Is a seller accountable for problems you discover about a house yousa国际传媒檝e purchased?
Itsa国际传媒檚 been years since Isa国际传媒檝e handled a case like that, so I had to do a little research to find the answer for a friend.
It didnsa国际传媒檛 take long to find a recent case on point, Legal decisions can be difficult to understand, even for lawyers, so please do not rely on anything you think you understand from that case without consulting with a lawyer.
A house purchase is the biggest investment most of us will ever make. And we tend to stretch our financial limits when doing so. Expensive problems discovered after taking possession can be financially devastating.
Holding the seller accountable, if it is even possible, is a disaster in itself when you consider the legal expense and time required to do so.
You might have the seller dead to rights on misrepresenting the age of the roof. An excellent legal case. One that is very likely to succeed. But unlike cash that you can put towards a new roof, legal cases take time and legal expense to pursue.
And all you get at the end of a successful legal case is a judgment directing the seller to pay you money in compensation. Itsa国际传媒檚 an unsecured sa国际传媒渁ccount receivablesa国际传媒� that might never be paid.
So that leads to my key advice on this point: Donsa国际传媒檛 let it happen in the first place.
Donsa国际传媒檛 you dare purchase a home without first having it inspected by a qualified, thorough and insured home inspector.
And please donsa国际传媒檛 hire an inspector based on price. Doing so is about as sensible as shopping around for the cheapest babysitter for your children. An inspection is only as good as the inspector.
And you also donsa国际传媒檛 want to end up with a lawsuit against an inspector who misses something.
Is an inspection necessary with a brand new construction? Absolutely. Perhaps even more so.
There are other steps you can take to research a property before finalizing a deal that I donsa国际传媒檛 have off the top of my head. Consult with a real estate lawyer to learn more.
Taking these reasonable steps to independently learn about potential problems with a property fits exactly with the legal principle of sa国际传媒渃aveat emptor,sa国际传媒� which in the words of the judge in the case I referred to: sa国际传媒渟a国际传媒emains very much alive in the context of real estate transactions in BCsa国际传媒� (paragraph 47 of the case).
Those Latin words translate to sa国际传媒渂uyer beware.sa国际传媒�
The court specifically referred to property condition disclosure statements that purchasers so often rely on. A vendor must be honest when completing those statements, but the statements require only information within the vendorsa国际传媒檚 actual knowledge. And that knowledge does not have to be correct.
And while those statements appear to be comprehensive, covering any possible problem you could encounter with a home. They are not.
Using the roofing example, the statement asks, sa国际传媒淎re you aware of any roof leakage or unrepaired roof damage?sa国际传媒� A vendor could honestly answer sa国际传媒渘osa国际传媒� to that question even with full knowledge that the roof is on its last legs.
In the case I cited, the vendorsa国际传媒檚 disclosure that the home was only approximately six years old, even though it had been a cobbled together construction that included a much older cabin, was not sufficient to make the vendor accountable for problems that surfaced related to the age of the cabin.
Yes, a seller must be honest when answering the specific questions a property condition disclosure statement, but honest answers might well be wrong and the statement is far from comprehensive.
Apart from that, the seller of a home has no obligation to alert you to problems except in the very narrow circumstance where the seller knows about a defect that could not have been identified by a property inspector, and which would render the home dangerous or uninhabitable.
End up with a lemon house? Consult with a lawyer for advice specifically related to your situation. You might well have a persuadable claim.
But as is always is the case, the best lawsuit is no lawsuit at all. Take the words sa国际传媒渂uyer bewaresa国际传媒� seriously and donsa国际传媒檛 rely on anything you are told by a seller or the realtors involved.
Missing Paulsa国际传媒檚 last column? Read it here.
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