What to do if prior to closing we found damage and the seller’s agent said it would be fixed so we closedbut nowthey are backing out of the repairs?
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What to do if prior to closing we found damage and the seller’s agent said it would be fixed so we closedbut nowthey are backing out of the repairs?
I purchased my first home from Fannie Mae this past Thursday. When we did the final walk through, we found a burst pipe in a first floor heater. The water was flowing through the hardwood floors into the finished basement below. The walls, ceilings, and raised flooring in most of the basement are destroyed and so is the hardwood floor in the room where the leak occurred. We called the sellers real estate agent, and she said don’t worry about it, they would have it all fixed ASAP. They had a crew in and fixed the leak, then had a contractor in to quote the damage repairs.
Asked on January 30, 2012 under Real Estate Law, Massachusetts
Answers:
MD, Member, California Bar / FreeAdvice Contributing Attorney
Answered 12 years ago | Contributor
If the seller's agent promised you the repairs would be handled and paid for by the seller, but did not follow up with a written statement, the issue becomes your word against theirs and then it becomes whether or not this was indeed part of the closing. If the seller's agent or seller did indeed bring someone in prior to closing to fix the leak and quote the damage repairs, then there is circumstantial evidence the seller's agent's promise did exist prior to closing. A couple of things you can do is to file a complaint against the seller and seller's agent with the appropriate agencies and begin complaining to field agents for state and federal politicians in your state. This should help give enough push to have this all fixed without cost to you.
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