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Writing an Offer - Concerns About the Property
Disclosures
Although you have toured the property, looked at the walls and ceiling, turned
on the faucets and played with the light switches, you have not lived in it. The
seller has years of knowledge about his or her home and there may be some things
you want to find out about as quickly as possible. For this reason, you will
require certain disclosures as part of your offer.
Basically, you want the seller to disclose any adverse conditions that may have
a substantial impact on your decision to purchase the home. This would include
any problems with the house, whether the property is in a flood zone, a noise
zone, or any other kind of hazardous area.
If you have an agent representing you, this is almost automatic, but many states
do not require individuals selling their own home to provide you with this
information. Often they do not require banks selling foreclosed property to
provide these disclosures, either. Obtaining these types of disclosures should
always be a part of your offer, and time is of the essence.
Condition of the Property
The last thing you want when you assume possession of your new home is to find
it in a total mess. Therefore, you should make it clear in your offer that
certain minimum standards are required. If you do not, you might find out the
seller or neighbors have begun using the back yard as a trash dump, or something
worse – and you would not be able to do anything about it.
Some of the requirements you might want to include in your offer are that the
roof does not leak, the appliances work, the plumbing does not leak, that there
are no broken or cracked windows, the yard has been kept up, and any debris has
been cleared away.
Home Inspections
Besides appraisal and the termite inspection, you should also have a
professional go through the house and seek out potential problems. Of course,
you will have inspected the home, but you are not used to looking at some things
that a professional will find. Even if they are not things the seller is
expected to repair, at least you will have foreknowledge of any potential
problems.
The seller will want this inspection performed quickly, so that you can approve
the results and move forward with the purchase. Once you receive the inspection,
you will want to allow yourself sufficient time to review and approve the
report. If you do not approve the report, you may negotiate with the sellers on
which repairs should be performed and who should pay for those repairs.
Otherwise, you can cancel the purchase without penalty, provided you have
included timetables in your offer.
Allow a maximum of ten to fifteen days to receive the report and five days to
review it.
Final Walk-Through Inspection
Before closing, you will want to revisit the property to ensure it is in the
condition you have required in your offer, and to inspect that any required
repairs have been performed. You should do this no sooner than five days before
you intend to close. Make sure this right to do a final inspection is included
in your offer to purchase the home.
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