Disclosure fraud, Inpecto's incompetence: What do I do now?

Question

I just bought a house, in CA, and it's been one unpleasant discovery after another.

The sellers said that only major problem was a bad sewer line.   The inspector said no major problems. 

Since moving Ive found unframed walls, an unsafe water heater, an unsafe attic, inadequate electrical and plumbing, and, no gas lines in the kitchen.

There was wood paneling in one of the bedrooms.  The painter said that the wall sounded hollow---he was right, when we removed it, we found there was no framing.  Another panel covered up a door wich was not sealed.  A window was similarly covered in the kitchen. 

A plumber said the water heater was unsafe and the pipes would have to be replaced.  An electrician said the breakers were ancient and would require replacement.  

The gas company won't turn on the gas because of unsafe conditions. 

The carpet hid water damage and a bad attempt to fix termite damage.

My question is: how do I hold the seller and the inspector accountable?

Benita · Accepted Answer

Did you use an agent? If not you very well might have gotten quite screwed here. If you didn't have the appropriate paperwork and contracts that us RE agents here in CA use to make sure this kind of stuff doesn't happen filled out then it sounds like you may very well have had an oral contract. Bad move on your part if that is the case. You didn't mention anything about your agent, For Sale By Owner I'm guessing? This is exactly why they are frowned upon here in CA. Give more details. I can give you more help. I would like to add that if you didn't use an agent, your only option is court. When you use an agent it makes it possible for you to go to mediation and abritration before court is necessary and you very likely will get a settlement instead of a mess in court. It sounds like you might very well have one, again this depends on the contract you had with the seller. We have a form we use as agents calld the TDS (Transfer Disclosure Statement) that would save your butt big time if this ended up happening to you and you used an agent. Some of these things the seller was obviously aware of and didn't tell you (their fault) but they very well may not have been aware of some of them themsevles (not their fault). You can atleast get your money back from the inspector who did not find these problems with the home. That is what you paid him to do, find the problems. Not for you to be finding them slowly later. He would be his own seperate court case. I would recommend you hire yourself a good RE attorney at this point and if you had an agent, before you get an attorney go to your agent and their broker and make them aware of the problems. Good luck.

William M · Answer

Great post!  I completely understand your question.  Money is hard for a lot of people right now since the enconomy is going down.  My friend told me about this website of an organization that gives people up to $1500 towards their rent or mortgage.  It's available in most areas, so I think you should check it out.


http://www.help-with-my-mortgage-rent.org

Hope this helps!

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Disclosure fraud, Inpecto's incompetence: What do I do now?

2 Answers