By Recently, while reading news items related to the real estate industry, I happened across a letter to the editor in which the writer, a recent homebuyer, referenced several problems she was having in her new home and wanted to know what recourse she had (if any) against the seller.
Her letter went on to say that she’d purchased the home “as is”; the sellers had had a home inspection performed and had provided a copy of the report. No significant problems found.
Huh.
I began to wonder if she —this recent homebuyer — had a buyer’s representative or whether she’d acted on her own behalf. I wondered if she’d ever heard the expression, “caveat emptor” or “let the buyer beware”.
With regard to this particular transaction, I don’t know any of the pertinent details, so I can’t really comment on those. But I do have lots to say about situations like this (and others like it). There are myriad situations that could have come into play in this case, but if the buyer really did purchase the home “as is”, then the onus, most likely, was on her to have her own home inspection performed, rather than take the one that the seller provided. Had she had a buyer’s representative, she would have known that a home inspection report is not a seller’s disclosure, nor is it a warranty of any kind.
Depending on the state in which you’re buying a home, “as is” condition may or may not come with any warranties or guarantees. In some states, for example, there are clauses in their real estate contracts that state that all major mechanical systems (plumbing, electrical systems, etc.) be in proper working order, regardless of the conditions of the home sale. In many, however, there are not.
Whether she likes it or not, and whether she realizes or not, she may very well have to face the fact that “as is” meant exactly that. Had she had a buyer’s representative — someone looking out for her interests instead of the seller’s — she would have known this.
If you listen, you’ll hear people say, over and over again, that buying a house is the most important financial decision you’ll ever make. Why would you make that decision without sound advice? The sellers of most homes have representatives working for them, why should you accept any less?
Buyers agents work for the buyer, not the seller. They have fiduciary duties to the buyer, and to no one else.
The buyer of the home in my example may or may not have any recourse. This is unfortunate, but it’s also reality.
Before you purchase a home, make sure that you’re protected. Make sure that you’ve got someone looking out for you. Otherwise, it’s “buyer beware”.
