Home inspection question?

Question

Hello! I'm a first time home buyer. I just went through a home inspection and walked through with the inspector. We found a few major things and I have some questions about that.

Well, we found that these people don't have a carbon monoxide detector and their smoke alarm is kind of messed up.

Also-the furnace doesn't light automatically. The sellers have had to manually light it with a match when they want to use it.

Finally, the garage door closes and opens well, but sometimes has a minor pausing problem.

I know that not every home is perfect, but I love this place and I'm afraid that the sellers won't agree to fix anything or give me a credit for anything and then this stuff to fix will cost so much that I wont' be able to afford it, or worse, my wife will turned off by this home!

From your experience, do the sellers normally pay for these fixes. These sellers are stubborn so it worries me!

I'd talk to my attorney but he takes a while to call back!

Thanks!

Answer 1

"Major" problems are things like mold, which will require that the house be gutted and rebuilt. What you describe are not "major" problems. A smoke detector is ten bucks. What percent of the value of the house is that? The garage door opener probably needs an adjustment on a tension screw. And furnace can be repaired or replaced. All of this is probably less than one percent of the value of the house. Are you going to blow the deal for this?

Think about this: the sellers may have already "paid" for these fixes in agreeing to a price that reflects the current condition of the house and thus has allowances for these things built in. Asking fo more would be asking them to pay twice for the same thing.

Will they pay? Maybe, if they're desperate to sell the house. But if they think they accepted too low a price, you are giving them a chance to say "no" and get out of the contract and sell the house to somebody else for a better price.

You need to decide whether you are trying to acquire a house or you are trying to win some kind of confrontation game with the seller?

If this is a great house for you, then buy it. I guarantee that ten years from now you won't remember what it cost to fix the furnace after you moved in.

Answer 2

For the smoke detector, there needs to be a working smoke detector. That is a code violation, and they should install them (they are also under $10, and not a big deal). I just bought a house with zero detectors, and we had the sellers install some before we closed.

With the carbon monoxide detecor, I do not believe they have to install one of those. You can actually get a combination CO and smoke dectector, I don't think they are too big a deal.

I just went through a home inspection last week. There were a number of "walkthru" items, which were things the sellers needed to fix or give credit for. They were things like small hole in roof, smoke detectors, leaky faucets, etc. We asked for a 2k credit because the air conditioner is like 25 years old and could go at any moment. Are you working with an agent? For my experience, the agent came with us during the inspection and took the list of things to the seller's agent. The sellers can always say "no," but remember, they want to sell the house as much as you want to buy it. I assume they accepted your offer and you have a contract with a home inspection contingency. So you are both invested in this sale. I am not sure where you are looking, but the market is slowing down in most places and the buyer has more power.

Some things to think about - Is the house vacant? If it is, most likely the seller is paying two mortgages and wants to get rid of the house. This is in your favor. Also, find out how long it has been on the market. If it is over 60 days or so, they may be getting nervous, again in your favor. The market slows down this time of year, and if you don't buy it may be awhile before another buyer comes along.

Find out how much a new furnace is and ask for a credit for that amount. The worst that can happen is they say no. From what you have found, it doesn't sound too bad. The big things that come up in home inspections are water damage, structural problems, foundation problems, things like that. You can put in a new garage door opener on a saturday afternoon. Good luck!

Answer 3

As for the carbon monoxide and smoke detectors, those are simple and fairly cheap fixes. I would require that the furnace be fixed no matter what and I would suggest that the garage door be looked at. The garage door problem could be something simple, but it could also pause because of some type of electrical problem as well. If it has to do with the garage door opener not functioning perfectly, a garage door opener is also not too expensive. Therefore, the sellers should agree to these simple demands, but if not, it is a buyers market still and there are many homes on the market. Many that have been sitting for a long time. If they want to sell, they will fix these items for you, if not, then you will find another house that is in the shape that you want it to be in. Read the page below about inspections and such.

Answer 4

Do you want to pay top dollar for a home with no problems or are you willing to except some flaws for a good price?

Being in building maintenance I know there are flaws to be found any where if you care to look close enough.

