Buying a new home and need advice...

[69Charger_440]

I used the search button and looked over the threads started on this subject; however, I didn't really find the answers I was looking for.  If anyone has real estate experience or any advice on the matter, it would be greatly appreciated.  Basically the issues I have are as follows.

1.  I was told by the builder that the home was done and it was ready for closing.  I hired a home inspector who then found some issues with the home.  The home inspector said the builder should fix it.  The builder said that if it passed the city inspection then he isn't obligated to fix it.  Who is in the right here? 

2.  I haven't closed yet, but if the builder won't fix it what is the next best thing if he won't budge.

3.  Can the builder sell the home if I refuse to close if he has not fixed the issues the home inspector found?

3.  Should I hire a real estate attorney?

Thanks for any advice!

[89MOPAR]

 Are you under contract already to buy the house from the builder at a set price ?

How much did the home inspector find, are we talking $500 or $5000 in fixes ?
   If its $5K in fixes, figure the home inspector you hired missed at least a few things, so than add some more.

Is this a custom made home to built to your specs in terms of room layout ?   or is it a standard floorplan ?
   If it's standard, i'd go find another house if the builder won't budge.  How much do you stand to lose in 'earnest money' .

Is it worth it to pay an attorney possibly a few thousand $$ , to avoid walking away from $1000 in earnest money ?

Is there something unique about the property itself ?  View ? Waterfront ? etc.

If you refuse to close and give up your earnest money, or can reasonably prove the builder did not meet the contract standards, and break the contract, he can sell it to someone else.

[hemi68charger]

Not sure who the builder is (we have Darling and Plantation Homes here), but I live in a relatively new neighborhood and most people hired a home inspector. In pretty much all the cases, the builder fixed and/or addressed the issues brought up. I personally didn't do this, but know neighbors who did. You may have to eat the money (down-payment/earnest), but if you feel better not moving into the house, then walk........  You should have a real estate agent and if so, they should be fighting for you. That's what you're paying them for...........

Good luck,
Troy

[elacruze]

I've only bought one house, in '05 and I'm very happy I did. BUT!

I received lots of advice from others to use a real estate attorney, which I disregarded, being a smarty-pants and all.

Now, instead of paying a couple hundred or thousand $ for professional assistance and opinion, I have a few issues;
1. A $6000 theft by the seller.
2. $15,000 in lost State Aid towards the principle, and the associated interest.
3. Attorney fees to pursue 1 & 2.
4. Higher house payments because of the lost Aid.

Any questions?

[694spdRT]

Did you put in a formal offer through an agent or through the builder? Read your contract as most of these items are usually spelled out.

This may vary from state to state but, where I live, if you have an inspection contingency and items are found that are not corrected or compensated for to the agreement of both parties you can walk. That is what the inspection contingency is used for. You have the right to continue on with the purchase without having the items repaired if the seller and you cannot come to an agreement. However, you can't force the owner to repair items or give you a credit if they do not want to. It is much like a financing contingency allows you to exit the contract if you cannot obtain financing according to the details in your offer.

[PocketThunder]

Please list the issues the inspector found and we can better tell you wether to walk or not.  Sometimes the inspector will try to find anything to help you think he is worth the cost of the inspection.

Paul.... living in my 4th house. ..  Jack of all trades.. Master of none.

[69Charger_440]

Are you under contract already to buy the house from the builder at a set price ?

Yes, I signed a purchase agreement.

How much did the home inspector find, are we talking $500 or $5000 in fixes ?
   If its $5K in fixes, figure the home inspector you hired missed at least a few things, so than add some more.  Dunno, may be anywhere from $100.00-$1,000.00.  The inspector didn't put a $ amount on what it would take to repair the issues.

Is this a custom made home to built to your specs in terms of room layout ?   or is it a standard floorplan ?  Standard
   If it's standard, i'd go find another house if the builder won't budge.  How much do you stand to lose in 'earnest money' .  A pretty penny since I had to give earnest money on the upgrades we selected.

Is it worth it to pay an attorney possibly a few thousand $$ , to avoid walking away from $1000 in earnest money ?  I would be charged $75.00 for a consultation and advise for options that I may have.

Is there something unique about the property itself ?  View ? Waterfront ? etc.  Pretty much what we were looking for in the size of the lot, the home, school, etc that was within our budget.

