If a house had foundation issues....would you walk away?

[Anonymous]

OP here, the listing says "No inspection contingencies" too.

Is that a major red flag?

[Anonymous]

Honestly yes. It can be very costly.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP here, the listing says "No inspection contingencies" too.

Is that a major red flag?

WTH, are they serious? "We've fixed all the major problems, we pinky promise!"

[Anonymous]

we used Luyi Yan for a structural inspection. he was very responsive, worth the couple hundred.
if the owners refuse inspection contingency then you must do this! and make sure they provide documentation of the reasons for the repair, etc.

[Anonymous]

Also a first time home buyer, and we went under contract on a place with foundation issues (didn't know until the home inspection) and walked away. It was going to be such a huge investment it just wasn't worth it for us. It depends on how much money you have to throw at your house and how much time you have, but I would walk away.

[Anonymous]

Seems silly the Seller would say no inspection contingency under these circumstances. Maybe an experienced realtor will weigh in here or your own realtor should ask what's up?

Point being though, they disclosed foundation pier placement and presence of a 10 year warranty. Will they provide the contractors report for your review and name of warranty company for check on?

Could you pay to have a inspection done prior to making an offer, including structural inspection with review of their paperwork and permits?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP here, the listing says "No inspection contingencies" too.

Is that a major red flag?

Yup, major red flag. Walk away. To me that says they know there are still issues, or could be.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:You are being picky - do either 1021 or 1024.

What's that?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP here, the listing says "No inspection contingencies" too.

Is that a major red flag?

Yes. Unless you can get the contingency of a licensed structural engineer signing off on it don't do the deal.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:You are being picky - do either 1021 or 1024.

What's that?

PP means go look at 10:21 a.m. or 10:24 a.m. of this threads posts. It's kinda code for time stamp entry on the thread.

[Anonymous]

we paid $15k to put in 8 piers to support a portion of our house shortly before we decided to move. (if we'd known we were going to move, we wouldn't have bothered with it.) We were very open about it from the get-go and throughout the contract process. It wasn't an issue for our buyers.

having been down that road, i would say this: if the foundation repair covered the entire foundation of the house and not just some part of the house, then I think you're in good shape if the company is reputable and the documentation is provided. i'd be more concerned if only a part of the house was fixed and would want to understand why that was the case.

the no inspection contingency would give me pause, not so much because of the foundation. i'd just generally wonder what they are afraid you'd find.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP here, the listing says "No inspection contingencies" too.

Is that a major red flag?

Huge red flag when combined with foundation issues. They want top dollar and no way for you to get out. If you want it, bid wayyyy low, like 100k or 150k below what they want. Tell them it's because of no contegency.

[Anonymous]

I can't hear anything past the huge siren noise in my head. If you were an experienced home owner and you were very handy, then maybe. Otherwise, run fast.

This home sounds like it is intended for flippers. You will not get your money's worth unless you are an experienced contractor.

[Anonymous]

Not all foundation fixes are bad. We live in an old neighborhood where lots of foundation walls had small cracks on them. We saw plenty on foundations when we were looking at homes. Prior to finishing our basement, we decided to go ahead and spent $10K to put some support in, even though two reputable structural engineers advised us we did not need them yet (they said perhaps in 5-10 years assuming problems arise and we want to be cautious). We went ahead and put in all the pre-emptive support and finished off our basement. Our house has gone through all sorts of rain, snow and has not had a drop of water. We put in new gutters, regraded the entire yard with proper clay soil and cut down all tries that are 10 feet of the foundation. Let's just say we were being ultra careful, as we are/were first time home owners.

So not all repairs are necessarily bad. It might be for pre-emptive reasons like ours.

[Anonymous]

Wouldn't touch it with a ten foot pole. Foundation issues are the worst. The sellers say they fixed it, but they don't want you to inspect it. ** AOOGA ** No, no, no.