Expert: Dick Dennis - 3/28/2007

Question
We recently sold our home that had an outside wood burner.  Not even a week after closing we received a bill from the new owners stating they had to have wood burner fixed.  The last time we used it, it was in good working condition.  However, we had moved out of the home in the fall and the wood burner had not been used since the previous spring.  We were a little upset that the owners didn't contact us because my husband could have gotten the parts for half the price and did the work himself.  We also talked to the repair person who stated that a lot of his labor time spent there was to teach them how to use the wood burner and how to start a fire.  He also stated it looked as if a mouse had a nest causing a short in the blower motor.  We offered to pay for half of the repairs knowing that it should have been in working condition, but also knowing what the repair guy stated.  That was not good enough for the new owners.  They say they are going to sue us for the amount plus other things they say are wrong with the house.  I'm not worried about the other minor things they are suing for, I don't think they have a leg to stand on.  My question really is, should they have contacted us prior to repairing the wood burner themselves?  We feel we should have been given the chance to fix it ourselves.  There is also a gas forced air furnace in the house with propane there so they were able to have heat when they moved in.  Thanks.

Answer
Yes, Kim, they should have contacted you and/or the Realtor involved to file their complaint IN WRITING. That would have given you the opportunity to have it fixed. If they take it to court in small claims, they are going to find that they need to have sent you a demand for payment at least 30 days in advance of filing the suit. Since they didn't do that, they are going to have problems trying to collect.

In the sale of the property (assuming you had a Realtor handling the transaction) you should have signed a document stating the condition of the property and the buyer received a copy. If you sold the house on your own, then you may have a problem with this matter.

I do wish you well.

Dick Dennis