Don't buy it. Csncel the contract. Get your earnest money back. Look for a different home. Maybe a different realtor.

What are the agreed upon terms of your sales contract? If these were not met you need to speak with an attorney. If you feel you were not represented properly by your agent, go to the agent's manager.

Call a competent real estate attorney first thing tomorrow morning.

Have you closed?

She says sale is closed- told can't do anything because sale is closed. Sad post.

I could be wrong (probably am) but I think that in my state, if terms of the contract weren't met, or there was misrepresentation or failure to disclose defects, the sale can be set aside. But you are not really clear if there was any of that. It sounds like you knew of the bad condition and closed anyway-- is that right?

Not all states have a law requiring disclosure, and it sort of sounds like there might have been some kind of "as is" component to the purchase?

Why was the final walk-through done AFTER closing? That is supposed to happen before, to make sure the property is in the condition it is supposed to be in, and your agent should have made sure that it happened properly. And what is this credit that was "maxed out"? I'm not familiar with this.

You must have really wanted this house to ignore all the red flags. Your agent does seem to have failed to represent your interests -- was he acting as buyer's agent only?

You said the comps were 300k for a house in good condition -- what did you pay?

Thank you for the comments. My apologies for the horrid grammar. I thought there was a character limit on the post. Anyway, we ended up paying 290k with 2% buyer credit. We never did a "final walk through"- our realtor told us we could do it when we got the keys. After picking up the keys we went to peek at the house and saw how inconsiderate the seller had been. He even removed all the light bulbs and replaced some with bulbs that were out. He removed his furniture and wall fixtures and left dents and holes everywhere. The house had broken glass, garbage, and was not in the condition we viewed it. This was not an "as is" sale. We were aware of the bathrooms and had budgeted for that. We did not know the sewage repair would be an additional 3k, because they couldn't tell us until they dug up the pipe (long story short- a root grew into the pipe and they couldn't get the snake camera in. They quoted $1600. Upon removing the first root and got the camera all the way in, they noted the rest of the pipe also had roots through it, all the way to the street- hence the extra 3k). All we were aware of of were the bathrooms, the eves, and sewer. The eves were being repaired, sewer was being repaired, and bathrooms we got the price lowered for- so we figured it was a reasonable price. We are young, and first time buyers. We really relied on our realtor to guide us, and felt we were misguided. I don't mean to be a whiner, but I feel discouraged with how our first home purchase turned out. Our realtor was constantly asking us to consider the seller's feelings, his situation, and told us the seller's realtor was a personal friend of the seller, and how sad his situation was. Not to be a jerk, but I'm a full time nursing student, who is in lecture 8 hours a day twice a week, and on my feet at the hospital 9 hours a day another 2 days a week. We are living on one income till I graduate in December, and I'm 8 months pregnant. Why should I have to pay for his "sad" situation? Our realtor said "These things happen often. Sellers aren't the most considerate once they have the $ and are out the door. The condition of the home isn't bad. It just needs a little clean up. This is common. Homes don't typically come with appliances anyway. The verification of property condition needs to be signed asap".

It doesn't sound like your agent was advocating for you, but I'm not sure what your recourse is except to not sign the final document and maybe seek legal counsel.

We're still living in our first home. It hadnt really been cleaned after the sellers moved out, and they were also in a bad financial situation (we only learned this because they sued us in small claims for delaying the close when our final walkthrough revealed they hadn't moved a non-op junker out of the backyard).

Its not the best start for your new place, but its hard to say whether or not you're being picky about the glass and the condition of the walls. Does it seem like a day of cleaning and joint compound to fill the holes would take care of it?

Keller Williams is a MLM scheme. Likely "his" agent was YOUR agent's "higher-up" on the ladder, so they were using YOU to boost both of their sales/quota requirements.

I didnt know that about KW!

I've written a lot because I really relate to your situation, please forgive me!

You shouldn't have to pay for his problems, in fact the reason he is selling is none of your concern -- you are right about that! They were taking advantage of you IMO, playing on your sympathies to get a better price out of you.

What were the "wall fixtures"? something that was supposed to stay, or personal property? Isn't it customary for anything that is attached to the building to be conveyed, unless an exception is granted by the buyer? That is why some sellers will replace an expensive light fixture with a cheap one before listing, so they can keep the nice one for their next home.

Nail holes and wear and tear, minor dents to walls are not always fixed by sellers unless done before listing to make the property more attractive, just as some will repaint but many don't. Some sellers will take pains to hide stains and dents with a throw rug or picture so prospective buyers never know they are there until final walk through. Also, there is no obligation to leave light bulbs although that is really petty to take them. However, new and significant damages that were made after the sale is a different story.