Just because it is brand new don't mean it won't fail before long.

You won't lose any thing by giving your list to the seller.
You just say these are the things that I would like fixed before I close the deal.

I hope that you looked at a few other places so that you have a general idea if this is s good deal or not.

The furnace sounds like it is older & has a standing pilot light that may go out once in a while. The only serious thing with a furnace is if the heat exchanger is bad, then it has to be replaced. Repairs car be had for most other problems.

Look unless you have deep pockets what you can afford or end up buying will have problems, now or later.

The thing with the value of a house is that now matter how much you study the facts you still are guessing.

Answer 5

You should ask yourself a few questions first.

Where these types of repair issues covered in the purchase agreement? Sometimes they are (Seller to pay for repairs to...) and sometimes the don't.

What kind of a market is it? If your area is like most of the country sellers are having a tough time selling, and will be forced to give more to sell their home.

Who wants the home more, you or the Seller. If this is the perfect home for you with the best terms, are you willing to walk away fromit for the cost of the repairs? It sounds like the Seller is playing tough, but if the home has been on the market for 180 days, they may be willing to go the extra mile to finally get it done.

So think about these things and you decide what you can do. You can do three things: Not rock the boat and protect the transaction and simply eat the repairs; Come to an agreement with the seller to split the costs, or, insist on the seller fix all of it.

Normally, I would try for splitting. What I would do is identify the one or two things that I most want to get done. Probably the ones that cost the most, maybe the furnace. Then I present the seller a full list of EVERYTHING that is wrong. Offer that I will be responsible for X, Y and Z, but I need Seller to do A, B and maybe C.

Good Luck

Answer 6

I am a Realtor in Oregon. If you are getting a loan, the bank usually requires that the house meets the code. A furnace must be working properly and fire/smoke detectors need to be working to get a loan. If the seller doesn't fix the items, he will have to disclose these problems to another prospective buyer so it doesn't make sense to not fix them. Hopefully, the sellers have a Realtor that can explain that to them. The garage door would not be considered a big issue here. If you aren't getting a loan, I would not let the seller give you a credit to have the work done after closing. Once the work begins, other problems could be discovered and it will be difficult, if not impossible, to get any further money from the sellers. Get everything taken care of to your satisfaction before you close. Get a follow-up inspection from the same inspector to be sure everything was done right by a LICENSED CONTRACTOR.

Answer 7

Do not be afraid to have the things you mentioned repaired and make sure it is a condition of the sale. In other words, they don't fix it....you don't buy it.
I have purchased a dozen homes over the past many years and I felt just like you on the first one. Please understand that the sellers are aware of everything you mentioned, and they will not be surprised if you make these repairs a condition of you buying the home. The only thing I would let them negotiate on is the garage door opener.

Ask for everything to be fixed and offer a fair price. If they counter-offer, don't budge on the repairs. Respond with a small increase in price. If they counter again. Stand firm on the price. Budge only on the door opener

Answer 8

i used to be a stubborn seller... not anymore.
in my experience i always at least gave the buyer 1/2 of what they wanted fixed.
one home i sold had a chimney issue - i met the buyer 1/2 way on the costs.
if she would threaten to back out i would have paid for it all in the long run.
after several buy/sells for me i've learned to not sweat the small stuff.
remember - they want to sell or they wouldn't put it on the market!
if you were fair in the purchase price i see no reason why they wouldn't accomodate you in some repairs...
do you have homestead insurance available? ask if seller will be willing to purchase that for you instead. (indiana $385)
that way if something goes wrong within 1 year of purchase you can get it fixed with a $75 (indiana) deductable per item to be fixed.
good luck to you!

Answer 9

It is the right time to buy a home.
A lot of home owners that are trying to sell their homes, have had the house up for sale for months or one year or more. Find out from Sears or someone that installs garage door openers, how much it will cost to replace it with a new one.
The furnace problem sounds like it just needs a new thermo couple, or electronic ignitor. Check with a furnace man.
The detectors, I wound just buy new ones.
Once you find out how much it will cost, ask to have that amount of money taken off the asking price of the house.