Our buyer requested a home warranty. Are these good? What do they cover?

[Anonymous]

I'm just curious. The cost is low (~$500) and she's offering us substantially above list, so I have no problem with paying for it, but I'm just curious. Is this actually a useful thing, or is it something that is suggested to soothe first time homeowners (which our buyer is)?

[Anonymous]

They aren't great. You end up fighting with the insurer if anything serious actually goes wrong, getting in disputes about what is equivalent value, the quality of the service people they employ, how quickly they can come, etc.

[Anonymous]

I like one the first couple of years in a new home. You call if stuff breaks and you don't have to hunt down a new plumber or electrician. Each fix or replacement costs about $100 while you are learning your house, your town, and rebuilding your savings.

We used it on the hot water heater, dryer, and dishwasher in the first year.

[Anonymous]

It's helpful for a first time homebuyer for when appliances break or need repair, you need someone to come and work on the house, etc and you don't have a lot of excess cash to do that yourself.

[Anonymous]

I think people typically offer them with older appliances as protection.

[Anonymous]

Thanks folks! Appreciate the perspectives. None of the appliances/systems are too old, but I hope the warranty is helpful to her and gives her peace of mind. I'm also leaving a list of good service providers who have worked on our house -- it's an old house and not everyone in the phone book knows how to deal with steam heat/plaster/etc!

[Anonymous]

We bought our second home and it was put in their standard. WOW. We ended up getting our washer, dryer, fridge (which was brand new) fixed. We renewed the second year and they gave us a new dishwasher. So it worked out for us.

[Anonymous]

They're stupid but if she wants to be stupid and get one, fine. Imagine your HVAC stops working in August, it's covered by insurance so you want to get them to pay for it. They tell you XXX company can come out in 2 weeks. Um it's 1000 degrees in the house, you going to wait?

[Anonymous]

They aren’t great but give peace of mind for a buyer of a property unknown to them.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:They're stupid but if she wants to be stupid and get one, fine. Imagine your HVAC stops working in August, it's covered by insurance so you want to get them to pay for it. They tell you XXX company can come out in 2 weeks. Um it's 1000 degrees in the house, you going to wait?

Plus it's $100 (I made that number up) for each service call. So your dishwasher needs a simple repair. You have 4 kids and run it daily. Are you going to wait for their preferred servicer to repair it?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:They aren't great. You end up fighting with the insurer if anything serious actually goes wrong, getting in disputes about what is equivalent value, the quality of the service people they employ, how quickly they can come, etc.

This. It was a huge waste of money. They can buy their own. We did that. But, I spent many hours trying to get things fixed and ended up having to pay for most of it on my own and their fixes were hacks. Its probably their agent demanding it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:They're stupid but if she wants to be stupid and get one, fine. Imagine your HVAC stops working in August, it's covered by insurance so you want to get them to pay for it. They tell you XXX company can come out in 2 weeks. Um it's 1000 degrees in the house, you going to wait?

Plus it's $100 (I made that number up) for each service call. So your dishwasher needs a simple repair. You have 4 kids and run it daily. Are you going to wait for their preferred servicer to repair it?

Its that price multiple times for multiple visits. So, our hvac went out. The provider said they fixed it and didn't so I had to pay that fee for someone else to come out, repeat.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:They aren't great. You end up fighting with the insurer if anything serious actually goes wrong, getting in disputes about what is equivalent value, the quality of the service people they employ, how quickly they can come, etc.

this, and they try to upsell you on non-covered items. Our warranty company sent out a plumber licensed in Maryland, but not virginia to work on a hot water heater

[Anonymous]

they are totally worthless. the buyers agent told the buyer to ask for it. Many brokerages instruct agents to put this in the offer.
https://www.inman.com/2012/03/21/settlement-reached-over-alleged-home-warranty-kickbacks-brokers/

[Anonymous]

I've never had anything other than same day service on a home warranty claim. And it's only the $100 no matter how many people do call and how many times. The $100 is for the entire claim.

I had a hot water heater issue that they sent a same day plumber out but he said the issue is the electric going to the unit. The warranty company sent out an electrician, again, same day, all covered by the same $100 fee.