We are in the middle of buying a house right now. We made an offer, they countered, we accepted....pending inspections. We had inspections and there were some issues that needed to be fixed because they were safety hazards and if they do not get fixed, we do not get the loan. The sellers came back and said no, we don't want to fix anything. So our realtor went back and asked if we upped the buying price, if they would then fix the issues. We are still waiting to hear what they have to say to that, but apparently they don't even care if they sell the house or not, and are fine just staying there. Well then don't put your house up for sale, so first time buyers like us can fall in love and want to buy it!! I'm so frustrated. I am hoping we can come to some agreement because we really love this house, but if not...I guess it wasn't meant to be then.
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I agree! I think the only thing that made me more anxious than buying a home was taking the bar exam.
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@Bao: I feel your pain, I really do. We're just about in the same boat - well, we were in the same boat but then the people we were trying to get our loan through? Suddenly couldn't help us out because of a misunderstanding and hiccup. So we just now have a bank who will give us the loan we need but now we have to go back through and get re-appraised and a few other things... Here's hoping we both get things worked out for the better! And I'm here if you ever want to vent
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That sucks. We bought a short sale that was a pain in the butt. The seller accepted our offer then the bank vetoed it and told us we had to pay 17k more or lose the house. We ran the comps and ended up paying it...super frustrating! Hang in there!
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Yeah, buying a house is enough to make you really hate people sometimes.
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It really is frustrating! But just think, if you survive this you'll be that much more equipped to handle the frustrations that homeownership can throw at you from time to time
I hope everything works out and you get the house you have fallen in love with!
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@NaturallyCathy: I always thought it was much easier than this, they don't show all this crap on the HGTV shows lol!
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@lawbee11: haha i totally agree!
@Bao: i hope everything works out! and if not, i bet you'll end up finding one you love even MORE! and no, HGTV isn't realistic at all, sadly
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Thanks everyone, fingers crossed! I hate the waiting game.
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It's definitely stressful. I was a ball of nerves when we submitted our offer. If this place isn't meant to be, you will find something else.
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If you think buying a house is stressful, wait until you're selling it! I have never been so stressed out and sick of dealing with people as I was when we were selling our condo. What a pain!
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@AprilK: Were the buyers doing anything specific that was stressful/annoying? Being a buyer, I'd like to hear what it's like on the other side of things...
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They were just really unreasonable in the negotiations, lowballing us and then taking forever to respond. We were priced very reasonably (two other units sold for the price we were asking in the same month) so the lowballing and then not negotiating with us was crazypants. It felt like they were just jerking us around. And then we had alot of other couples whose real estate agent would call us and be like "They love the place, but are scared. It's very scary for them to buy a place" or something like that. I just didn't know how to respond to that?
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I feel like the whole process of real estate with agents and whatnot has just gotten so oppositional, us vs. them, etc. Maybe it's a bit dumb for me to say this, I get that it's business and not personal, but I feel like it would be so much easier to just have a discussion about it rather than all this back and forth through the agents.
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I am sorry! Fingers crossed that everything works out. It is such a stressful thing. I will say that if it doesn't happen, it just means that it wasn't your house. I was so bummed we lost out on a house back in June, for months we regretted just not going higher in price, but now that we are under contract on another house, I am so glad we didn't. I love this house much much more. Will be a better fit all around for our family.
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@AprilK: I agree with just sitting down and figuring it out, the back and forth and waiting thing is killing me. We agreed on only 1k less then asking price so we definitely did not low ball them. We also asked for $1500 in closing costs, so I think our offer is fair. They just don't seem willing to budge even a little on anything and it's frustrating.
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Buying a house WAS terrible! We also fell in love with a house and put several offers on it-- they never even countered! Later we ended up in a bidding war over the place we now call home. And putting together the package of financial statement, etc., was the WORST. I had to run back and forth from my regular bank to my lending bank getting the same piece of paperwork over and over again (what the lending bank needed was super specific and our mortgage officer wasn't great at explaining what it was she needed). I'm glad to be done with it.
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UPDATE: They agreed to go with our original agreement, but we are responsible for fixing everything on our own. We are ok with that though, so as long as we make it through the appraisal ok, then we are good to go!
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@Bao: yay! glad it is going to work out for you guys!
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@Bao: Congrats!!!
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@mrs. bird: @autumnlove: Thanks! I'm not getting too excited just yet though
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Hold on a second, you did not ask for a lower price since you have to make these fixes?
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@PurplePumps: Nope we tried, they won't go lower. It was the original offer we agreed upon or they walk. Then we would have to pay the $500 for the inspection anyway. So it was either accept, and get the people we know to help with the repairs, or lose the house and $500.
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@Bao: Can you have your brother-in-law (?? Can’t remember if it was your BIL or someone else!!) walk through the home to make sure his guess on the cost to fix the electrical issues is correct before you sign? Would hate for you to get in there because you don’t want to lose your $500, only to find out it’s going to be a much more expensive repair than you anticipated!
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@yoursilverlining: I told/showed my BIL all the things wrong (on the inspection report) he said it could be up to a couple thousand if someone else were to come in and do it. He said he will do it for the cost of supplies which will be about $300-$400. Our realtor (which is my uncle) has someone who can fix the furnace for $100-$200 tops. The water heater can be replaced in a few months or even a year and my parents friend can put that in for $25 plus the cost of the water heater. So it won't be cheap, but definitely cheaper than going through a contractor and risk losing the house. The sellers said they wanted no contractors going through the house in and out in their last weeks there. They annoy me. I just want their house.
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@Bao: I hope everything works out for you and the family! It is stressful now but thing will resolve for you soon. Would it help to write a letter to the sellers? We were going back and forth a million times and getting nowhere. I wrote a letter explaining why we loved the house and our hopes for getting married and raising our family there. I also was able to explain some of our reasoning behind the offer decions. Long story short they finally accepted our offer and we got the house. I think it made the process more human instead of all paperwork and realtors. It put things into perspective for us too. We were buying a house that they had loved and lived in for 20'years. It wasn't just their house it was their home and I think it comforted them that we recognized that. Good luck!
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@autumn865: I thought about writing a letter originally! So glad you got the home you wanted too
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Wow, that is some stubborn sellers =(
At least it's settled now and you got the house! =) -
I hate sellers like that! We had a similar struggle with our current home. They listed operating pool equipment with heater, but the gas line wasn't even connected so how did they know it was working. When the inspector looked at it, he identified some issues and claimed it does not work. We argued with the sellers to fix the heater and other pool equipment or lower the price. They argued back that the pool didn't make the house and is just an accessory, therefore, they wouldn't fix it nor lower the price. Arg!!! This applied to several other areas too like windows and the garage door, etc.
Glad you finally can move on with the purchase of the home and you have good contacts to help you resolve the issues. Congrats!
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@autumn865: I love this letter idea! Definitely makes things more civil and human!
@Bao: Congrats!! Hope the rest of the process goes smoothly.
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Thank you everyone
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