10-08-2020, 11:25 AM
Definitely working with a real good realtor now. The sellers predictably didn't want to fix anything themselves and were cool with making a concession. However they messaged my realtor early yesterday to say most of the items are "normal wear and tear" and didn't want to pay for them. Not gonna lie, hearing that ruined my day, I was pissed. I just about finally walked away because I figured maybe we'd negotiate the price, maybe they'd take a few small items out themselves or cross them off the list but no. They just completely ignored the list I sent and picked at a few things off the inspection report I didn't even mention... At this point it's pretty clear trying to negotiate with these people is like trying to play chess with a pigeon, I'm done with it. They're either too stupid or simply don't have the cash to actually negotiate and just don't want to say it. Not sure why I'm so surprised, morons and broke people can own homes too I suppose.
My realtor did a good job talking me off the ledge. Most of these items really are far from showstoppers. Hell I can probably address all of them in a single weekend. It just doesn't feel good after putting a good bit of money and a TON of time getting my house move-in ready for my buyers. The report for my house was 2 items long and one had already been addressed. It just "needs" one $20 faucet rebuild kit. It pissed me off further when they said the only thing they were going to negotiate were items currently an issue today. That's why I let the $10k re-pipe slide. That's how negotiations work (as least in my mind). And now they're saying I'm just going to have to deal with the stuff they've neglected... I wasn't asking for fresh coats of paint or anything like that.
My agent was cool though, she listened to me bitch, made it clear she wanted me to walk away happy and was willing to go to bat with anything I wanted. But she also played devil's advocate and tried to put things into prospective. She also mentioned every time we alter terms we're looking at the possibility of them walking away. I would feel pretty stupid if this deal fell through over $2,000 and I was stuck dealing with temp housing or shelling out a ton of money for pet fees and deposits I know I'd never get back. We sat down and looked at the actual issues that needed to be addressed to see if I'd be happy with whatever amount they were going to come back with. They did offer $2,500 which was more then I was expecting after hearing those initial comments. Had they just simply said they were going to meet me half way and not come with some bullshit like "wear and tear" I wouldn't have cared at all. Instead they sent us videos of them shoving a hose into a gutter to, I guess, show us a single section at least kind of drains and a video of them turning the tub on. Apparently the inspector just couldn't find the switch for it but the gutters were a $100 item on my list, the tub wasn't even mentioned and there was another 24 items to account for so it was completely and utterly pointless.
VA appraisal was yesterday, bug inspection today. We're hoping to have everything in place tomorrow morning and finally put this to bed. I'd pay good money to see their faces if the VA comes back and says the re-pipe needs to happen before the sell. It's technically well within the minimum property requirement guidelines for them to do so. All the major systems must be in good shape and have "reasonable future utility". Not so sure what is done in practice though. I'm over it and just ready to put in whatever work is needed. I was planning to anyways but I was hoping for once to catch a break here and have them cover the rest of my closing costs but hey I guess that would just make my life boring.
I can probably even do most of the re-pipe myself. It's not rocket science to run a bunch of straight PEX lines in a tall crawlspace. I'd just run it all alongside the old pipes at whatever pace I feel like and then swap it all over at once or do it in sections. I can have someone double check everything while they do the service main part. The only thing actually behind any drywall is the 2 showers.
My realtor did a good job talking me off the ledge. Most of these items really are far from showstoppers. Hell I can probably address all of them in a single weekend. It just doesn't feel good after putting a good bit of money and a TON of time getting my house move-in ready for my buyers. The report for my house was 2 items long and one had already been addressed. It just "needs" one $20 faucet rebuild kit. It pissed me off further when they said the only thing they were going to negotiate were items currently an issue today. That's why I let the $10k re-pipe slide. That's how negotiations work (as least in my mind). And now they're saying I'm just going to have to deal with the stuff they've neglected... I wasn't asking for fresh coats of paint or anything like that.
My agent was cool though, she listened to me bitch, made it clear she wanted me to walk away happy and was willing to go to bat with anything I wanted. But she also played devil's advocate and tried to put things into prospective. She also mentioned every time we alter terms we're looking at the possibility of them walking away. I would feel pretty stupid if this deal fell through over $2,000 and I was stuck dealing with temp housing or shelling out a ton of money for pet fees and deposits I know I'd never get back. We sat down and looked at the actual issues that needed to be addressed to see if I'd be happy with whatever amount they were going to come back with. They did offer $2,500 which was more then I was expecting after hearing those initial comments. Had they just simply said they were going to meet me half way and not come with some bullshit like "wear and tear" I wouldn't have cared at all. Instead they sent us videos of them shoving a hose into a gutter to, I guess, show us a single section at least kind of drains and a video of them turning the tub on. Apparently the inspector just couldn't find the switch for it but the gutters were a $100 item on my list, the tub wasn't even mentioned and there was another 24 items to account for so it was completely and utterly pointless.
VA appraisal was yesterday, bug inspection today. We're hoping to have everything in place tomorrow morning and finally put this to bed. I'd pay good money to see their faces if the VA comes back and says the re-pipe needs to happen before the sell. It's technically well within the minimum property requirement guidelines for them to do so. All the major systems must be in good shape and have "reasonable future utility". Not so sure what is done in practice though. I'm over it and just ready to put in whatever work is needed. I was planning to anyways but I was hoping for once to catch a break here and have them cover the rest of my closing costs but hey I guess that would just make my life boring.
I can probably even do most of the re-pipe myself. It's not rocket science to run a bunch of straight PEX lines in a tall crawlspace. I'd just run it all alongside the old pipes at whatever pace I feel like and then swap it all over at once or do it in sections. I can have someone double check everything while they do the service main part. The only thing actually behind any drywall is the 2 showers.