure I wasn't the nutty one!

Thanks for all the feedback! I'll let you all know how it goes.

Yes, all homes will eventually have issues, older homes more so. It's not about finding a home in "perfect condition", even brand new homes aren't in "perfect" condition. Unless the seller is selling the home "as is" or asking a lower price, which reflects the amount of repairs needed, then I don't see any reason to take on their problems.

Trust me on this (personal experience), there will probably be other issues that you will uncover once you move into the house. The sellers will have to lower the asking price, make the repairs or give a credit at closing (big enough to cover the repairs), if not for you, then for another buyer. The ball is in their court. Good luck!

 

[4nana]

I am glad to hear you're going to wait it out over the week-end. I agree, you may be talking big $$$$$ to make it livable.

Our first home was bought from a little lady in the nursing home too. DH, being a carpenter, knew exactally what he was getting into and didn't mind the overhaul as the place was dirt cheap. When all was said and done, it needed new sewer, all new plumbing, heating and AC, refinish floors, 5 layers of wall paper to strip, paint inside and out... yada, yada. We loved the old place, DH could do all the work, we were willing to spend the extra to fix it up and enjoying living there 10yrs. I wish you the best of luck in your decision.

 

[wnissen]

We bought a house with some "issues," as well, and it worked out well on balance.

My only comment is that home buyers should never forget that their realtor is not working for them. He or she is working for the sale, and they want it to go through. A few thousand dollars difference on the sale price is a big deal to you, but only a hundred bucks to them.

Walt

 

[The Mystery Machine]

Asbstos??? I'd walk away and never look back.

For 186,000 I would expect tip-top...Run like HELL from this deal......

 

[Chicago526]

For 186,000 I would expect tip-top...Run like HELL from this deal......

Actually for this area, it's rare to find a single family home under $200,000 that's not in a gang infested neighborhood! In my home town, you can't touch a house for less than $250,000, and that's still a fixer-uper. That's why I had to move to Elgin for my first home (a condo).

I'm changing my focus to townhomes if this doesn't work out. No yard for the dog and I still won't be able to garden, but it will get us everything else we want.