Seller violated building codes

[Ct_Pumpkin]

What is the name of your state? Ct
We purchased a home in July, ! week into home,Whole main drain backed up into tub. Rotor rooter said it was blocked solid. Had main drain in basement replaced and rerouted costing $2500 with another approx. $4000 for house to street due to pipe seperation every 2 ft. Next week, Home ins wrote us saying they were cancelling due to roof sagging and roof exposure.This was suppose to be completely renovated, roof,electric,plumbing etc.... this is a VA home loan also.. with VA stating no repairs needed. !st time homebuyer..
went to town hall,found out the past 2 owners of the house that had major renovations done never had any of thier work inspected by city bldg Inspector. Called Inspector out to look at house. He found many defects in the work done. Is this justification of breach of contract? Our seller had removed support walls, covering the beam in ceiling beam with just finished Molding. Our ceiling is sagging now,Bldg Insp. had us remove the finish and we found 4 holes in the beam where supports should have been. Electric flickers and cant put air conditioners in upstairs rooms without tripping the breaker in whole front part of house. the permit issues are just 1 part of our problem. We also have nieghbors driveway on 12 ft x 100 ft of our property, which was not stated in the disclosure. Any advise would be helpful. TY Money pit woes

 

[lwpat]

Contact a real estate attorney. Your situation is much too complicated for a public forum. Your attorney will need all of the documentation, disclosure, title insurance, inspections, etc. He will then be able to advise you. Use the link on this page to find an attorney in your area.

 

[HomeGuru]

What is the name of your state? Ct
We purchased a home in July, ! week into home,Whole main drain backed up into tub. Rotor rooter said it was blocked solid. Had main drain in basement replaced and rerouted costing $2500 with another approx. $4000 for house to street due to pipe seperation every 2 ft. Next week, Home ins wrote us saying they were cancelling due to roof sagging and roof exposure.This was suppose to be completely renovated, roof,electric,plumbing etc.... this is a VA home loan also.. with VA stating no repairs needed. !st time homebuyer..
went to town hall,found out the past 2 owners of the house that had major renovations done never had any of thier work inspected by city bldg Inspector. Called Inspector out to look at house. He found many defects in the work done. Is this justification of breach of contract? Our seller had removed support walls, covering the beam in ceiling beam with just finished Molding. Our ceiling is sagging now,Bldg Insp. had us remove the finish and we found 4 holes in the beam where supports should have been. Electric flickers and cant put air conditioners in upstairs rooms without tripping the breaker in whole front part of house. the permit issues are just 1 part of our problem. We also have nieghbors driveway on 12 ft x 100 ft of our property, which was not stated in the disclosure. Any advise would be helpful. TY Money pit woes

**A: and you did not get a home inspection? That just sucks.

 

[Ct_Pumpkin]

Home inspectors do not go down to town hall and verify any thing anyway,which Is where I found all the problems. I have called around asking Home Inspector questions. The Closing attorney or the title comp have never stepped foot in the town hall here to gather info on this house. So as we stand right now all we have to fall back on is the title insurance. here's another little tidbit of information. The Mortgage Company has sent us a few papers that the closing Lawyer failed to show us at closing, wanting us to sign them. Due to VA doing an audit on our loan after several months of phone calls complaining.Va will not honor their part of the contract if we dont sign. We are not signing anything . so I guess the mortgage company will try to get us to redo the contract eliminating Va from the contract. I dont think we should sign another contract. Can the Mortgage company legally make us sign anything when they screwed up all the paperwork? Oh yeah and there is more....... The bldg Inspector told me he was just going to do a report on the problems with our home which I am suppose to pick up tomorrow......... He has not inspected anything as of yet... Is that a legal document? Do I have a leg to stand on when the bldg Inspector is going to out right lie about inspecting the house. Makes you wonder .. Who you can rely on these days in a world of dishonest money hungry thiefs. And I have tried talking to real estate attys and they all tell me to talk to closing lawyer. Heck they are the ones that are in cahoots with the mortgage company who failed to get all the papers signed. I guess I will have to just tuck my tail and crawl out from under my roof that is going to fall in this winter when the snow starts falling.

 

[HomeGuru]

Re: Re: Seller violated building codes

**A: and you did not get a home inspection? That just sucks.

 

[HUD-1]

1) Are there any out-and-out lies on the Seller Disclosure Form? If so, there could be liability on the part of the seller for that item.

2) Usually the lender has you sign a certification stating that you will help them to correct closing errors after closing, including signing documents. Check your closing papers. The remedy for the lender would be to call the entire loan due.

3) It is going to be hard to prove which of the last two owners did the faulty work items. Maybe impossible.

4) It is definitely buyer beware out there. A home insppection is a must: (from the VA webpage)

Will the appraiser make sure everything is o.k. with the home I am buying?
A: No. The appraiser is not an inspector. VA does not guarantee the condition of the house you are buying. VA guarantees only the loan. If you have any doubts about the condition of the house which you are buying, it is in your best interest to seek expert advice before you legally commit yourself in a purchase agreement. Particularly with a previously occupied house, most sellers and their real estate agents are willing to permit you, at your expense, to arrange for an inspection by a qualified residential inspection service. Also, most sellers and agents are willing to negotiate with you concerning what repairs are to be include in the purchase agreement. Steps of this kind can prevent many later problems, disagreements, and major disappointments.

