OT: house inspection.... wtd

What would you do, walk away or hope the repairs are done correctly?

Got a house inspection done on a remodeled house I am buying. Inspectors found some issues including termites in the garage, water damage on facia and bottom of garage door that leads to the backyard, and several other things which are mainly minor issues.

We give the seller a list of repairs needed, they made a joke of a counter offer, long story short the seller contractor calls and wants to see everything needed. I show up and the "contractor" is in a PRIUS, I go to great him and he starts to jump down my throat saying there is no water damage. So now I'm mad. I take him to the NW corner and show him the facia and he goes on saying his guys forgot to paint that area. I said no that is water damage and since the roof is new, either 1) the shingles were installed incorrectly or 2) they did a rush job and didn't fix the roof correctly and there is no gutters (you can see where the brackets were). He tells me he will fix it bondo and paint it, I tell him no you are going to fix it correctly or I walk. I show him the NE corner facia with same issue and also point out the only 30' section where they didn't paint the drip edge. I then walk around and show him other issues and the garage access door also has water damage on bottom (which is higher then the backyard). He says he'll fix that with bondo I said nope you will replace that and stop trying to put lipstick on these issues or I walk. We continue to look at everything on the report. We land up going back to the facia. My realtor shows up the "contractor" then changes his attitude as I am showing my realtor the water damage issue. We all go inside to look at other issues while inside the garage we discuss the termites he says during remodel he discovered termites throughout the house and had it remedied. We tell him during our inspections live termites were found in the garage around the expansion paper. He then gave us another excuse.
We go back inside and I notice there was a large patch in the ceiling so I inquire. He tells me the swamp cooler on the roof was leaking so they had to patch the ceiling. So now I am worried about mold since who knows how long the house sat with a leaking swamp cooler.

The "contractor" assures all issues will be fixed correctly. I don't believe the contractor at all and they don't want to add gutters that were once there. I would need to pay for mold tests and get a roofer friend to look inside and out at the roof.

Would you walk or hope issues are fixed correctly? The major issues are possibly a terrible roofing job, mold, and termites.

Here's the NW corner mentioned above. Zoom in

sounds like the house has issues..... i know u need a house... but id walk....a problem house can be devastating..!

Walk

I wouldn’t buy it sounds like you can’t trust the contractor.

MY GOD MAN, WALK!!

Termites are a major issue in my view. With no better than you are getting from the contractor, I would walk.

bye bye

Walk.

There may be some deals to be had if Covid does not go away soon and we cannot get back to work. If you have any realtor friends who will be honest ask them how houses are selling in this market.

You live in a dry area ? Shouldn't see water damage under the eave/sofit . Either bad roof job or ice dam damage . Paint won't fix it . Sometimes gutters can make it worse . Definitely check for mold issues in the attic , with your health problems not good . You might be able to deal with this stuff if you can't find something else but if you have to sell in the future these issues will be a headache

Sounds like a flipper trying to pull one. I'd run or get a quote from a good contractor the seller eats the cost.

Good point ..... buyers market

Don't walk. RUN !!!

As stated , with covid the market is going to have a lot of opportunities when it is over. You may see some real deals down the road. House prices are likely to drop quite a bit. Maybe 6mo to 1year.

Odds of houses going up in value , very poor.

Don’t walk away run. I am part of a crew that flips houses. We would never even think of covering up damage and definitely deal with bug issues and repair properly any damage. If he’s acting like this now what else did he hide. He’s already as much as told you matter of factly that that is how he does things l. What’s hidden behind and under the cabinets? What was done to the electrical and plumbing that’s in the walls ceiling and slab? Not to mention how many gallons of bondo is painted over where there is water and termite damage? Run away and don’t look back. If you have any more encounters with this guy record it. Think of it this way. If he acts like this now and you now know how he does cheap patches instead of repairs what’s going to happen if a warranty issue arises. I can tell you, no returned phone calls or emails and eventually unreadable.

Run....and if you are already running—-run faster.
Another deal will pop up soon

run as fast as you can

If it wasnt for the termites I would make a low ball offer because of the water/mold issue.
I would definitely not buy a house that was having the frame eaten by bugs.

You say remodeled, U mean a flip house? If it is run away fast. THey do everything as cheap and quick as possible.

Thanks everyone I appreciate it. You all confirmed running is the right choice.

Yup this was a flipper.

AntiGov, we are dry compared to say to Seattle. We do get good amounts of rain and snow. With Spring here rain should be starting up soon might get another snow blast too. Houses are flying like guns and ammo. I have been looking for about 2.5 months now and have seen probably 50+ houses. Most I can't even put an offer in before they are sold. Some are sold while on the way to look, some while looking and others my offers aren't good enough.

Turk, one of the outlets only had one outlet functional. Yeah I am worried about what other corners he cut while flipping this and the other houses.

Did anyone notice the notch cut out /or rotted on the overhang?

You know you are being lied to, you just don't know to what degree but you can be sure there are other issues you don't know about. The answer is clear. Walk away or substantially drop your offer. Personally I'd walk away.