Roots in the sewer could be found in any home, so I guess you can't really hold the seller responsible for all of that; I don't think the sewer line is typically inspected as part of a sale unless a problem is known or suspected. It sounds like you knew that there was some problem with the line and accepted the responsibility to fix it (along with the toilet and bathtub), correct? -- so I don't know that you have any recourse there, even though it turns out to be more than you anticipated. That is an unfortunate part of home ownership that has happened to most everyone at some time. Be sure to get more than one estimate. (It actually happened to me, a leak in the water main).

Was any money put into escrow for the agreed upon repairs, or was it just left to the honor/word of the seller to do it? I wonder what is the normal practice for your area. Here the settlement agency would hold the funds in escrow.

NEW damages to the home, or things that were misrepresented (such as appliances that were supposed to be working) is another story. Whether homes "don't typically come with appliances" is neither here nor there (although stove, fridge and attached MWs are actually often left or negotiated as part of the deal -- washers and dryers are not usually but sometimes can be negotiated). They were part of your deal, if they were mentioned in the contract as they should have been. Otherwise, they just used you to dispose of their junk for them. Were they mentioned in the listing and represented as working? or was it just a verbal "He is giving you these items"? Was there supposed to be a washer and dryer conveyed? Were they written into the sales contract?

I'd refuse to sign anything also, if that signature is supposed to agree that the house was delivered in the promised condition, until things that were supposed to be undamaged or fixed, or working, are repaired and working -- and not at your expense unless it was an expense you took on, like the bathrooms (clean I don't think is an enforceable issue). If the agent isn't willing to help with this, my inclination would be to tell him how disappointed you were by the bad advice that he gave (do the walk through after close for example, or those appliances if they were left out of the contract) and are giving and they need to make more effort to make it right. Mention all of your classmates who will be looking to buy a house after they graduate and will be hearing about your experience!

Oh, you did say that your agent was offering to give back some commission, and some $$ in the form of a gift card. Have to give credit for that-- that is NOT typical! Sounds like he is willing to help you out financially some with this situation. Still, is it enough to make up for the promised repairs that were not made?

One thing though -- the fact that you are in school, pregnant, on your feet x hours of the day on one income isn't pertinent. It may be giving you rather more buyer's remorse than you might otherwise have, and you have my sympathy, I worked 12 hour shifts and went to school while pregnant too, but stick with the failure to give appropriate advice and the failure of the seller to live up to the contract. Don't let them distract you from that with any more "poor seller" (or any other) stories, and don't allow your circumstances to cloud the issue in any way either.

I hope that NCrealestateguy and Sylviatexas will chime in with advice.

Contact your title co tomorrow, and if it hasn't funded, ask them to withhold funding and that you are contacting real estate atty because agreed upon repairs weren't done.

Contact atty, and notify your agents broker of issues. Do not sign scceptance of house condition form.

The verification of property condition needs to be signed asap".

DO NOT SIGN THAT DOCUMENT !!!!! REFUSE TO SIGN UNTIL THE HOUSE IS IN THE CONDITION SPECIFIED IN THE CONTRACT.

That document is the only leverage you have left. If you start holding up the money, people with more power than you will start to push for the repairs to get done.

Take pictures, LOTS of pictures. Note and photograph everything that is undone that was supposed to have been done according to contract.

And file a formal complaint with the agent's broker and with the state's real estate licensing board. The agent's actions were unprofessional.

Sounds to me (your post was extremely hard to read - you may want to edit it with some paragraph breaks) like agent was friend of seller or seller's family and bullied you into overpaying to help her buddy out.

I feel for you - I truly do feel for you. But as a buyer of property, we do have some personal responsibility. One must do ones homework before getting into a deal like this! Now with the internet, it is very possible to find out everything one should know before buying and closing on a house. All this info is out there. Also, how to find a good broker who will work for YOU, not her friend, the selling agent!

Well, you've learned through the school of hard knocks. Hopefully, you won't be this naive in the future.

Thank you for the replies. I tried to edit my original post and was unable to do so. Again, apologies for how difficult it is to read. I'll post a reply to all the responses so it may be long.