 

[Ct_Pumpkin]

I know who violated bldg codes, Have already been downtown and found all that info out.Bldg inspector has issued letters to both previous owners about the(permit) problems.He has given me a letter of all the repairs that need to be fixed due to previous upgrades on the home permits had not been inspected by bldg insp. none of the upgrades were inspected.
The seller signed the contract. On that contract it states this.......
Seller warrants that there shall be No Violations of building or zoning codes at the time of Closing.... which there were obviously violations with open permits which were never inspected.
Also, Yes on the property disclosure...... seller stated and signed that there were no easements or encumbrances on the property except....... an easement to a well. Not a driveway. I know from wittnesses that the seller(a licenced real estate agent, working under maiden name in MA) had arguements with nieghbor and also surveyed property privately. So yes she knew of the existing boundery problem before the sale. So yes she out right LIED about the easement issue on disclose.
I know I have a case with seller, But finding a lawyer to take the case is like looking for a needle in a haystack. They all say GO to Closing Attorney. He wont go after seller due to...... Conflict in interest with mortgage comp.....
I only want one thing........ The seller to pay for her lies and deceit. The seller is a acting real estate agent in MA. She knows all about bldg codes and boundery problems. She should be fined or something. Licence taken away or jailed for knowingly selling us the property in this condition. The owner before our seller is a licenced contractor and knows all about bldg codes.

 

[HomeGuru]

I know who violated bldg codes, Have already been downtown and found all that info out.Bldg inspector has issued letters to both previous owners about the(permit) problems.He has given me a letter of all the repairs that need to be fixed due to previous upgrades on the home permits had not been inspected by bldg insp. none of the upgrades were inspected.
The seller signed the contract. On that contract it states this.......
Seller warrants that there shall be No Violations of building or zoning codes at the time of Closing.... which there were obviously violations with open permits which were never inspected.
Also, Yes on the property disclosure...... seller stated and signed that there were no easements or encumbrances on the property except....... an easement to a well. Not a driveway. I know from wittnesses that the seller(a licenced real estate agent, working under maiden name in MA) had arguements with nieghbor and also surveyed property privately. So yes she knew of the existing boundery problem before the sale. So yes she out right LIED about the easement issue on disclose.
I know I have a case with seller, But finding a lawyer to take the case is like looking for a needle in a haystack. They all say GO to Closing Attorney. He wont go after seller due to...... Conflict in interest with mortgage comp.....
I only want one thing........ The seller to pay for her lies and deceit. The seller is a acting real estate agent in MA. She knows all about bldg codes and boundery problems. She should be fined or something. Licence taken away or jailed for knowingly selling us the property in this condition. The owner before our seller is a licenced contractor and knows all about bldg codes.

**A: you have the type of case that many attorneys would take. When the Seller is also an active real estate agent and has committed fraud as a Seller, that is double trouble. Hire an attorney and go for the kill.

 

[Ct_Pumpkin]

That's what I am saying....I have tried calling every real estate Lawyer in the phone book....... And they all say go to your Closing Lawyer... which he does not want to go after the seller. All he wants to do is try and get the repairs claimed on the Title Insurance.. I mean ok the title insurance is fine if they will cover everything, but the Sellers should have to pay some kind of fine and have thier license taken away for violating bldg codes and outright lying on the contract.

 

[HomeGuru]

That's what I am saying....I have tried calling every real estate Lawyer in the phone book.......


**A: try harder and start showing them the money.

 

[Ct_Pumpkin]

you see that's the problem. We have no money left to show a lawyer due to having to fix major defects due to the violations from seller.I have had to quit my job to try and take care of this mess. So If one does not have any money to hire a lawyer, but are above the so called income bracket for free or assisted legal help, what does one do? I am still searching and have requests all over the net for an attorney with No replies. And Money has not even come into the picture yet.No replies. and dead end calls. They all tell me the same thing..... Go to closing attorney... So we are back to square one.
And waited almost 4 months for bldg inspector to give his report, which was so vague the Title Insurance would not except it. So I am back where I started in July. and back to personal experience so far..... everyone I have talked to to try and get this straight from Mortgage Comp to VA,Closing Lawyer, Town hall, and all the lawyers in the phone book, Pass the buck like a hot potato.
I know I need an attorney,I knew that from the beginning. Finding one to help is another story. Last post on this forum on my problem due to.... no help was available.. with one more addage...... The American Dream fades fast when the innocent can't fight the Cheating money hungry thiefs just because they can't afford to buy thier way to justice. Like the saying goes..... The rich get richer and the poor get poorer. have a nice day

 

[Ct_Pumpkin]

Oh yeah one more reply HomeGuru.... your first 2 replys to my problem was... And you didnt get a home inspection... that just sucks.... very very informative and professional. Thanks so much for your lovely insight and your professional ability on relating to someones misfortune. I hope you feel more self confident on reassuring people that the American system stinks to high heaven in the real estate industry...

 

[lwpat]

"someones misfortune."

There is a difference between misfortune and problems that arise because of our own failures.

"Called Inspector out to look at house. He found many defects in the work done."

You should never buy a piece of property without doing your homework. You cannot rely on the real estate agent which represents the seller to protect your interests. You cannot expect the seller to protect your interests. That is your responsibility which you failed to do. An inspection and survey would have prevented the majority of your problems. To expect some type of help now from a free forum is completely unreasonable.

Call the closing attorney and schedule a meeting to discuss your situation. If he will not speak with you and it is a large firm then go over his head. You need to discuss with him the problems with the paperwork on the loan and get that situation settled and also how to proceed with your other problems. Did you retain the closing attorney or did the seller make the arrangements? It is always best to have your own attorney handle a closing.

 

[HomeGuru]

"someones misfortune."

There is a difference between misfortune and problems that arise because of our own failures.


**A: DITTO.