Expert: Russel Ray - 12/30/2007

Question
My parents are buying a house.My dad goes to see the house often. After giving the seller the list of things that he would like repaired he has discovered some other significant problems. The real estate agent told him that it is too late and that he sould have brought these problems up at an earlier time. But he just discovered these problems.The problems are as follows: a garage roof that has some sagging in the corner, and pool plumbing that has been repiped to bypass the heater because it does'nt work. He has'nt signed any final papers the house is still in escrow does he have the right to require these things to be repaired at this stage in the sale. your prompt answer would be appreciated as escrow is to close this week.

Answer
Hey, Cheryl.

It's going to depend on many things, such as the purchase contract and its inspection and cancellation provisions, as well as what state you are in.

It is extremely rare for a layperson to have the requisite knowledge in all aspects of real estate, so the proper thing to have done would have been to have a professional home inspection done by the most nitpicky, most thorough inspector around. Such an inspection typically is allowed by purchase contract provisions and, indeed, is often recommended by the real estate agents. Home inspection contingencies typically are 17 days, although some buyers waive them (typically in sellers' markets like three years ago), as your dad might have done (not including such a provision in the contract can be tantamount to waiving such a provision), and sometimes they are reduced to 3, 5, 7, 10, or 14 days. I've never seen one longer than 17 days.

So you would need to read the purchase contract to look for the inspection provisions and the date by which inspections must be completed. Then look for the date that the seller signed the purchase offer and count the number of days from that date. If today's date is more than 17 days from the date the sellers signed your dad's purchase offer, you're probably out of luck.

However, all is not lost. It is important that you still have a professional home inspection done because the home inspector can find things that you and your dad cannot. S/he can find clues about things and put two and two together to determine that the seller probably should have disclosed some things. If your dad has to go through with the purchase, the home inspection report will tell him exactly what he bought.

If you need help finding a home inspector, try http://www.nachi.org the web site for the International Association of Certified Home Inspectors.

Good luck, and feel free to contact me again if you have additional information that you need help interpreting.