When you buy a house in NJ, it's the buyer that should do inspections to verify all these issues. Since the basement was finished most home inspectors only do visual inspections. What is a buyer to do?
You could do an airborne mold test if it's giving off spores but they're often not cheap. Or get your own DIY test kit to save $. If you had any evidence from the test or any other well grounded suspicions, demand the owner allow you to open up a small section of drywall, floor, etc., and agree to repair if you back out of purchase. If they say no they're obviously hiding something and you walk away.
We like you. You look just fine. We're "listening" to what you say to help us, not how you look. Believe that as we continue to watch and learn that vapor barriers create MOLD?!#$%%!!?
There may have been no indication anything was wrong. They went to lengths to do a temporary patch - so that they could do a cheap drywall and paint job and call it a finished basement - and that probably kept it from showing through until the house was passed off to someone else.
Dan, I enjoy your videos, and am learning a lot watching them. However... as to one thing about real estate agents: The real estate agent didn't necessarily lie. Real estate agents do not know condition generally, and are not responsible for determining condition. Sellers do the disclosure--real estate agents do not, and do not inspect and have no duty or skill to inspect. While I sympathize with the homeowners who bought, forget the real estate agent. They're not responsible or at fault. Here's a scenario (not crazy in the market we're in now). Real estate agent is invited in to present. Sellers decide to list. Realtor lists the home, gives the seller the disclosure to fill out, takes it back to the office. A week later, a buyers' agent comes in to set up an offer, and the listing brokerage gives the agent the seller's disclosure. Buyer reads disclosure, makes an offer, they do the offer-counteroffer doe-see-doe for a day or two, offer is accepted. At this point, the buyer should hire an inspector who will evaluate many things. Apparently, in this case, the inspection was good, and maybe 4 weeks later, they're at the title company office closing. Done. What wasn't in that sequence of events? The listing agent doing a home inspection, or a water inspection, or a mold inspection. It's not the listing agent's responsibility, duty, job, or expertise. That's why in the listing contract, and in the seller's disclosure, the listing agent is not signing as making representations as to condition of the home. Not the agent's job. Even if the agent, as in some states, has to check on the seller's representations, if a seller can conceal a problem or a seller has (to their mind) remedied a problem when in reality it is invisibly still a problem, the agent is not expected to do an inspector's job and ferret out the seller's concealment. The agent's not a party to the sale, either. The Michigan Seller's Disclosure form says, "The following are representations made solely by the Seller and are not the representations of the Seller's Agent(s), if any." The New Jersey Seller's Disclosure form says, "Seller alone is the source of all information contained in this statement."
I totally agree with what your saying here. I am in the process of buying a home right now and I really agree with you that its the sellers responsibility to disclose that information. The realtor, and even the home inspector can easily miss these things. This is why I like to deal DIRECTLY with the home owner since I can always tell just by speaking to them if they are honest and have my interests in mind when selling me something. You get a good feel for what type of person your dealing with, which can give you a lot of intuition about the actual condition of the house...just by talking to the owner. I find when you get all these middle men in the picture, the overall situation gets blurred and information get twisted unnecessarily.
Yeah we bought a house 2 years ago(we're still in it now) and prior owner admitted to water seepage in the basement yet claimed it was "fixed" by removing the cement patio in the back. Well, we had moved in-in June and had an unusually hot and dry summer that year with so little rain even huge decades old trees were suffering. Well, later that year in the early winter I found out they were wrong when we had some major rains. Then all the cracks and seepage was easily seen to have been covered up and "fixed." Somehow our inspector missed all this stuff and didn't mark a thing on the inspection report. He was too busy checking for termites I suppose... I don't know. Ended up since it was my first regular house bought I didn't really know what to do. I figured trying to sue the former owner or the inspector and holding them liable would cost me as much as paying to have it fixed properly. I just let it go and now after trying some of our own external solutions the problem has only gotten worse. So we're paying someone who is doing the exact same thing as Mr. O'Connor up here to fix it from the inside and I'll be watching like a hawk while they do it. We're only paying them to do the worst wall right now---and depending on how well it goes I may have them fix 2 other major exposed walls that have some slight seepage(the 4th doesn't, it's covered by a major addition and I've never seen water problems on it's wall.) That or I may try to fix it myself cause then all I'd have to do is tie more piping into their system. Either way--I'm done with basements I think. Next house I'm not messing with it. Too much hassle and monetarily we're not even making money on our home while paying it off faster since so much is going to go to this repair and a roof eventually if we stay. Bleh... screw those disclosures and inspectors. I'll be inspecting my houses now with all that I've seen.
As a general contractor I can tell you that realtors and house inspectors are in each others pockets. The amount of houses I do major repairs on that the realtors and inspectors could only have missed if they were black blind - as in ZERO eyesight. A lot of scams going on just to get the sale and the commission.
This is the very reason home inspections are rising and are expected to be in the $ 1,200 - $ 1,500 dollar cost , as the home inspector have not increased their prices in years , but get blamed for everything, home inspector groups are forming to protect all, as they are having to pay more and more insurance. So realitors be prepared for these realistic price increases.
I hope you hired Dan and fixed your basement, and then sued the shit outta the real estate agent, seller, home inspector and everyone else who lied lied lied!!! I’ve been down this road and living the nightmare of unscrupulous professionals (realtor/home inspector) who are suppose to “help” you, yeah right.
Most buyers get their home inspector from the Realtor who suggested them. Duh,,, Yep. Damn near every time I ask. Best thing to do is sue all of them. You have to get it fixed first and do a video like I do. You can'r bring estimates to a Judge. First thing they'll think is "if it's so bad why haven't you fixed it? Bring a receipt, paid in full contract from a Contractor. Now someones Insurance Company is going to pay. - Daniel J OConnor
I love your videos and have learned alot from you. (Ps. Its very hard to watch this one with all the shakyness and back and forth with the camera, made me dizzy, had to quit)
so..the plastic is bad deal..you know Canada sells blue 2x4 that resists moisture....I know about the concrete..i put 16 feet of tarp to see if it made a diff...NOPE..at least I experimented first..and didn't use CONCRETE...I'd like to see how u fixed these 2 videos later on..nice shirt...
There is not much to it just alot of labor. Drill weep holes. You dig out a deep trench and put in the plastic drain to the sump pump. Concept is 101 DIY however the labor of digging and removing what you dig up is beyond what the average homeowner will want to do.
I like your videos but too much drama undermines credibility. Homeowners fill out and provide the disclosure, not Realtors. We'd have a mess on our hands if Realtors were tasked with identifying everything that's wrong with a property (believe me, the bar for entry is pretty low). X ray goggles are still a fantasy. I wouldn't expect an inspector to pick up everything, let alone a realtor. At least in WA state, it's caveat emptor. Buyers, do your homework, rely on no person's claims; not the homeowner, not the realtor, not the neighbors. Choose your inspector carefully. If he/she misses something, good luck suing them! With every investment there is risk. Best of luck!
