A week or two ago DD and BF bid on a home...

[rayinpenn]

A week or two ago DD and BF bid on a home... the home went to a cash buyer. The realtor explained to me that since a cash offer requires no appraisal it is preferable. Saturday my daughter gets a call from her realtor the cash offer disappeared “he lost his job”. Maybe its the auditor in me but I am immediately suspicious. So Sunday night we all meet at the place for another walk through (the parents haven’t screen it) DW, DD, BF, BF’s Mom, Dad and me. Bottom line the place needs a garage and a couple windows. The kitchen is small but the living room, den and Master are very spacious.

I note the seller is packed and all ready to go. I see packages of unopened screws in the garbage and a perfectly good singer sowing machine. I learn the seller has been in the house 30 plus years.

DD makes an offer that night- Monday morning it is accepted. I think the seller was already half way out the door and wanted to avoid open houses and any more delays. Whats new is one of the home inspectors found evidence of mold in the crawl space that an abatement company had addressed. None of us smelled humidity or anything. Mold scares me.

DD and BF are getting an home inspection. I cant help but keep thinking ....Lost his job? I suppose anything is possible.

Care to chime in? I bought my last home 13 years ago. I paid cash because I sold my first home. The home was 16 at the time. It was straight forward. It seems somethings have changed in this sellers market.

 

[Brat]

They should use the home inspection to build a to-do list. Often young buyers focus on decorating, which is OK, but they need to plan for the necessary expensive stuff. Build their own 'reserve' account. Save for that roof replacement, for example.

Because DD and BF are not married care should be taken to address the title to the house and resolution in case they do not marry. Pay for a meeting with an attorney.

 

[Texas Proud]

I can see that a cash offer was taken back... back in the crisis when I was trying to sell my house I got an all cash offer... by the time I heard about it it was revoked... seems the buyer put in about 5 to 10 bids really low cash bids and was hoping to get a bite...


Yes, use the inspection to get things fixed... but that is only good if it is in a buyers market... my sister bought in a sellers market and the seller refused to do anything as they knew someone else was willing to take it as is....

 

[gwraigty]

If the cash buyer had a paid up house that hadn't sold yet, it might have been preferable to stay put rather than sink a lot of cash into another house, especially if he'd need the cash to tide him over for awhile.

A few years ago, the sale of a house across the street from us fell through because of the buyer's home buyer losing his job. The sale was salvaged when the buyer was able to come up with the money somehow without depending on the sale of his home.

One wonders if the buyer may know their job is shaky and are trying to get the deal closed before the axe falls, or if they're blindsided by it.

 

[euro]

You should quit worrying about the cash buyer. It is totally irrelevant. Instead, focus on the inspection and determine if the place is worth the offered amount TO YOUR DD (and BF), or not. That is all that matters. If it is worth it, proceed; if it is NOT worth it, negotiate to a point where you are satisfied, or walk away from the deal.

 

[LOL!]

Every house has mold. Mold is ubiquitous. Sidewalks, patios, dirt, plants, siding, roofs, etc are all covered in mold, too.

 

[pacergal]

Similar thing happened to our DD and SIL, they were outbid on several homes before they were able to find one where owners had job offer out of state and they had to move quickly. Kids got their offer in the day before the open house. DD used the things found in the home inspection to negotiate $10,000 down on the price. Worked out well and luckily all the things found are easy fixes, no mold or equipment problems.

 

[OldShooter]

You should quit worrying about the cash buyer. It is totally irrelevant. Instead, focus on the inspection and determine if the place is worth the offered amount TO YOUR DD (and BF), or not. That is all that matters. If it is worth it, proceed; if it is NOT worth it, negotiate to a point where you are satisfied, or walk away from the deal.

+1

It is not even relevant to worry whether "the cash buyer" even existed, except to the extent that the selling realtor is or is not honest. It is never a good idea to deal with dishonest people. Be very careful.

