Wednesday, April 18, 2007

Another tale of woe and intrigue
The house we were buying has popcorn ceilings, and it was built 30 years ago when they still used asbestos in the popcorn. There is damage in the living room ceiling, so while I await the sale of our house, I did some research on fixing or removing those nasty outdated popcorn ceilings.
Not an easy fix.
And not a cheap fix either.
How about to the tune of $7000 for the whole house fix?
We no likey.
I called my realtor. I called my lawyer. I called the home inspection off. We are waiting to hear back from everyone. We are backing out of this purchase.
In the meantime we have mopped up the tears and moved on to plan B.
Our other fave choice was in Georgia, so I called that realtor and asked about the ceilings in the two houses we liked there. Swirl ceilings, plaster! Good. Plus he had offers pending on both of these houses and neither of them are going to work for the buyers, and the owners are starting to lower their asking prices.
We have not seen these in person...
I am not asking you to hold your breath. We'll do the breath holding and get back to you.
PS. Both of these homes have FABULOUS MELODY KITCHENS with super spaces for studios, and dyerooms already.

12 comments:

  1. Ouch, how disappointing. But better you love it and that you don't have to deal with asbestos. I wish you well in your continued search!

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  2. Wow! Asbestos? Who'd have thunk it? Did you get to see the towns of these other two homes? Have you stepped foot in these homes?

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  3. Anonymous1:05 PM

    Mel, chances are the sellers will pay for some (or all!) of this repair. It's worth asking about. They will have to get this problem fixed before they ever sell the house, and you are a hot buyer, so they will want to keep you on the hook. Ask for the full amount--hey you might get it, but you'll get at least half.

    Rian

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  4. Some years back we "fixed" a popcorn ceiling by installing a thin layer of wall board right over it. It lowered the ceiling by only about 1/4". Jen

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  5. Anonymous1:39 PM

    What a bummer!
    The day before we signed on our house the heater boiler died. The seller had to absorb the cost of replacement...my DH got to choose the boiler, one which had to meet future standards/requirements (top technology) for the next years...the houseowner was furious to a cost of around $6000 to replace the entire system. We were extremely glad.

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  6. Anonymous4:21 PM

    Oh my dear, what an emotional rollercoaster. If I am yoyoing with this, how must you and Dave feel?
    I agree with anonymous Rian
    though, about the seller having to fix it up.
    Caveat emptor vs. full disclosure.
    Keep us posted...

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  7. Anonymous4:26 PM

    You have to do more than ask about the ceilings... you need the seller to state in writing that to the best of their knowledge there is no lead or asbestos or other EPA action items on-site.

    Then YOU must request a lead survey, and an asbestos survey, and a radon gas survey prior to closing. If it's well water I'd also strongly suggest a water test.

    YOU must add a contingency to the offer addressing all these substances and requiring that all tests come back negative. Each test costs a couple hundred dollars max.

    It's pay me now (test) or pay me later (remedial).

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  8. Like Rian says, sellers are sometimes motivated to fix things. We gave 10K back in our deal to repair something we knew that if we didn't give it back, WE'D have to fix later. That made it an easy choice.

    Hang in there, you have all our hopes in your hands!

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  9. Anonymous9:32 PM

    If you love the chattanoga area so much, why not find another home that will fit your needs? Your house has not sold yet, maybe a house will come on the market down there that is perfect with everything for your husband and YOU. Why are you jumping areas just for a house? The area is just if not more important. Where is your list of what's important for a state, or an area. Then look for location, then the house. Look, don't be so fast to leap. You may regret it later, and as you have discovered, moving is not cheap. Best of luck

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  10. Anonymous3:48 PM

    When you do something only once every 25 years it can be difficult to avoid impulse buying. Once your house actually sells and you have a closing date it'll be a lot easier to make a final buying decision. Hopefully the buyer of your house won't change their mind (gulp) but if they do make sure you keep their earnest deposit!

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  11. Anonymous10:25 PM

    http://promo.realestate.yahoo.com/Best_Places_to_Retire_Young.html

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  12. Good for you for finding out about the asbestos. My cousin told me an interesting fact about asbestos - when it's loosened it would take 7 years to fall from the ceiling to the floor... ! Horrifying if you ask me... no wonder it's expensive to get rid of it.

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