Opti
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Post by Opti on Mar 27, 2011 11:02:26 GMT -5
"Honey: They paid $180,000. It was appraise at $195,000. So far she has spent over $2000 in repairs and that's before today's electrical issue. They have been in the house for exactly 3 weeks."
The only satisfaction any buyer usually can get is by taking the seller to court or trying to pressure them through the lawyer if all funds have not been disbursed yet. If the cost of getting a lawyer is more than what you expect to recoup obviously its not worth the time. $2K can be eaten by lawyer and court fees pretty quickly.
Complaining to a broker or realtor at best might give her emotional satisfaction but won't change anything.
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zibazinski
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Post by zibazinski on Mar 27, 2011 11:31:40 GMT -5
True enough but badmouthing them all around does give you a certain satisfaction.
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thyme4change
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Post by thyme4change on Mar 27, 2011 13:47:47 GMT -5
I had a friend that bought a brand new house, and after 6 months the framing bowed so bad that the drywall split. The builders had to come out, take out all the drywall and reframe an exterior wall. Everyone else that bought new had to spend so much money on landscaping.
I'm not sure new houses are always a dream either. I guess I've always bought old and expected the problems to come.
What this thread does is make me not want to sell. The next guy will probably sue me because they didn't know 50 year old houses aren't perfect.
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zibazinski
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Post by zibazinski on Mar 28, 2011 8:03:52 GMT -5
If the buyer of your 50 year old house is so stupid that they don't get a reputable inspector and go along with the inspection, then they are going to be in for some nasty surprises. The place we bought is less than 10 years old and had roof and wet issues.
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Urban Chicago
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Post by Urban Chicago on Mar 28, 2011 8:39:18 GMT -5
Just mentioning that I've found new homes to be worse, not better than older homes in terms of code violations, shoddy construction, etc...
I second the advice about not using the realtor's inspector. Best source I've found is the fire department. Usually every station has an officer or 2 that moonlights doing inspections.
We had tons of problems when we bought our house, but we know we were buying a fixer-upper. Nothing appeared that our inspector had not seen and pointed out to us.
Lastly, some mortgage companies will require certain problems be brought up to code before a sale(usually electrical issues), but the city usually goes be what was up to code at time of construction.
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zibazinski
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Post by zibazinski on Mar 28, 2011 9:36:01 GMT -5
OP, as far as your friends go, well, they have learned the hard way. I doubt the place is worth what they paid for it let alone appraised value so i hope they like the house enough to contend with the nasty surprises.
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sheilaincali
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Post by sheilaincali on Mar 28, 2011 10:47:53 GMT -5
zib- that's the harsh reality of it. They do like the house and it's floor plan is set up so they can be there for a long time (in the event they have more kids even).
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zibazinski
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Post by zibazinski on Mar 28, 2011 11:16:24 GMT -5
Then so be it. Houses are a money pit so you had best be happy with yours!!!
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oreo
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Post by oreo on Mar 28, 2011 12:28:56 GMT -5
My new recommendation is to find a different Realtor next time and to tell others not to use the one they used. I mean, he/she (Realtor) is right that it isn't their fault, but they should be a little more tactful about it and maybe offer at least a little compromise after all they probably made a couple thousand off the deal and they might want to get another client some day. Maybe I just been lucky with the people I deal with being a little more carrying of their clients/reputation.
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zibazinski
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Post by zibazinski on Mar 28, 2011 12:33:17 GMT -5
I agree. Realtors are a dime a dozen and your reputation is everything.
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sheilaincali
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Post by sheilaincali on Mar 28, 2011 13:04:13 GMT -5
I heard a statistic once that said "every satisfied customer will tell 6 people, but every dissatisfied customer will tell 12 people." I used to tell my employees "I am a B word and will tell 24 people, just awesome that I am always your customer and be on your best behavior".
I did tell her again to complain to the Broker since it's his reputation on the line as well.
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zibazinski
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Post by zibazinski on Mar 28, 2011 13:27:13 GMT -5
It's VERY true. We used to have a school website where we could tell each other things, like who was a good dentist, doctor, oral surgeon, restaurants, you name it, someone had experienced it and believe me, over 15k people plus their friends got info from it. I avoided a lot of places and told them "why." Those that did a good job got lots of business and they knew "why." I miss that website.
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