We are in a peculiar situation. We are in the process of buying a home, however, when we made an offer we are on contingency and the seller didn’t like it and said he’d rather rent it, so we offered to rent until our house sell then buy.
We got the inspection done, he fixed stuff, and we moved in. Week 2 we got a huge downpour of rain and saw the home has major drainage issues and the foundation likely has been affected. We had a drainage company come out and they ended up pointing out cracks that were missed by our inspection. We had a foundation company come out and say there is a need of $65,000 in stabilization, a second a opinion that say it needs stabilization at some point but it’s not that bad, and no third opinion. Our house is currently on the market and we have 2 small children and 6 month rental agreement.
We are incredibly stressed and want to back out of the sale. We are in love with the house but foundation issues are not a risk we’re willing to take.
Now our agent, is my spouses brother. He is new, no prior experience, and we felt obligated to go with him. His communication has never been good, we brought it up to him and he said he would do better. He has not. He’s also the agent on our house and it feels like pulling teeth to get updates. There is not one update we have received that I haven’t asked for…I feel like I’m being annoying but we have to constantly ask.
In the situation we are in currently we are freaking out. We just moved here 2 weeks ago and don’t want to move again in 6 months with our 2 small children. We will basically have nowhere to go. He is showing no urgency to talk to the seller to see if we can just rent for a year and is like “well you probably won’t get answers today, this isn’t on the top of the sellers mind” and that’s just crazy to me. This isn’t a wait and see situation, my family’s stability is so important to me.
Is our agent being so nonchalant about this normal? I feel like they’re also trying to pressure us to continue looking for a house to buy but we are mentally exhausted and just want to take a break, but we feel pressure to keep looking.
Are our expectations of a sense of urgency and responsiveness unrealistic?
Am I being unreasonable or is my agent just not good?
byu/AbleSilver6116 inRealEstate
Posted by AbleSilver6116
13 Comments
Did you already buy the house? I’m confused as to where you are in the process.
Most RE agents are paper pushers and door openers and aren’t worth a dime. An exceptional agent/broker will anticipate your wants and needs and will actually fight to get you what you want, similar to someone like Ari Gold from Entourage. They literally earn every penny of that 2.5-3%.
At this point, I’d bite the bullet and contact his broker and explain the situation. Family or not this could all get very costly. Based on how that conversation goes you should probably also talk to a good real estate attorney.
Do you have a lawyer to look over your purchase contract?
Are you renting or buying? I’m confused. Did you buy the house already?
If you didn’t buy it then simply don’t. Stop being emotional and lazy ( don’t want to move again in 6 months ). Go somewhere else and get a new agent.
If you are just renting and have not signed an agreement to purchase the property, do not buy it
Everyone in this story seems unreasonable.
You shouldn’t not buy the house you are renting currently that requires 65k in foundation repairs.
You should look for another house to buy or rent immediately and hire an actual realtor.
Your agent needs guidance from a senior agent (they should have a mentor) or from their broker.
I can tell you now, your seller isn’t going to make $65k in repairs. You might as well move home and regroup to sell next spring.
Reach out to a new real estate agent (one with good reviews in your area) and get their perspective. Tell them all the details, and ask them for their help, and then fire your bil.
I have family in real estate and they are adamant about never representing or working with family and friends. It isn’t worth the headache and the impact on personal relationships. Say “listen, we love you, but we think this is a much bigger thing than you signed on to support us with, and we’re going to get someone else who has experience with situations like this. We’ll be happy to share everything we learn with you as we go, and let’s get lunch next week as family.”
Combination of both really.
Get your family out of that house in 6 months and don’t exercise the right to purchase.
Use that time to secure a new property while selling yours.
I feel like there’s some missing information are you currently on a lease/buy option with an up front deposit? Or just renting it? Do you have any contingencies left in place if you’ve signed a purchase agreement?
There are likely multiple ways out of this, you can also let the seller know about the repair costs if you haven’t bought, and see if they’re take money off or help pay for a majority of them. A lot of sellers will, that will be a known fact the seller will legally need to disclose to the next buyers and will likely have to pay for it anyway.
I would talk to a real estate attorney, or, have your agent get his broker involved, it’s best to have some expertise on your side
There is no way the seller is going to let you back out of the deal and give you an additional 6 months to rent.
Your situation isn’t a real estate issue. The issue is relational dynamics and decision-making. Freaking out never solved anything. It just shuts down the frontal lobe. Fire the brother-in-law. Hire a seasoned professional agent for your house. Fall out of love with the house you’re in, get all the facts on its issues, and have an attorney review the contract.
You can stop at “my spouse’s brother”
Fire him and find someone else. Never use relatives, especially as a favor for someone new.