You are correct, were I not in my current circumstance I wouldn't feel so taken advantage of. We attempted to purchase a home a couple of years ago but decided to wait and do some research. We felt ready, but some of the information from our realtor was different than what we had. We naively relied on her. An example of this was the final walk through. I sent two text messages asking when we could schedule this with her, and never heard back. Later she apologized stating she was on vacation and without reception, but that we could sign and have keys the next day, and could do it then. When we questioned signing before inspection she told us it was common, and typical if inspections were completed too late. She said a "walk through" wouldn't really serve much purpose- we knew the repairs weren't done, but needed to close on the home for the repairs to be done- because they were being paid out of escrow.

You are correct, we did voluntarily request a sewer inspection. There is a large, suspicious tree in the yard, and we wondered if the roots had gone into the foundation or sewer. We were disappointed about the sewer repair because it was an agreed upon repair. However, because it was to be paid through escrow, a certain amount of $ was set aside for it- $1600. So of course, that was all the work that could be done regardless of further findings. Had inspections/ repairs been done much earlier, it would have been discovered and used for further negotiation. Am I incorrect in my understanding of this?

The appliances were stated in the ad as follows:

Kitchen InformationKitchen Appliances: Cook Top Elec, Dishwasher, Microwave B/I

Our realtor verbally stated "The note says seller is including the appliances with the home". We naively assumed these were working. The inspection revealed the appliances weren't working, but he told us the lights in the kitchen were not working either so it was likely an electrical issue. He couldn't tell us for sure. This was later sorted and fixed- after close, again because it was out of escrow. When the electrical was up and running, it was discovered that the appliance issue was in fact not electrical, but appliances themselves. However, it wasn't in writing and not discovered at inspection, so "nothing we can do". As far as W/D, we expected to purchase them, but ONLY anticipated needing to purchase these two appliances...not everything else as well.

The gate being broken is just what it is. It is a wood gate, that will be a few hundred dollars to replace. He broke it removing this from his property and just left it that way. The $500 gift card was for the broken appliances. The realtor also grounded 3 of the rooms in the house because of us having to pay for the additional sewer repair. We move on Saturday and the sewer is not completed, neither are the eves, or the door hinge repair. We were told the later two were required to be repaired to bring the house "up to code", but neither are done. The realtor says there isn't more we can do. Looking back I see where we shouldn't have relied so much on the word of our realtor. We just trusted her expertise and that she was steering us in the right direction. We honestly felt we were negotiating with both her and the seller/ seller's realtor. It didn't feel like anyone was on our side. I thought that is what a realtor was for- to advocate for us. My husband argued with her over the phone often. It is the only way we got the gift card, grounding, and price lowered. It wasn't the seller's realtor we had to "back and forth" with, but our own realtor who kept insisting we go full price in. Sad. Live and learn. We won't sign the verification of property condition until at least the sewer and eves are repaired. At least we have our own roof before our first baby gets here. I am thankful for that. Thank you again for all of the replies, they are very much appreciated.

P.S. ncrealestateguy:

• She never pulled comps for us. We sent her a few comps/ examples we found and she argued with us that "well that home has granite counter tops not corian" or "well that house is on a corner lot" or "the seller can't do that, he is in a really unfortunate situation. The realtor told me that is exactly what the last offer was and he refused it". It was a full on argument...but maybe that's how it is supposed to be? I just imagined a realtor/ buyer relationship being a little different. What do I know, this is our first purchase.
• Secondly, we agreed to buyer credits per recommendation of our realtor. It was our lender that called us and said "you can't do that...the realtor should know- you're maxed out on credit".
• I explained above why we closed before a walk thorough. We questioned it too and were reassured this was common. "What are you going to inspect? Nothing can be repaired till you closed because this is out of escrow".
• I explained above why we were not able to catch appliances. Again, it could only be done after electrical was repaired after closing/ out of escrow.
• When we brought up these issues with her she stated that she has been VERY generous and that we got an amazing deal.

Unfortunately you had a really crappy agent, one that does not live up to the duties clearly spelled out here: http://www.realtor.org/sites/default/files/handouts-and-brochures/2014/nar-fiduciary-duty-032213.pdf

At this point you don't really have that many options. You could lawyer up but your claim for damages is really not that high, unless you are looking to cancel the whole transaction. Another option would be to write a letter describing in detail how the agent failed to meet professional standards of conduct and asking for specific compensation. Send that registered to your agent and the manager of her office. Tell them the next step would be to file a complaint with the regional office and the state's realtor association.

What First Last says.

However, I am still a bit confused. I think it might help if you prioritize the issues, e.g. dirt, dings, missing light bulbs and missing smoke detectors are on a different level from non-working appliances IF your contract contains that appliances are working and seller's disclosure. I still don't get it that non-working appliances or electricity weren't discovered during inspection. (BTW, what the ad says is irrelevant. What does the contract say?)

