problems with house after closing

What is the name of your state? Georgia
I recently bought a house and 3 days after closing it rained and I discovered the skylights leaked. The seller refuses to pay to have the skylights replaced and states that since an inspector came out and did not see the problem, that he is not responsible and will not pay. I would like to send the seller a certified letter asking that he pay to replace the skylights before I have to take him to small claims court. Do I have a case, and what should I say in my letter?
Sincerely,
Christine

[HomeGuru]

[quote]Originally posted by christine1414
[b]What is the name of your state? Georgia
I recently bought a house and 3 days after closing it rained and I discovered the skylights leaked. The seller refuses to pay to have the skylights replaced and states that since an inspector came out and did not see the problem, that he is not responsible and will not pay. I would like to send the seller a certified letter asking that he pay to replace the skylights before I have to take him to small claims court. Do I have a case, and what should I say in my letter?
Sincerely,
Christine

**A: did you have a home inspection and/or a roof inspection? If so, what did the report state with respect to the condition of the skylights? Since your leaks ocurred, did you have a licensed roofing and/or skylight contractor inspect the skylights and provide you their opinion and cost estimate? What did the Seller disclose about the skylights in the disclosure statement?

The roof apparently was only 3 years old. The inspector mentioned nothing regarding any signs of leaking from the skylights. The problem is there was a roof leak prior to the roof being replaced and the was why it was replaced, so there were water stains in some areas of the house that were due to the previous leak of the roof before it was replaced. I had an estimate done to replace the skylights and it will be $1000 to replace them. I was going to ask the previous owner to pay for 1/2 of that before I threaten to take him to small claims court, but I have a feeling he will not be cooperative.

[HomeGuru]

Please state exactly what is wrong with the skylights and are the skylights the same age as the new roof?

[faithandhope]

Could the skylights be caulked around? That would be an easy fix if they are leaking but not broken. Need more info.
Also, an inspector looks for visible leak and water penetration signs during an inspection as evidence of an active leak in a dry period. They don't run water on the skylights. They are dependant upon seller disclosure since the seller lives there during all weather conditions. Best of luck to you.

The skylights are the original skylights from when the house was built 20 years ago. After first discovering the leaks (which were very minor) and 3 days after I closed on the house, I had a roofing company come out and caulk around them. That night it rained and water starting coming inside from between the two skylights. Apparently when they caulked around the lights it forced the water to go inbetween the skylights and the leaks became very bad. It went from 2 little water drips, to water pouring in from about 4 different areas. The skylights definitely need to be replaced. Am I being unreasonable to ask the guy who sold me the house to pitch in half, since he did not disclose the knowledge of the leaks to me before I purchased the house?

[HomeGuru]

If the Seller knew of the problems, then the Seller should pay.

Thank you so much! That is what I needed to know! What type of terminology should I use in my certified letter. I want it to sound official but not threatening. Should I ask him to pay for the whole replacement cost or attempt to just get half? I really appreciate all of your help! This is my first house and it has been very stressful!
Sincerely,
Christine

[HomeGuru]

Did you use a Realtor? If so, ask for a copy of the disclosure law and include that law in your letter.

[faithandhope]

You may also need to contact both realtors involved and at least send them copies of your reg. letter. You could ask for the entire amount and be prepared to settle. If no response, contact the seller's agent's broker. If you can get them to intervene, you will be most likely to get help without it going to small claims. They are also likely to pull in the inspector, but in this case it sounds like the skylights only leak when raining and no visible signs were present. So unfortunately, it's not something he could have predicted or tested and this is a very common occurance, sadly enough. Limited info and variable conditions make it hard to catch everything, although you could ask him to re-insp. during rain for verification purposes. Best of Luck.

This website is awesome and you have been such a tremendous help! I appreciate it so much!
Christine

[HomeGuru]

Keep us posted.