Tips to Help You Negotiate Repairs

13 February 2020
 Categories: Real Estate, Blog


After months of searching for a single-family home to buy, you found the right one. When this happens, you can make an offer and begin working towards closing on the house, but what happens if you find out the house needs repairs after you made the offer? Well, there are options in this situation and here are a few of those to consider.

1. Look at the offer you wrote

When you wrote the offer, did you add a contingency related to getting a home inspection? If so, does it say that the inspection must be favorable? If you got a home inspection on the house, it is likely because you added this contingency, and this home inspection is probably the event that uncovered the issues the house has. If this is the case, you can use the contingency you added to the purchase offer as a way to handle the issues you discovered.

2. Ask for repairs or money to compensate you for the repairs

In this situation, you should decide if you still want to continue buying this home. If you do, you should aim to negotiate with the seller in one of two ways:

  • Request that the seller make the needed repairs
  • Ask for money to compensate you for making the repairs

These are the two options you have. Either the seller will be willing to pay for all the repairs needed for the problems you just found out about, or the seller should compensate you for the repairs you will make yourself if you buy the house. Sellers are generally willing to negotiate when this issue arises, as they know that the issue will not go away on its own.

3. Choose a different house

If you cannot negotiate on the house to the point where you are satisfied with the deal, you have the legal right to walk away from the deal. This would mean that you would have to start over with the process of looking for a different house to buy, which means that you will not become a homeowner as quickly as you hoped. This can be the best option in some cases but not in all situations. A real estate agent can help you gain access to single-family home listings to find a home more suitable for you.

Finding the right house is important but making sure the house is in the condition you thought it was in is also important. Talk to your real estate agent if you have concerns, problems, or questions about buying a single-family home.


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