No matter how hot the market is, how much prices are fluctuating or whether or not it’s your dream home on the line, you should seriously consider the implications of purchasing a house without a proper home inspection.
A sellers’ property information statement may be offered at some point during the sale, generally provided by the sellers and could disclose some issues with the home. But this may not entirely be a good thing as one Ontario couple found out.
The Toronto Star reported recently on a couple who bought a home and signed a sellers’ property information statement that had disclosed the sellers had extensively renovated the house without taking out any permits.
The real estate market was super heated, and the pressure was on. The couple submitted an unconditional offer and removed their home inspection clause – against their agent’s advice – only getting a professional home inspector involved once all was said and done. In this case, the sellers’ property information statement which protected the sellers much more than the buyers because it cost this couple more than $85,000 to bring the home up to code before they sued the sellers.
According to the Star, the trial lasted 10 days this past winter and may have cost upwards of $100,000 when considering legal fees and court costs.
The general rule when buying a house with defects is that the seller should mention anything hidden – mold, prone to leakiness or anything else not obvious to the naked eye, but doesn’t have to mention anything visible and obvious.
However, the judge in this cased used a ruling from an Ontario court case over 30 years old in which to base his decision: these hidden defects only need to be mentioned if the defects pose a health risk or safety hazard, making the house dangerous to live in. Otherwise, the house is considered bought as is. The buyers’ case was thrown out, because they had signed the sellers’ property information statement and not done a home inspection on their own before buying.
