Depends on how the house was priced. We recently sold our primary house. Even though we have not had any issues with the roof, it would need replacing in the next couple of years. We priced the house accordingly. We made sure buyers were aware of the roof situation and offered them either $$ for new roof or equal $$ for closing costs, but not both since we priced the house lower to begin with. They picked $$s for closing costs.
You can certainly ask for either full cost replacement or 1/2. The worse they can say is no.
The house is priced high for the neighborhood, but appraisal came back about 5k higher than the contract price. Seller bought the house for almost nothing, did some basic improvements and is flipping it. Just failed to even touch the roof (which also has some structural damage that needs to be repaired) except to power wash it, which basically killed whatever life it has left.
Post by lurkergirl123 on Jun 1, 2012 12:09:38 GMT -5
We asked the seller to replace the roof as we could not get insurance on the house because the roof was so old. He balked and said he was going to hire his own roofing inspector to prove to us that the roof was fine. The inspector told him that the house HAD to have a new roof.
At that point we told him we would walk if he didn't replace it (he was being rather unreasonable and assy about a lot of things we were still in our due diligence period), so he did.
Wow, when I read that title, for a moment I thought "Oh, did I ask that?" because we are going through something very similar.
And direct answers to your question: *Yes, we are doing it. *If we were buying a home that was NOT a short sale, heck yes, I would be requesting the seller, at minimum, pitch in and give an allowance for the roof (since that is probably the single most expensive replacement on a house!!!)
This has been my only hang up, but we are moving forward because this is truly a great house, and perfect for us in every way. It nailed every single one of my "requirements" and even had the vast majority of my "wish list" items. We couldn't get a better house for the price we are paying. The only problem is that because the house we are buying is a short sale, it is strictly AS-IS.
When we looked at the house initially, we suspected the roof might be old - but we decided that if the house has everything else that we want, this could be something we could deal with. We have had to replace a roof before, unfortunately. So we have an idea of what we are dealing with. And we were right; the roof is original (1993) and at the end of its life. Though no signs of any current leaks (but there has been past leaks, as evidenced by replacement patches in several areas).
Our bank's appraisal came in today at 11k higher than what we will be paying. Although putting a new roof on our new place will easily cost 15k or more.... we still think it is worth it.
But if you are dealing with a seller and not a short-sale - definitely request that they pitch in, at the very least!
I think it depends on your market/budget situation. It seemed like every house we looked at needed SOMETHING - bathroom renovations, replacement windows, basement finishing, etc. In our case, we considered two houses that needed roofs within the next 1-3 years.
For something like a roof, I would ask for a credit back to replace the roof instead of asking for them to replace it. The seller would definitely go with the cheapest route possible which isn't necessarily the best option when it comes to a roof.
For something like a roof, I would ask for a credit back to replace the roof instead of asking for them to replace it. The seller would definitely go with the cheapest route possible which isn't necessarily the best option when it comes to a roof.
I would normally be pro-credit so that you can pick the contractor to do the roof but since the OP said there was structural issues, it's making me lean towards asking for it to be fixed. If you do ask for a credit, be sure to get a contractor or two or three out to give you quotes. I'm going to guess you'll need to have the roof removed, probably the plywood replaced and redone. I hope there aren't any structural issues to the trusses or that will add a lot of work and money.
I am late to respond but probably not. How serious are the structural issues? It is one thing to replace a couple of panels and the rest of the shingles (or whatever material you are using) but if there is more serious damage you may get big surprises. And that is on top of safety concerns. Anyway, if you do buy it I think the seller should cover the cost since their price is already high.
The structural issues are not serious, a board needs to be replace which would be done when the roof is stripped. We agreed on going 50/50 on the roof. The seller also agreed to some other costly repairs so it feels like a win win.
I prefer a price reduction or credit rather than having the seller do the roof replacement as I like to control the quality of materials and workmanship. All shingles are not the same. All roofers do not give the same quality in their finished product.
When we looked at the house initially, we suspected the roof might be old - but we decided that if the house has everything else that we want, this could be something we could deal with. We have had to replace a roof before, unfortunately. So we have an idea of what we are dealing with. And we were right; the roof is original (1993) and at the end of its life. Though no signs of any current leaks (but there has been past leaks, as evidenced by replacement patches in several areas).
Wow! They must have put on a shitty roof in the first place. It didn't last 20 years? We had the seller replace ours, but it was 45 years old.
When we looked at the house initially, we suspected the roof might be old - but we decided that if the house has everything else that we want, this could be something we could deal with. We have had to replace a roof before, unfortunately. So we have an idea of what we are dealing with. And we were right; the roof is original (1993) and at the end of its life. Though no signs of any current leaks (but there has been past leaks, as evidenced by replacement patches in several areas).
Wow! They must have put on a shitty roof in the first place. It didn't last 20 years? We had the seller replace ours, but it was 45 years old.
Actually, I think roofs have shorter life expectancies in Florida. I'm from there originally and my mom had to get a new one after 14 years. The pressure from the elements is a bit more intense and I think the contractor told her that the average 3-tab shingle roof should last 10-15 years, assuming two hurricane strikes.
Wow! They must have put on a shitty roof in the first place. It didn't last 20 years? We had the seller replace ours, but it was 45 years old.
Actually, I think roofs have shorter life expectancies in Florida. I'm from there originally and my mom had to get a new one after 14 years. The pressure from the elements is a bit more intense and I think the contractor told her that the average 3-tab shingle roof should last 10-15 years, assuming two hurricane strikes.
well that makes sense. Those Spanish tiles are fragile.
Post by lurkergirl123 on Oct 8, 2012 14:57:36 GMT -5
We actually could not get insurance on the house we bought unless the roof was replaced (it was original to the house), so that's something to look out for.
Post by DarcyLongfellow on Oct 20, 2012 21:27:45 GMT -5
Just responding to say that we just bought (and sold) a house in Florida. You cannot get homeowners insurance here if the roof is over a certain age, I believe 15 years. The house we just sold had a roof from 1995, and we replaced it before we put the house on the market because otherwise offers would have been really low, since the roof HAD to be replaced before closing.
That's for a regular shingle roof. The house we bought has a 25 year old concrete tile roof which is supposed to last "forever" -- but even with this kind of roof, we were barely able to get homeowners insurance -- if the house had been one year older, we wouldn't have been able to get it and would have had to replace a perfectly good roof.