Seller didn’t disclose tree root in sewer pipe

[BurkeBlue22]

I purchased an older townhome FSBO. Disclosure was verbal. Seller stated no plumbing problems. within 2 weeks the sewer was backing up. Neighbor said seller had it snaked out a few years ago. I contacted the seller and she said she had tree roots cleared 5 years ago. I told her she had to fix the broken pipe and could be sued for non disclosure of material facts. She said I got a good deal and she sold ‘as is’. is the seller responsible for the $5000 repair?

 

[quincy]

I told her she had to fix the broken pipe and could be sued for non disclosure of material facts. She said I got a good deal and she sold ‘as is’. is the seller responsible for the $5000 repair?

Probably not, based on what you have said.

You really should have had a seller’s disclosure form filled out.

(sorry about the bolded print)

 

[zddoodah]

First of all, you need to tell us what state this happened in because state laws vary quite a bit with respect to residential real estate disclosures.

I purchased an older townhome FSBO.

How long ago did the sale close?

Disclosure was verbal.

Does this mean there was no written disclosure at all? Do you have any evidence of this verbal disclosure beyond your personal testimony?

Seller stated no plumbing problems.

As in no current plumbing problems?

I told her she had to fix the broken pipe and could be sued for non disclosure of material facts.

Obviously, anyone can be sued for anything, but what makes you think there is an obligation to disclose "material facts"?

She said . . . she sold ‘as is’.

It doesn't matter what she says. What matters is what the purchase/sale contract says. What does it say about this?

is the seller responsible for the $5000 repair?

Depends on the answers to the questions I asked.

 

[BurkeBlue22]

Sale closed May 21, 2019.

 

[BurkeBlue22]

This is Minnesota.

 

[quincy]

This is Minnesota.

Thank you for providing your state name. I was remiss in not asking for it before.

Why have you waited almost a year to ask about your legal recourse?

 

[LdiJ]

This is Minnesota.

Why did it cost 5000.00 to fix the problem instead of the normal about 500.00 to snake out the main drain?

 

[quincy]

Some cities in Minnesota require a house seller to provide a Truth-In-Housing (code compliance) report. Did you have a house inspection prior to purchase?

Here is a link to an overview of Minnesota requirements for house sellers:
https://www.ag.state.mn.us/Consumer/Handbooks/HmSellers/CH5.asp

 

[FarmerJ]

You wrote >. I told her she had to fix the broken pipe< WHO did you have come out to tell you it is broken ? You also wrote > Neighbor said seller had it snaked out a few years ago< how many years was a few years ago ? If the seller had been doing this once or twice a year for the last X number of years then I suspect you would have a easier time getting this seller to settle out of court. BUT if it has been 2 , 3 , 4 , 5, 6 years ago since the seller had to have a sewer auger service out then I suggest your going to have a harder time trying to show a court that the seller lied . If your home has old fashioned cast iron sewer pipe that leads out to the street roots could have gotten into it at a joint and nothing is really broken. IF that sewer pipe is 75, 80, 90, over a hundred years old and part of it had rusted thru or literally caved in how would you prove that the seller hid something from you ( house I grew up in had cast iron sewer line and had to have sewer auger out once to cut thru roots that made it into a joint , and seems to me that was about a year or two after we connected to city water and sewer, old old line was connected to newer to by pass cesspool tank ( and continue to sewer main in street) I asked what I did because I have lived in ancient housing for decades , place I rented in 79 was built in 1888, first home I bought was built in later 1890s, second property was a rental same age, third place was built in 1910, and my home of the last 20 years still has its 1963 septic system,( even though the house is almost 120 years old ) So if your sewer line is really old even soil changes such as frost heaving or ground shrinkage could have caused a crack and again how would you prove a claim ?

 

[FarmerJ]

I forgot to ask so how old is this property ? I ask because the one I used as a rental did have a clay tile connection to the main in street fail from age and had to be dug up and was patched and that neighbor hood in Mpls had a majority of houses that were built in in 1890s . ( did you have a sewer cam service check the line ? ) { If your in Mpls public works can tell you in what year the sewer line was installed ( tap card records)

 

[NeilTheCop]

Why did it cost 5000.00 to fix the problem instead of the normal about 500.00 to snake out the main drain?

You don't fix tree roots in a drainage pipe by repeatedly snaking it out.
You have to dig down to the old pipework and replace it all with glued together plastic pipe.
Ask me how I know

 

[quincy]

Here is another link, this time to Minnesota‘a law on seller liability for non disclosure (error, inaccuracy, omission):
https://www.revisor.mn.gov/statutes/cite/513.57

If you are considering a civil action against the seller, the statute of limitations for filing a claim is two years.

 

[LdiJ]

You don't fix tree roots in a drainage pipe by repeatedly snaking it out.
You have to dig down to the old pipework and replace it all with glued together plastic pipe.
Ask me how I know

Neil, I live in a neighborhood that I grew up in where all the main drain pipes were clay pipes and where everyone who owned a house there eventually had to replace their main drain pipe with PVC. When I bought my house in that same neighborhood I automatically just made the repair as it hadn't been done on my house yet. I didn't expect the previous owner to be responsible for that. The previous owner had been flushing tree root preventative stuff down the toilets every three months.

The point I was attempting to make is that the OP could possibly have gone 5-20 years simply snaking out the tree roots every few years. Despite having replaced my main drain with PVC I have still had to snake it out every 5 years or so because tree roots have snuck through at junctions.

Yes, nearly every plumber who has come out to snake it every 5 years or so has told me that I needed to do repairs costings thousands, but guess what?...once I told them that the clay pipes had already been replaced with PVC, they backed off.

 

[BurkeBlue22]

Why did it cost 5000.00 to fix the problem instead of the normal about 500.00 to snake out the main drain?

The pipe is broken. Tree roots are growing threw. My plumber said you can snake it every 2 years or repair it. It could collapse at any time or could last for years.

 

[BurkeBlue22]

I forgot to ask so how old is this property ? I ask because the one I used as a rental did have a clay tile connection to the main in street fail from age and had to be dug up and was patched and that neighbor hood in Mpls had a majority of houses that were built in in 1890s . ( did you have a sewer cam service check the line ? ) { If your in Mpls public works can tell you in what year the sewer line was installed ( tap card records)

1980 PVC pipe