A friend and i bought a house together recently, and two days later discovered that there was old termite damage in the basement. The damage is in about 10 beams, but the beams have been covered by thin plywood, and the entire basement ceiling was painted. We had a structural engineer look at the damage, and it does not make the house unlivable, but we should fix it in case something happens. However, the previous owner failed to disclose to us the damage, and neither did the realitor. (which is illegal, IIRC). We did sign a termite inspection waivor, under the assurance that there was no damage. The house was appraised as having no structural damage, and no mention of termite damage in the basement was listed on the appraisal.
Since what the seller did was illegal, we believe that he should pay for reinforcing the house, but are currently at an impass at how to go about it. The suggestion we are leaning toward is sending him a letter basically saying we know what he did, and he should pay for it or else we go to court. The other option would be to directly go to court. This matter is complicated by the house being in Rock Island, IL, while i reside in San Francisco, CA. The Seller recently moved to Chicago (a three hour drive to Rock Island).
I’m not exactly asking for legal advice, just more of a suggestion on which approach you think would be best to pursue, and if anyone has experience dealing with something similar and what the outcome would be. (this is the first house i’ve bought, and we got it to rent out, only this is delaying our plans). Any help is appreciated.
Thanks
I’d start with the attorney who handled the closing - seems logical to me.
I’ve learned that nothing beats hiring a qualified home inspector. It’s a few hundred dollars well-spent! Good luck to ya!
A co-worker of mine had a similar situation, although they had a termite letter. She got the state involved and she’ll probably sue the seller, the company that wrote the letter and the pest control company which said they’d treated the house but then couldn’t show any sing that the house had been treated. According to the state guy, she should end up getting her house paid for in full, plus more. However she had a termite letter, so she was one up on you. I think a lot will depend on the laws in your area. Get an attorney.
StG
IANAL, but I have bought real estate, and have had to deal with termites myself.
If you have a Fannie Mae or Freddy Mac mortgage, then you have a year to pursue undisclosed defects in the house, and the seller is liable. The clause is aimed at problems that no one would know about, like maybe underground plumbing that has eroded because of electrolysis (a problem I had, BTW). From where I sit, this could fit your case. However, if you could prove the termite damage was willfully disclosed, then you have them over a barrel.
If there are live termites in the damaged wood, then you could also get the inspector for a fraudulent or incompetent inspection…
Talk to a lawyer that specializes in real estate, BTW.
Make that ‘…willfully concealed…’, not disclosed. :smack:
I’ve been living this very situation for the last five…almost six years.
The seller didn’t disclose.
I had an incompetent termite inspector and a home inspector. The home inspector is a false sense of security being that they usually won’t perform wood destroying insect inspections as part of their report, Ours even had a disclaimer in the event such a situation occured, which I thing sucks because how good of a home inspector can you be if half the house is eaten and he doesn’t realize it?
The first thing I did was call my R/E agent who contacted the termite inspector. The termite guy wanted to come back and fix the damage I found. I declined and got a lawyer, which was good because I later found even more extensive damage.
All told, everybody was on the hook. Once you hire a lawyer, they sue everybody. Everyone agreed to settle with us with the exception of the previous owners insurance company (He’s actually covered by homeowners for “neglect”)
Actually Monday is our Arbitration hearing for the previous homeowner.
So, to sum it up I would say if you’re willing to wait for a very very very very long time, then get a lawyer. If not, make sure you’re positive that you know the extent of damage before you agree to anything. Even though you signed off on the termite report, it doesn’t leave them off the hook either. You hired them to find evidence of termites.
I would definitely not contact the previous owner on my own though.