 

[rayinpenn]

+1

It is not even relevant to worry whether "the cash buyer" even existed, except to the extent that the selling realtor is or is not honest. It is never a good idea to deal with dishonest people. Be very careful.

Agree... I think all we can do is get a reputable house inspector and see what is what.

 

[pb4uski]

Have the home inspector specifically check the crawl space and adjacent areas for mold and that the remediation was properly addressed. Then relax.

 

[euro]

Every house has mold. Mold is ubiquitous. Sidewalks, patios, dirt, plants, siding, roofs, etc are all covered in mold, too.

Agreed - people tend to worry about mold way too much.
That said, if there is visible mold growth then that indicates an excessive moisture situation. In the OP's case, this appears to be in the crawl space. There are many remedies for this problem, starting with simply making sure that there is sufficient air circulation (open louvers of foundation vents), put down a vapor barrier (layer of plastic), or, in extreme cases of water intrusion, install a french drain with/without sump pump. Some of these are trivial, others come at some cost. but none of them tend to be deal breakers.

 

[rayinpenn]

Agreed - people tend to worry about mold way too much.

That said, if there is visible mold growth then that indicates an excessive moisture situation. In the OP's case, this appears to be in the crawl space. There are many remedies for this problem, starting with simply making sure that there is sufficient air circulation (open louvers of foundation vents), put down a vapor barrier (layer of plastic), or, in extreme cases of water intrusion, install a french drain with/without sump pump. Some of these are trivial, others come at some cost. but none of them tend to be deal breakers.

Mold becomes an issue when you try to sell the house. A positive mold test could make he sellers life difficult.

 

[rayinpenn]

I don’t see DD much during the week -off to work at 6:45AM back by 7PM -9PM Graduate school, volleyball or bowling. This morning I chatted with her briefly before left for the house inspection. I mentioned the mold issue and learned the sellers spent $7,000 to have the mold remediated. My suspicions got another boost and My auditors intuition starting going bing, bing “warning Will Robertson” She said she would send me the report of the remediation done. Will advise you when i get it...

What was that you guys said about mold not being a big deal? $7 grand is a big deal...All i can say is Sweet Moses!

 

[Rianne]

My personal trainer, years ago, bought a house with his GF. They were so excited, got a great deal and a lovely piece of land in Michigan. Closing over, they lived there together a few months and started renovating. Ripping out walls in the bathroom, covered in black mold under the dry wall. No wonder the house was a great deal. Inspectors cannot peel away dry wall, paneling to see what's under it. They can, to an extent detect mold under drywall but not the severity of the mold.

DH/me had a similar situation with water damage and a sewer main that was broken in the front yard. Sellers hid the water damage. After our closing, we contacted an attorney. He basically said it would cost just as much to fix the problem as to sue. We replaced broken sewer main, had to dig up front yard and the evergreens/bushes. Was a nightmare. The initial water damage, had the inspector been able to see it, was behind paneling. We don't know if they put the paneling in to cover it up. And how well do you know the inspector?
I think you're right to question why the cash buyer backed out.

 

[ivinsfan]

What caused the mold? That's the 64 dollar question. If the cause was located and the mold remediated that's one thing.

On a personal note, this mold would be a deal breaker for me, just no... A cash offer might not need an appraisal but judging from the timeline ,I'd put my money on an inspection problem and I don't think I'd believe a word out of the realtors mouth..

 

[Dtail]

What caused the mold? That's the 64 dollar question. If the cause was located and the mold remediated that's one thing.

On a personal note, this mold would be a deal breaker for me, just no... A cash offer might not need an appraisal but judging from the timeline ,I'd put my money on an inspection problem and I don't think I'd believe a word out of the realtors mouth..

big +1
We turned down a house recently just due to the inspector finding a much above average of moisture in the walls, which could easily lead to mold in FLA.
He hinted to me in implicitly not to take the house.

 

[Aerides]

Not worth the risk. Not about the resale value, but the potential for illness. I'd walk away and find a better bet.

