Buyer laments seller’s refusal to sell
Q: I was prevented from buying a home, for reasons that were never disclosed to me. I had an accepted offer for more than asking price. Then shortly after the home inspection, I received a letter from the sellers’ attorney informing me that they had accepted an offer from another buyer. I agreed to an as-is sale, and my agent even offered to take a reduced commission. Still, the sellers refused to sell their home to me and never said why. I feel discriminated against and wronged. How could this have happened?
A: Your disappointment and frustration are understandable, but there are good reasons to take a different view of the situation. One involves a better understanding of the real estate market and the other a more optimistic perspective of life's twists and turns.
A good thing to remember regarding real estate is that there's no deal so good that you can't find a better one by shopping around. Many buyers have been disappointed about a failed purchase, only to be celebrating a few months later, upon finding a much better deal.
As for the disappointments of life (if a home inspector may philosophize), you never know when a negative turn of events is actually a blessing in disguise. A rude driver, for example, cuts you off at an intersection, causing you to miss a series of signal lights and making you late for an important appointment. The natural reaction is to be angry and feel that you were wronged. But you never know whether that five-minute delay kept you from a head-on collision with a drunk driver a few blocks down the road.
With these hypotheticals in mind, remember that you were in a purchase contract with sellers who were not being upfront in their dealings with you. Who knows what other troublesome cards they may have had up their sleeves, such as undisclosed property defects. Sellers of this kind might be the ones who would sell a house with major hidden defects -- the kinds of problems that could have cost you thousands of dollars and years of regret. For all you know, having that deal fall through may have been the best thing that has happened to you all year.
My advice is to start looking for another house, without any misgivings or regrets. Take your time and you’ll probably find one so much better you’ll be thankful that the other deal fell through.
Q: What if I make an offer on a home, hire a home inspector, and then decide not to buy the property? Are the sellers required to revise their disclosure statement to include the defects that were found by my inspector?
A: In most states, sellers are required to disclose all defects of which they are aware. It doesn't matter how or when they learn of the defects. Once they know about them, whether by foreknowledge or by way of your home inspection report, they are legally bound to disclose that information to future buyers. Unfortunately, this obligation is ignored in many cases, often by sellers and sometimes by their agents. However, regardless of disclosure laws, the ethical demands of honest disclosure should prevail over what is or is not legally required.
• Distributed by Action Coast Publishing. Questions to Barry Stone can be emailed to barry@housedetective.com.