I thought I was finished

[guapo664]

I recently sold a house for the first time. before closing on the house , I was told by my realtor that a Gas Inspection would need to be taken care of and that I was to take care of problems , if any after that inspection. There were problems that came up, so I paid a heating contractor to fix the line leaks, and clean the furnace, and make the flu pipe have an upward incline. After that the gas people came back out and turned on my gas after I paid them for one additional problem that they found that didn't get fixed. I then gave all the receipts to my realtor and he said they should be sufficient to close, however I needed to get a turn over gas inspection before we close. we ended up closing before the turn over inspection , and now the gas company is saying there are more problems with the furnace and leaks in the lines. Am I responsible for paying for whatever problems arise or were not discovered until after closing. As far as I know everything was fine ( according to laclede gas and the contractor ) before I moved out.

 

[HomeGuru]

As a Seller, you are responsible for these costs as the work should have been completed before closing.

 

[guapo664]

I noticed it says in the contract ,that I am obligated to provide a gas inspection, and that if there are repairs or replacements done, I should show proof that the work was done bya reputable contractor, and also that a turn over inspection (scheduled by the buyer) should confirm these repairs be sufficient prior to closing. The buyers agent had plenty of time to schedule a turn over gas inspection prior to closing. She also had the right to delay closing until the inspection was satisfied. Now if a problem should arise that wasn't discovered before (such as needing a new furnace) I have no negotiating power. If I would have been presented with such an expensive before closing, I would have not sold the house. And the reason is because I had already spent more than the limit I set for selling the house. I would definitely told them that I would take care of the other problems but I wouldn't have given them so much closing costs. Bottom Line is, that if I am responsible even after showing them proof by a reputable contractor, and not providing a turn over inspection until after closing, they can basically exploit that , and have me pay for anything they desire, (furnace, hot water heater, stove, and anything else gas)

 

[HomeGuru]

Here is the problem: you closed before the gas turn over inspection and you had every right to delay closing until this was completed. So you blame the Buyer's real estate agent but you were the one required to have the turn over inspection completed prior to closing and you could have refused to close until this was done. Why did your real estate agent allow you to close without the turn over inspection completed or in the alternative have the Buyer sign an indemnification or "as-is" agreement.

 

[guapo664]

Before I closed on the house, the gas company came back out and checked for leaks again and checked the furnace and hot water heater and said everything was okay. So they turned the gas back on. Me and my realtor thought that would be sufficient, so he said he would submit the receipts to the buyers and have them order a change over inspection. I thought it was up to the purchaser to order the changeover inspection and therefore if they didn't get one in time for closing that they would be responsible for delaying the closing. I am going to take care of the gas problem, and let this be a lesson to myself about selling and buying a house. thanks for the help.

 

[HomeGuru]

ok.