I think the risk with an escrow repair account is that the escrow amount is based on estimates, which as you experienced, were inaccurate. Also, with respect to the repairs, who came up with the estimated repair cost?

Of course, the walk through still would have caught some of the things that weren't related to the proper repairs (like removed fixtures, dirt, glass, etc).

I think the sewer is a non-issue. An estimate was given and agreed upon by both parties. When the work was done, more damage was found and it ended up costing more. That's just bad luck and not the seller's fault.

The dirt and dings and light bulbs aren't worth worrying about. It sucks but it happens.

The appliance thing is an issue but I don't know what the ramifications are since you closed on the house with them in that state and were just 'hoping' that they worked. Can any of them be repaired? Or are they all just garbage?

The realtor sounds like they weren't working for you. I'd definitely be talking to their superiors.

This statement makes me curious:

The realtor also grounded 3 of the rooms in the house

What exactly was done and who did it? Did the realtor bring in a professional electrician and he ran a ground wire to all of the receptacles in the three rooms? Did he punch holes in the wall to run the wire or did he just do some hand waving magic and suddenly the receptacles are "grounded"? This is really suspect.

If the deal has a repair escrow for the agreed upon fixes, then I do not understand what the problem is, besides the fact that the sewer repair estimate was too low. Is not there still funds for the rest of the agreed upon repairs?

Well, to answer the original question, no, this is not the way it is supposed to work. Your agent, even if not acting exclusively as a buyer's agent (most are not, and in some states they have to give you written notice that they are "dual agents" -- someone correct me if I have the terminology wrong) should be advising you of the proper steps to protect both you and the seller from errors, omissions and just plain bad stuff. I've never had one that didn't. For example, when I wanted to have the washer/dryer or window coverings included, it was written into my offer. When the seller offered me a piece of furniture, that was a separate written agreement. Repairs were negotiated, escrow was set up and the work was done before I moved in. My agent advised me on the correct way to do these things.

It sounds like the appliances are all built ins, so they would have come with the house and not required any extra mention or negotiation. It is really odd that none of them work - maybe get another electrician for a second look?

You've learned a hard lesson in the school of hard knocks. That's too bad. It's really rotten that you are pregnant and under extreme stress. It also sucks that you got a crappy agent, a crappy homeowner and a crappy deal.

No one made you buy it. No one made you make an offer. Sad sob stories of desperate sellers weren't your problem. No one made you close without a final inspection. You should have stopped the process right there. It was your right and you didn't exercise your right.

That crappy agent didn't look out for you. They should have, but the law doesn't require it. Real estate is the last of the great horse trades. You have to assume everyone is trying to screw you until they prove otherwise. It's just good business practice to not intentionally screw someone over. It does come back to haunt you if you conduct business this way. This agent just made an enemy. Life's too short to make enemies.

Going forward there is very little that you can do. You agreed to the conditions of the house by allowing escrowed repairs and not conducting a final inspection. Welcome to the world of home ownership and life as a grown up. Sometimes it just sucks.

If it would give you some satisfaction, complain to the KW broker in charge who is the boss of the realtor. It will make you feel a little better. Raise a little hell. It can't hurt.

Then, dust yourself off. Clean your new home. Get excited about the new baby. Go to the home decorating forum and ask for help on how to set up and decorate the nursery. Go to every forum at GW and ask questions. You are a new homeowner and need the advice of those of us who have learned these hard lessons, too. Congratulations on your impending graduation and new baby. You have a lot to look forward to. It's going to work out.

I am so sorry this is happening to you. We move often for my husband's career and have learned a lot from these moves. We NEVER trust agents not ours or the sellers. My husband and I show ABSOLUTELY no emotion when we view properties, and never disclose to OUR agent how much we want the property. When we find the property we want to purchase my husband runs the comps. We choose the price to offer and we have no sympathies for sob stories. We consider home buying purely business. My husband refused to close once when a repair wasn't done until the agents paid out of their own pockets for the repair, since the seller reneged. My husband also made a different seller fix a problem that we found during a final walk through that had been covered up by a large mirror. Please read a book, and really educate yourself and get TOUGH. You are your only advocate, not your agent. I have most likely offended some agents, and I am sorry but this is how we buy homes. I must add that some agents haven't enjoyed working with us. I only say it's ok or no when I view homes, and my husband sais less then that. While negotiating we are poker faced with our agent. We simply trust no one with our money, as it is SO HARD to make.

(reading all this-I realize how fortunate we were through all our home selling and buying experiences, with the sellers, the buyers, and the agents)

Taliah..everything important was written here already. You have a lot to look forward to. It WILL work out. Rooting for you.

