Expert: liznarr - 7/27/2008

Question
I bought a house 1 month ago in Rhode Island and had it inspected professionally.  The inspection report said there would be occassional seepage and wet walls in the basement, seepage defined as up to 1 inch.  We recently experienced heavy rain storms and I found puddles of water throughout the basement.  Also, the bulkhead is leaking, which was not noted on the inspection report.  Additionally, one of the walls was wet from the floor to about 2 feet up.  Additionally, please note that the dryer is up on a pallet (washer /dryer are in the basement), and there is buckling along one wall that are now apparently signs of previous water damage.  The inspector noted that the inspection was limited due to the amount of stuff stored in the cellar. However, the previous owner checked no to indicate that there wer no defects/malfunction in the basement, bulkhead, foundation, and interior walls.  
My realtor said it is hard to prove that they knew about the problems in the basement, however, I would like to know if I have any recourse with either the inspector or previous owners?  Thank you for any help you can offer at this time.

Answer
Hi Jennifer,

Wow, what a nightmare!  I find it extremely hard to believe that the previous owner did not know about these problems.  If the previous owner did not disclose any of this, I would seek legal advice – and don’t wait too long to get started.

I am not qualified to give legal advice, so you would need to find a good trial attorney in your area for advice.  I say “trial attorney” as opposed to a paper pusher who does most of his/her work in an office and never argues a case in court.  I mean no disrespect by that comment, but you need a real sharp-shooter.

Before you seek legal advice, do some homework and get some things in writing to present to an attorney.  I would call in some experts for opinions and obtain written proposals with estimates to correct.  An expert who deals with these type problems should be able to tell if any of the stains up to two feet high are very recent … or are older stains.  If you haven’t already done so, have the moisture level in the basement tested; ditto for the moisture content of the wood.  When wood moisture content reaches a level of 28%, it’s a given that the wood will rot.  

If there are any “old” stains on the bulkhead, I would think a good home inspector would have caught this, also.  Your inspector did report seepage and wet walls in the basement, and this should have been your red flag to call in an expert at that time.  Did you ask any questions of the homeowner or quiz the inspector more?  I would ask neighbors if they know of any problems the previous owner had.  There’s usually a busybody in every neighborhood who loves to talk and tell all.

As to whether or not the home inspector has liability, I would say, possibly.  This would be a question for an attorney, after having reviewed your disclosure and home inspection report.

Since the dryer is up on a pallet in the basement, and there is buckling along one wall, this did not happen overnight.  (Did the home inspector report the buckling?)  Unless the previous owner is blind, I’d take bets he knew exactly what was going on.  As your Realtor explained, you need to prove it … but I don’t think it might necessarily be that hard with the damage you have described.

One final question for you:  Since you apparently had a Realtor representing you, did your Realtor recommend additional inspections by an expert after seeing your home inspection report?  Had you been my client, that would have been an immediate, strongly-worded suggestion of mine.  If you did not, I would have asked you to sign a waiver of liability against me in view of the potential seriousness of the problem if you purchased the home without investigating this issue further.

Good luck to you, and feel free to write again if you have additional questions.

Regards,
Elizabeth