I'd like to visit with you a moment, especially if you're in the market to sell or buy a home.
In Texas, we have a required real estate form thats title is "Seller's Disclosure." Its purpose is to systematically get the seller to give information about the condition of the house so that potential buyers can have their questions answered.
When he's finished answering the questions, he signs it and gives it to his real estate agent to copy and give to all who might be considering purchasing the home. In general, an owner of a single family dwelling must provided a potential purchaser with a copy of this completed form before a sale can take place.
The problem is that there is apparently no serious penalty for fudging the truth....not to the seller and not to the agent for knowingly allowing it.
This past week I was given two "Seller's Disclosures." Both gave glowing reports, and neither was even close to stating the truth. Without anything more than a cursory study, I found incorrect answers, one after another.
One owner said everything worked. Let me tell you what obviously didn't that he specifically said did: the air conditioning was out; the sprinkler system had one head that worked and wouldn't shut down after the cycle was completed; the wiring to the swimming pool pump had obviously been bootlegged in because it was a hodgepodge of indoor Romex and with no conduit; the toilets had white bases and bone tanks; someone had put in a floating wood laminate floor without allowing any expansion space between it and the walls; and on and on.
Ironically both of these sellers appear desperate to get the sale of their homes behind them. One has moved to another state and the other has bought another house and moved there. But they've set their plans up to fail.
In each case my clients wanted to buy their house. In each case an offer was made, but it became obvious that the Sellers wanted to deed the house with the fabricated truth rather than the real truth. And they didn't want to consider making the repairs so that the condition of the house would be consistent with what they had certified. My clients didn't buy.
That makes me become more supportive of a requirement that a house be inspected by a professional, licensed inspector BEFORE the house can be put on the market, and further, that a potential buyer has to have seen that inspection report before he can enter a contract to purchase.
Perhaps if sellers were required to play with a full deck, there would be a more orderly market and more sales.
In the meantime, if you are planning to sell your home, how about getting a licensed inspector to make a thorough journey through your home, then have the stuff he finds fixed. Then you can fill out the Seller's Disclosure wth truthful answers and show the prospects the inspectors independent report.
Seller's disclosures carry a lot of weight for my clients and me.
If the seller's disclosure fails to disclose defects and the home inspector finds them, they WILL make repairs.
I write the meanest Home Inspection Notice you every saw. Quite the Disclosure. Quote the inspection report. Quote the law that states that the disclosure is required by law and you WILL get the repairs made. Material defects, no problem. They have to be fixed. Minor defects, negotiate them.
I'm with you, Bill! I encourage sellers to get a pre-inspection, because it makes the house more marketable and, even more, prevents unpleasant surprises for everyone concerned during the option period. But few actually do so, even though they nod their heads in agreement with my reasoning.
I'm not sure about making it a legal requirement, but it sure would make it easier to convince them!
In Ontario we have the Seller's Property Information Statement and it is a legal document that may be used in a court of law. Whenever I take a listing, I make sure my seller fills one out.
If working on the buying end, I make sure I and my buyers have reviewed this Statement before submitting an offer and I also make sure to make each offer conditional upon the buyer getting a satisfactory home inspection report at his/her own expense. This way the home inspection is the buyer's and the home inspector is working for the buyer, not the seller. If a buyer tells me they don't want a home inspection done, I make them sign a release stating that they were advised by me to have one done and against my advice, chose not to get one done of their own accord.
Jo
I simply don't know when lying became acceptable unexplainable behavior. I'm sick of it, quite frankly. When I represent clients, they can By God be certain they're going to get the unvarnished truth. And my agent friends always just expect that of me, yet many of them have no compunction about lying to me.
Somehow they rationalize that it is OK, and they don't even blink when I catch them. They just come up with yet another lie to defend the first lie.
Well let it be know here and now. I'm not changing.
Miss Ashley, I've never done that but we're starting today. I've had more than enough of this jockying over needed repairs that the seller hoped no one would notice, even to the point of certifying all is OK.
Carole and Keith,
Thanks for your comments, and Carole I'm glad you approved of my "friendship" with the Dali.
Keith, I think your insistence on home warranties and a termite letter are a good step in the right direction.
I'm right in the middle of an issue. I have a signed contract and I got a temite inspection. To my suprise the same inspector inspected the house I'm planning on buying just six weeks ago and found past termite activity, yet the seller had checked no on past termite issues. SHAME on THEM. I'm now debaiting on whether to move ahead with buying the house or not.
Well, Bob, I'm going to tell you what I would do if I were buying that house.
I would have my attorney called the seller, and tell him the importance of properly answering the questions on the seller's disclosure. I'd tell him that he had advised you to not go forward until/unless the seller provided you with a brand new, up to date Seller's Disclosure that revealed everything.
Then I would retain a DIFFERENT inspector to start from scratch. I wouldn't tell him any of this business about the house being previously inspected. I'd also get a licensed pest control company to inspect it for infestations and damage, and give you a written report of their findings.
Good luck.
Bill Cherry