Sabbath7 your tactics sound like you're in the mob.

Iowa- lol hahaha no we are just your average joe's looking out for ourselves. Unfortunately we have seen very shady real estate deals and we are on guard trying to mitigate our financial risk. We don't get to pick our agents as my husband's company provides them with his relocation package this could also be the reason we have so little trust in them. Once an agent told us a house was such a good deal blah, blah, blah... when my husband ran the comps the house was over-priced by 50k.

Hey - it's no different than shopping for a car. You're dealing with 'Sales staff' - do you believe what they tell you? - do you honestly think they care about you? It's not like your local butcher or handy man who hopes to see you on a regular basis and therefore tries to be honest and fair. Homes and car purchases typically happen years and years apart. For the most part their philosophy is make money while you can.

It's not true of all sales people. We happen to know quite a few realtors in our town who have gone out of their way to smooth the transaction and makes things right.

I hope everything works out for you.

M and M... your generalizations and comparisons are ridiculous. Do you really think that my buyer's / seller's handyman or butcher care more about the services being offered by them more than a Realtor? I don't make a living unless my clients think I truly care about their best interests.

Realtors rely on repeat business and referrals. To suggest that they (as a whole) only care about making a quick buck while screwing over their clients is naive. Some may (there are good and bad people in every profession), but it's not standard operating procedure.

Totally agree with sabbath7. This is exactly how we did it when we have sold/bought houses due to the lack of honesty and integrity with realtors . We don't have trust in realtors from personal experiences. You have learned the hard way, and for that I am sorry for you. It will help you in the future if you decide to sell or are relocated again. (I also was pregnant when we sold our house to move for a job relocation...in the dead of Winter, by myself. Husband had already moved to the new job. Our realtor and the seller's realtor thought they could take advantage of the situation. They were very, very wrong in their assumption. I held up the closing till terms were met). There isn't a lot that I think can be done at the present. Go to the owner/manager of the agency and file a complaint against your lousy agent. I doubt much will happen, but at least they will know you weren't represented well and you will not be recommending them to anyone else and will tell of your bad dealings with this agency to friends and family. Good luck with your new house and the new baby!

off topic so i apologize in advance..sabbath7, since my knowledge in real estate is not vast to put it mildly..really interested to hear your opinion..why do you prefer buying over renting, with so many relocations? oh I understand with renting you don't make any money..but with buying-the huge hassle, the closing costs, the fees to be payed, the upkeep of the property, constant maintenance?..

we have a brand new home in a shell of an old one-gut remodel. took just a couple months of rain to get roof rat infestation in the attic. it's nice and warm for them there, so they came, and very soon we realized they're winning-our traps is nothing to them. we're quoted now several thousand dollars to get rid of them properly, sanitizing and all. and the huge bulk of the cost is changing the brand new insulation and labor in a very hard crawling space..so not much of a wiggle room. just as an example. these homes, it's just never ending..like in my nickname lol

so what are your reasons, if it's something you feel comfortable sharing of course?

Your agent doesn't know what she is doing. To miss deadlines is unacceptable and incompetent. You need a competent Realtor when you purchase, or preferably an attorney.

Some of those items you mention are not repairs, but merely maintenance. No one delivers a perfect used house to the buyer, so you should have been warned that no one is doing every little thing to bring an older house to Code, nor is it necessary. Only MAJOR DEFECTS that are undisclosed are game for repairs, if you properly understand the inspection process. Anything you see is not undisclosed. Any repairs documented in the Purchase Agreement were required to be done prior to closing OR a credit at close - or it's not happening. Someone dropped the ball here, or you misunderstood what was to happen.

It's on you now, unless there is a contractual breach. You need a Real Estate attorney to figure that out for you.

Oops. Just saw this thread was resurrected. I'm sure the issues are resolved now.

I am amazed that people will still spend hundreds of thousands of dollars for the biggest purchase of their lives, and skimp on hiring an attorney who will protect them during the process. Everyone should understand that the real estate agent does not work for you as a fiduciary. Most will try not to screw you, but their job is to get the house bought and sold.

I am so sorry that this happened to you, but maybe your bad experience will help the next new buyer be more wary. Never close on a property unless you are satisfied with the condition of the house and the terms of the contract were fulfilled.

MCMlove: I followed your posting and now have more than resurrected this posting. I hope the OP is happy in her home and all the anguish of buying and moving is forgotten.

Lisa, Realtors are indeed a Fiduciary Agent for their clients.