If you refuse to close and give up your earnest money, or can reasonably prove the builder did not meet the contract standards, and break the contract, he can sell it to someone else.  You kinda lost me there on this one.

[69Charger_440]

Please list the issues the inspector found and we can better tell you wether to walk or not.  Sometimes the inspector will try to find anything to help you think he is worth the cost of the inspection.

Paul.... living in my 4th house. ..  Jack of all trades.. Master of none.

As per the inspector and I quote, "The valley rafter is supported back to the ceiling joist above the garage, the joist is not rated for the weight."  This to me was the biggest issue.

The other issues are as follows:
-Noted nail heads pushing up under some of the shingles.  These nail heads should be removed before they penetrate and damage the shingles.

-The open/bottom edge of the wall flashing's/kick out flashing should be sealed.

-The wall flashing does not wrap around the wall corner/edge at the left side of the front porch.

-Decking is pushing up and lifting the shingles at the front.

-White wire has been used for a hot wire, although this is common practice the wires should be marked at each end.

-The service tag was not marked as to the proper amperage of the heat pack.

-The inspector noted that the static water pressure reading for the home is 82 p.s.i.
He claims proper water pressure should be at between 40-80 p.s.i.

That is pretty much it.

Thanks for the advice so far!

[69Charger_440]

Not sure who the builder is (we have Darling and Plantation Homes here), but I live in a relatively new neighborhood and most people hired a home inspector. In pretty much all the cases, the builder fixed and/or addressed the issues brought up. I personally didn't do this, but know neighbors who did. You may have to eat the money (down-payment/earnest), but if you feel better not moving into the house, then walk........  You should have a real estate agent and if so, they should be fighting for you. That's what you're paying them for...........

Good luck,
Troy

Real estate agent pretty much said that if the home passed the city inspection then there is not much else I can do unless I want to get involved in litigation.  The only other thing she said she would do is ask the builder to put his claim in writing (That the house not affected performance wise or quality wise by the issues the inspector found).

[69Charger_440]

I've only bought one house, in '05 and I'm very happy I did. BUT!

I received lots of advice from others to use a real estate attorney, which I disregarded, being a smarty-pants and all.

Now, instead of paying a couple hundred or thousand $ for professional assistance and opinion, I have a few issues;
1. A $6000 theft by the seller.
2. $15,000 in lost State Aid towards the principle, and the associated interest.
3. Attorney fees to pursue 1 & 2.
4. Higher house payments because of the lost Aid.

Any questions?

No, just more stuff to worry about.   

[sunfire69]

Well...it differs all over the countery obviously...but on a new home that was built for you ....should have whats known as a "punch" list...these are little things ( basicly what you have mentioned) that need fixed prior to you taking ownership...yes they meet minimum code but your contract should have stated something to the effect " built to your satisfaction"....and these things need fix to fulfill that..I can't imagine a builder that would tell you to pack sand over some punch list stuff.....that's normal....face it..most of that stuff is pretty picky...take him the whole list and tell him you want it all fixed....if he balks negoiate the piddly stuff away and get the shingles, flashing, and important stuff fixed...you can lable a wire....mark a heat pack ( what ever that is) and it sounds like you have good water pressure.....but remember he is going to do the cheapest easiest job he can get away with....
Almost forgot.....being in the military I have bought 8 houses in 5 states...and had one custom home built ( the ex thanks me)....so I've done it a few times.....I don't use real estate attorneys....and home inspectors are a crap shoot....but I've never been ripped off.....so take it for what it's worth....

[69Charger_440]

Well...it differs all over the countery obviously...but on a new home that was built for you ....should have whats known as a "punch" list...these are little things ( basicly what you have mentioned) that need fixed prior to you taking ownership...yes they meet minimum code but your contract should have stated something to the effect " built to your satisfaction"....and these things need fix to fulfill that..I can't imagine a builder that would tell you to pack sand over some punch list stuff.....that's normal....face it..most of that stuff is pretty picky...take him the whole list and tell him you want it all fixed....if he balks negoiate the piddly stuff away and get the shingles, flashing, and important stuff fixed...you can lable a wire....mark a heat pack ( what ever that is) and it sounds like you have good water pressure.....but remember he is going to do the cheapest easiest job he can get away with....