Yeah I just told my realtor and friend to walk away from this house. It stinks because we've come a long way to only to start all over. We're both disappointed and frustrated naturally but I'd rather be in a house where I don't have to constantly worry about major issues from the get go

I inspected a house like that. No termites but improper roofing and flashing. Water leaking around the chimney into the attic. DIY heating system and wiring. Advised my client. He said he talked with the owner and the owner would make the repairs. I said are you sure? The owner doing the work was the original problem. Anyway he purchased the house. Called me six months later and guess what the owners repairs didn’t work. Heating company wants $3000 and roofer wants $2500. I advised him that I had pictures and spelled out all those problems in my inspection report and noted on each item of my concern as per our discussion and as to your reply that the owner was going to make all repairs as noted. I told him to contact his lawyer and realtor as he witnessed our discussion about the noted problems with the house and that I cautioned you about the owner not being qualified to do the repairs as he did the original work. His lawyer was able to get the owner to pay for the repairs. I thought he was going to be stuck paying for the repairs himself. If you don’t feel good about the house walk away especially if the inspection points you in that direction.

Wow that is crazy. I am glad it worked out for him in the end.

Adam m , I get a lot of people I know have me go with them to look at a used car. I am good at picking out a good one being I have a lot of knowledge in that area.

These friends get SO disappointed when I tell them not to buy a certain car. Big letdown.

Then the next car or car after that is a gem that I encourage them to purchase. They become so , so happy they passed up on the first car which was a piece of junk. They thank me again and again for talking them out of the first car they saw.

This will very likely happen to you , there is a better home out there for you to buy.


As the saying goes ' There are many fish in the ocean '

Keep trying , have faith , it WILL happen.

Do you have to find something immediately or looking to buy in order not to keep renting? If the latter, I would be waiting after this virus clears, sad to say there may be a lot a houses available.

I'm guessing this "contractor" is the current owner who is flipping the house? If not, why are you dealing with the seller's contractor. Your real estate agent should give the seller's real estate agent the list of repairs that need to be done to seal the deal and you wait for their answer. If you're concerned about the quality of repairs, your offer should spell out the exact scope of work for repairs.

Or, make a low ball offer to buy it as is and fix it all yourself or hire a competent contractor with the savings. But make sure your offer is low enough to provide you with a contingency fund to cover unknowns. I've never been comfortable haggling. I had an uncle who said that if you aren't embarrassed by your offer, you're offer is too high.

Cragar, that is awesome. I am glad you direct them to a better car. I wish I could have my uncle or a friend go with me to look at houses with me. But often, I have to stop what I am doing to go look since the market is crazy hot right now.

bankrunner I need something asap. We really don't want to waste $8k+ on rent, renting a 2 bed apartment in a decent area is an avg of $1200 mo. I agree there might be a lot of houses coming up, but the rates might sky rocket too.

maintenanceguy, I think the contractor is both seller and contractor. We gave them the reports with a list of repairs. We had to fight just to even consider it. Then yesterday while the 3 of were there more issues were noticed and talked about that inspectors 1) didn't know about, like termites throughout which the contractor slipped and said during remodel he found termites all over (inspection saw live termites in the garage only). 2) Didn't notice. Example; I noticed the overhang issue in the pic last night and the patch job in the ceiling while there, I inquired about the patch and that is when he said the swamp cooler on the roof was leaking for some time and leaked through the ceiling so they patched it. So now I would have to dish out more cash for a complete mold inspection a complete roof inspection neither of which I won't be reimbursed. The access to the attic is very small and the inspectors couldn't get in the attic. From the discussion between the contractor/owner and I had before my realtor got there he likes to cut corners. Cutting corners is ok on some stuff but not on major components like a roof, termite remediation and mold issues.

Adam-Keep your eyes, ears, and options open and something nicer will come along! Hang in there and good luck!

Moosetrot

Find someone you can trust (even uncle or friend) who can drop things at a moment's notice to look at a house at a moments notice even if you have to grease their palms a hundred or two. They can save you thousands if not tens of thousands.
With Covid19 the real estate market is under going massive changes , very quickly. Open houses are almost a thing of the past , people do not want masses of people through their house right now due to infection potential. New car sales are falling very flat even with very good interest rates.

Hold tight , more opportunities are coming , the market is changing very fast. Google it. Even HOT real estate markets are seeing drastic changes. There is a lot of investors on the sidelines right now waiting for markets to bottom out a bit to pounce. You could get a great deal if you wait and follow their lead and just wait a tiny bit.

Hold tight , wait a bit , you may get a great deal and make other Tman members totally jealous.


I bought my house 30+ years ago , during a lull in the market. Got a good deal. If I told you how cheap I got it because of that , most Tman members would cry BS and not believe it. I made out VERY well. Market timing during downturns are way better than great interest rates or other factors. Plus you can refinance when rates are better. You have a perfect storm coming up , get purchase prices as Covid19 shoves real estate prices down with interest rates at a crazy low. You may never have a better chance to buy a home as prices drop. Give it a little time , you will be a king.

Thanks everyone I appreciate it very much. I needed that encouragement, I was down earlier.

Do not buy . Hard to tell what other issues there are that you didn't see .

I didn't buy.

Contractor does not know up from down. Run faster.

I ran and not looking back