 

[rayinpenn]

Not worth the risk. Not about the resale value, but the potential for illness. I'd walk away and find a better bet.

OMG my thoughts exactly but DD is in love with her ‘nest’ already.

 

[Texas Proud]

I don’t see DD much during the week -off to work at 6:45AM back by 7PM -9PM Graduate school, volleyball or bowling. This morning I chatted with her briefly before left for the house inspection. I mentioned the mold issue and learned the sellers spent $7,000 to have the mold remediated. My suspicions got another boost and My auditors intuition starting going bing, bing “warning Will Robertson” She said she would send me the report of the remediation done. Will advise you when i get it...

What was that you guys said about mold not being a big deal? $7 grand is a big deal...All i can say is Sweet Moses!

I know that one of my sisters spent over $45 grand to remediate and fix the bathroom and other areas where the mold was... this was before insurance started excluding mold in the contracts... in addition, the insurance company rented an apartment for 3 months for them to live in while the work was done...

 

[Texas Proud]

As someone else said, it matters what caused the mold...



My sister's house was a leaking shower pan (if it had one)... since it was a second story bathroom the water damaged the living room below... all behind the walls as they never did see water...


One house I was looking to buy had mold on the back wall... since it was not there the year before when I looked at it I went outside... well, the gutter was clogged and it was backing up and leaking into the house...


Both are known and can be easily fixed... if it is from excess humidity then it is not as easily fixed...

 

[youbet]

OMG my thoughts exactly but DD is in love with her ‘nest’ already.

Since the cause of the original mold problem and the outcome of the $7k remediation seems to be the issue, I'd suggest not moving forward without additional expert help. That is, help beyond a generalist home inspector. You need to move the issue beyond speculation to a factual understanding of what was originally discovered, details of the $7k remediation and a truly expert opinion of the prognosis going forward.

1. Ask for a copy of any paperwork regarding the $7k mold remediation and personally talk to whoever did the remediation. If the seller is unwilling to do this, walk away immediately.

2. Contact a mold remediation provider with a good reputation and have him review the paperwork and talk to the original service provider. If additional corrective work is needed, get quotes and his opinion on the probability of 100% success. Do this on your nickle and be sure he is "your guy."

3. If anything concerning the history of the mold problem, its current status and any additional work needed is not fully understood, walk away.

It may be that the mold problem that was remediated was caused by a one time moisture issue (roof damage during a severe storm allowed water into an otherwise always dry situation for example). Or there may be some out-of-sight moisture problem that would require much work to solve and that would lead to a repeat of the problem. You have to know.

I don't envy you trying to assist you DD with this. Tough situation.

 

[Red Badger]

Also consider your choice of inspector. I prefer to use an engineering firm that does inspections in the course of their bread and butter work. My experience (and perception) is that the relationship between dedicated home inspectors and realtors is a wee too cozy. The term "incestuous" might be harsh. Might be.

 

[Jerry1]

OMG my thoughts exactly but DD is in love with her ‘nest’ already.

That’s the biggest red flag now. If DD is in love, she’s not objective. While common, not a good position to be in. Might as well bend over.

As for inspectors, you probably already did a better job inspecting the property than they will. There are so many clauses in their contract they are basically worthless. The main one being is that they can’t be responsible to find things that are covered. Understand, but it’s a big out. Best just to make sure DD has the budget or the wherewithal to handle some significant repairs. They’re there even if the inspector doesn’t find them.

 

[youbet]

My experience (and perception) is that the relationship between dedicated home inspectors and realtors is a wee too cozy.

When I was selling my dad's house after his death, I made note that our realtor seemed to be familiar with every home inspector in the area (a small town in the lower Midwest). When he learned that the prospective buyer was using the same handyman (who was also a licensed home inspector) that had done the repairs to prepare the house to go on the market, he just smiled.......... Not much chance he'd be pointing out flaws in his own work!

 

[Choices]

Isn’t there a “ gun” that the inspector can point at a wall to sense moisture? Maybe I dreamed it...