Buyers!!! A Home Inspection is Not to Re Negotiate the Deal!!!

I strongly disagree.  In our market in NM, it is common practice to re-negotiate at this phase.  We use a specialty form called Objections, Waivers and Resolutions.  This doesn't change the original offer, but if there are a lot of repairs needed and the seller doesn't want to fix them, we will often times ask for a reduction in price of the home or a large credit at closing.  Our contact here does give the language to re-neogtaite at time of inspection report and I'm glad.  Yes, seller can walk too, but 99% won't.   They are saavy enough to know that if they don't fix it for this buyer, they will have to for the next AND now they have the legal responsibility to disclose the new defects. 

I think that now, (200 comments into the conversation) we're talking semantics. 

The inspection is not supposed to be a tool for renegotiating the contract.  It's a tool to find deficiencies that otherwise weren't apparent to the buyers, and adjust accordingly. 

Comment  #165 brought up a crack in the driveway.  That crack in the driveway was readily apparent when you wrote the offer... so we should not be renegotiating that aspect, unless the inspector is telling you that due to that crack, the driveway can no longer perform the function for which it was designed.

In our area, the inspection is designed to find defects in major components, not "minor repairs and routine maintenance items" ... and our contract states: "The fact that a functioning major component may be at the end of its useful life, shall not render such component defective for purposes of this paragraph", and it goes on to say "a major component shall be deemed to be in operating condition if it performs the function for which it is intended, regardless of age, and does not constitute a threat to health or safety."

I do not agree.  If a buyer submits it as a counter offer then yes the seller can walk.  If the buyer is asking and they are still within their inspection period they can ask all they want.  In our State once the seller knows of a defect he has to disclose it to all future buyers so he had better think twice before he jumps ship.  It is his house and you would think he would know if there are major problems . . . why did he not tell the buyer in the first place.  If he is going to be so upset when problems are found why don't you have your sellers get an inspection themselves before they put it on the market? 

I bet very few would want to do that.  They would rather have the buyer put up their own money to find out the  seller never took very good care of his house. We do a lot of 'As-Is" contracts and you better believe anyone would want to adjust the price if they found major problems that were not disclosed up front.  The price offered was for a home in working order unless the seller disclosed otherwise.

Now if you are talking about minor things that were easily observable when the buyer looked at the house then that is another thing.

This discussion points up that this is an open question across the nation - highly dependent on local contract language.

Based on the sum of all of these varying procedures:  a signed contract can never be viewed as a done deal (even sans the financing contingency) until the inspection period is over and repairs have been negotiated.

Any listing agent who does not so advise his or her seller is asking for troubles.

Moral:  Never count your chickens (commissions) until the inspection has roosted.

A seller may well blow off the deal over repairs - being unwilling to pay.

But it is far more likely that the buyer will quit the deal - being unable to pay.

In Florida, our contract has a section pertaining to repairs and it is negatioated as part of the contract, if any and how much to repair. It keeps it simple.

In our contracts, it gives the buyers 10 days to inspect the property with an out if they do not want to proceed. However, if there is a hidden defect in the property discovered by an inspection, all bets are off as far as I am concerned unless it is something they can live with. Why wouldn't compensation for these defects be a legitimate reason to reconsider the price or repairs?

Very good post. I should make this a billboard and hand it to every buyer who gets an acceptance on their offer. It is amazing how they want to renegotiate the deal every step of the way.

Great post...this happens more and more often in my market. 

I love our new florida contracts for the way they wrote in them that buyers cannot just walk away unless the seller is not willing to do the repairs.

Interesting thoughts, both on the post and comments!! Wealth of knowledge everytime I log on to activerain.

Okay, I'll admit it; I have spent a good deal of time reading a majority of the posts to this blog.  What have I learned?  If we take what Pam has stated about the contract that her Brokerage Firm, in her county of her state currently uses as accurate, its time for them to upgrade their contract!  It appears that 99.5 percent of the rest of the country uses a contract that allows the seller to say "No" if repairs are asked for but they have no right to back-out of the "Contract."  The right to back-out of the "Contract" belongs to the "buyer" if they ask for repairs and the seller says "No."  We have an uncanny way of making the simplest things seem almost incomprehensible. 

I was very happy to see the majority of agents sticking up for the rights of their buyers.  Hooray for the agents looking out for their buyers!

In NC, we have a due diligence period (with a due diligence fee) which allows the buyer to do their inspections to include a home inspection with a due diligence date (time being of the essence).  Of course the buyer can ask for repairs to be completed if they submit a repair request; however, the seller can absolutely say no to that request.  Repairs are not a contingency of closing unless it is something that has been noted and negotiated at contract.  If the buyer isn't satisfied with the home prior to the end of their due diligence period to include the seller's decision to repair or not, then the buyer can walk away from the contract.  The buyer does lose their due diligence fee paid directly to seller at the time of contract.  For the most part unless it's not visible, based on the age of he house you can anticipate some repairs.  A buyer should always take that into consideration (with the help of their real estate professional) when making their initial offer.  I agree with the response that referred to an update to the existing offer to purchase being in order.  

I'm not an attorney but I do appear in court as a professional witness in construction and contract issues.  I don't know where this "meeting of the minds" idea came from but once both parties place their signature on the contract it doesn't matter where their minds are.  They have a "Binding Contract."  There will have to be verbiage in that contract that gives the seller or buyer the right to do certain things, such as the inspection process or a certain number of days to back-out.  If the specific verbiage is not in the contract that was signed, neither the seller nor the buyer can get out of the contract without mutual consent.  Please check with an attorney before continuing to spread miss-information.  Love to all.