You're buying a used house. A very used house if it was built in 1876. Windows are not a safety issue, the seller has already given you a concession of over $16,000 in price reduction and closing costs. I personally don't blame the seller for not giving in on the windows. As for the beams, are they structural? Is it a safety issue? You have two choices if the sellers aren't giving in, walk or accept the house as is. If I really wanted the home, if it was really a good price and if the price already reflects the fact that it needs a few repairs I'd go ahead with the deal.

'He also noted that when they replaced the beams in the basement, they did it with substandard materials.'

Was the beam replacement inspected by the city? Personally, I've never met a home inspector who is qualified to offer an opinion on this issue (unless the beam is obviously jerry-rigged)

I'm with the previous poster on the windows... it's not unusual that they need to be replaced in a house that old, and the home owneres were not hiding them.

The beams are in fact a structural issue, as the inspector deemed them "structurally unsound". After going to the town hall to see if a building permit was pulled or work was inspected, we learned neither had been done.

Does your contract have a home inspection contingency in it? If so, and you want out of the contract, get your lawyer to draw up the necessary letters to the seller. We had to do that on a house we put an offer on as it had no sheathing under the roof shingles, plumbing and storm sewer were not to code/disintegrating and other issues. It cost us about 1 hr of the lawyer's time but it was money well spent.

In the meantime, old houses often have leaky windows. If the house has the original wood windows, they are easy enough to restore - time, energy and a limited amount of supplies are all that's needed. Can you get a new beam retrofitted?

You have options - just need to get a plan together and go with it.

Windows certainly wouldn't break the deal for me. It's to be expected in a house like that. Neither would the beam.

Perhaps have a structural engineer come look at it, a real expert, and give an opinion. Get an estimate or two on the job. Sounds to me like you're already getting quite a bit of concession from the seller. I totally understand them not wanting to give anything else.

The ball's in your court now. You can either accept or walk away. You just have to decide if you're willing to spend the money to fix the beam. Windows can be restored over time with pretty simple tools and a minimal amount of skill.

Inspectors are not engineers or the AHJ.
Exactly what is meant by "substandard materials"?
Undersized for the span? Wrong grade?
It is a relatively commmon mistake made by less knowledgable restorers of old house to use modern lumber of the closest dimension to replace old lumber of full dimension.
Old 2x lumber measures a full 2 inches and is 33% stonger compared to modern 1.5 inch 2x lumber.
The usual fix is to sister up to full width, and then plane down if needed.
Flitch plates are another option if even the original constuction was light.
Expecting anything from 1876 to meet modern building codes is just foolish.
There will be many things in a house of that age that are not compliant with modern codes. If you do not have the finances to deal with these items walk away.
EVERY job in an old structure costs more.
Updated does not mean brought up to modern codes in all things.

It doesn't matter what percentage of the listing price you have saved if the house caves in. What's it worth then? Nothing. Imagine you own this house and need to sell it...

You need to either walk away or decide the house is worth what you are paying plus the $10K to shore it up and replace the windows. (Be aware that these are *estimates* and probably low ones.) Hope your contract hinges on loan approval, attorney approval, clean home inspection report.

BTW: This isn't an "historic" house, is it? Will you have to fight city hall to make changes (like the windows)? Are you willing to take on a very old house like this one? You might want to look at the forum on Old Houses here.

I don't think you should expect the seller to fund additional repairs on an 1876 home. You should either take it as is or walk away if it concerns you. I once owned an 1869 home. Trust me---you'll find out that these aren't the only things wrong with the house. I love old homes, but you need to prepare yourself to do numerous fix-ups when owning an old house.

It sounds like maybe you won't have to the money to make these repairs after you purchase the house. If this is the case you might not want to buy such an old house, which will invariably need more repairs down the line. However, if you do want this house AND want the repairs done, you may need to increase your purchase price to cover the repairs. It won't make a huge difference in your mortgage payment. It sounds like the beams are the most important fix, since they are structural. Windows can be important also since they need to be operable for egress in case of emergency.

For me, if there were any structural issues discovered in a home inspection, I would run from the deal. If there was a contingency for it in your offer contract, you have an out. I suggest you take it. What else will you discover after that fact that was shoddy done without permits?

Ah, I see sparksals has already brought up what began to trouble my mind. Did you find permits and inspections by the city on all the other improvements -- the new electrical, plumbing, roof, kitchen, baths, etc.?

How long have the current owners owned the house? What did they pay when they bought it? (Wondering if these are flippers, although flippers seldom get into replacing elec. and plumbing. Do you *know* the mechanicals have been replaced, and replaced to code?)