He received the same list from the inspector.  We did the re-inspection yesterday.  The inspector showed me that the issues I mentioned still aren't fixed.  After the inspection, I called the builder and told him that I was willing to overlook the minor stuff like you mentioned.  But, I did want the major stuff taken care of.  So that is pretty much where we are at.

[sunfire69]

well the things like flashing and shingles I would hope he'd fix....these things protect the stucture so he should be willing to fix those.....unless he's a real jerk you should be able to get them fixed...if he won't you have to decide if it's worth the fight...if not suck it up and fix them your self after you move in....you'll probably do a better job than he will anyway....

[d/ur/t]

Sounds like you have a few drama's and this, and this is probably the worst time,like buying a house is is not stressful enough.So being so far away I'll leave the super comments to those that are a little closer.What I'd like to know is would you mind telling me {us} the size and the price.Just to give a comparison of hwat where dealing just before the boom hits.



Just to give you an idea of what I was looking at yesterday.Desription only as I'm trying to work out how to get the picture up.

http://www.century21.com.au/gladstone/

This new House and Land package at The Glen in popular West Gladstone will be built by a reputable builder with a modern & high-quality portfolio and their exceptional knowledge and understanding of house construction and design. These new contemporary designs offer four bedrooms, all with built in robes, master having WIR, ensuite & A/C. This wonderful home will have an open plan air conditioned living area and a separate lounge which makes this home quite attractive for the growing family. The double lockup garage with automatic panel lift door will always keep your vehicle safe and out of the weather. All of the final touches will be complete so you are able to move in straight away without any hassles. So get ready for outstanding value and design in a range of new homes that offer versatility, quality and excellent living options.
• Open plan living
• Patio
• Quality kitchen complete with dishwasher
• A/C master & living, seperate lounge
• Vertical blinds
• Fenced backyard, turf
• 5000L water tank,
• Total area under roof 223m2

The Glen is a boutique community, located just 2kms from the vibrant Gladstone CBD. Set amongst a beautiful natural bushland setting, it's a place where you'll find the type of lifestyle you and your family have always dreamed about.



cheers hope all goes well

 

[elacruze]

Rethinking this a little, I'd say that in this market you should have some leverage with the builder-how many homes does he have open, how many resources is he willing to leave outstanding over a few hours of labor? I'd call his bluff, tell him you'll walk if the stuff doesn't get taken care of, or at least receive a letter of responsibility and intent from him (with a due date)before closing.

Of course, it's real easy to sit over here and give advice about your money and circumstances without knowing them, so I'll admit to boldness in the absence of obligation.

Be very wary, read the small print, and don't let the builder threaten you with another buyer if you don't believe there is one.

.

[Old Moparz]

I wouldn't care whether the house passed inspection or not, the builder is required to build, fix, or install things correctly. After all, you are paying a "professional" for their services & expect things to be done correctly, not half assed like some crackhead that found his first hammer. I'll use the nails & roof shingles as an example. It isn't rocket science to hammer a nail so that the head sits flat & flush against the shingle, & you need to use a minimum number of nails for each shingle to do it. A professional roofer knows this & shouldn't be using the C.O. from the inspection as an excuse for anything less than doing it right.

Don't take this the wrong way, but I cannot believe you wouldn't have an attorney for a closing, especially with an investment as big as a house.  

It seems odd to me that you'd spend the thousands on a house but not the small amount, in comparison, for a lawyer. The lawyers for my closings in the past pretty much told people who were trying to screw me to pound salt.

Is it worth it to pay an attorney possibly a few thousand $$ , to avoid walking away from $1000 in earnest money ?  I would be charged $75.00 for a consultation and advise for options that I may have.

Seriously, I'd cough up the $75 now just in case the builder remains a deadbeat.

[Darkman]

If the house wasn't built to code, then the builder is responsible to fix it at their cost. If the joist is not rated for the weight, then it is not built to code. If it was passed by the city, then they are also liable. A builder should have a defects and liability period (at least in Australia they do, and about 12 months) to fix any defects or other issues that may arise due to poor workmanship, if they don't then you guys in the states have some serious issues when it comes to the construction of new houses!

[THE STIG]

Isn't there usually a warrenty period with a new home, I got one when I bought my house pre-existing. And when I made the inital offer it was subject to inspection, would a new home not be the same?