opinion RE transaction

[barefootcontessa]

we have a contract on our old house that is scheduled to close in about twenty days.  We put the house on the market late October and accepted an offer about three weeks later.  The accepted offer was just about 5% off what our REA said was the comparable value.  We also agreed to pay $4K in closing.  

We have been working on the addendum for repairs and a number of expensive things have come up (radon mitigation is needed, problems with gutter and downspouts, etc.)  All told it is about $2500 worth of repairs.  The buyer had the well pump inspected and the "inspector" who happens to sell and install new pumps said it should be replaced because it is just a basic builder brand and "might" not work much longer.  His report says it actually functions fine and he could provide no evidence/data showing that the pump is on verge of failure.  The buyer thinks we should "compromise" and split the cost of a new well pump (so another $700 for us) and my REA -- who I admittedly dislike and bait/switched us on her commission -- is pressuring me saying it is silly to lost a deal over $700.  I am about to tell her we have done all the compromising we are willing to do and it is time for someone else to compromise.  If the buyer won't budge then I do not see why she and the buyer's agent (who happens to be a friend) take the $700 out their commissions checks.  I am interested in hearing what others think.  

as an aside:  while we want to sell the house and be rid of it, we are not in dire circumstances and can continue to pay the mortgage without issue.  we do get a sizable tax benefit as a result also.  
 

[ssmjlm]

I wouldn't pay for something that "might break." WTF?

I would tell the realtor that you have made all the concessions you deem necessary at this point.

[AAM2012]

That's crap..of course the pump might break as it's not intended to last forever. How old is the pump? Your realtor is saying not to walk away over $700 then he/she should cut her commission to cover it. It sounds like you've compromised enough considering your offering closing costs, etc. If you can afford to keep the house then I wouldn't continue to "compromise".

Side note: I doubt the buyer would walk away over $700 either.

[bittybomb]

I would tell them to go scratch.

[barefootcontessa]

pump is seven years old. thanks for the feedback.

[UnderProtest]

Your realtor should be on YOUR side, not the buyer's. Our realtor pushed us to negotiate a higher sales price and told us that most of the inspection report issues were stupid and not to be fixed. To me it is absolutely ridiculous that they are asking to replace something (or split the cost) on something that MIGHT break. EVERYTHING might break.

I can't speak to whether she would consider having it come out of her commission. She doesn't sound like the greatest so she might be stupid enough to let it fall through over $700.

Good luck.

[rubytue]

There was just another discussion earlier this week about this (but from the other side), and the consensus was the buyer shouldn't ask for things that were old or "might" break.

[AAM2012]

Dec 5, 2014 10:39:53 GMT -5 barefootcontessa said:

pump is seven years old. thanks for the feedback.

My parents pump lasted for like 18 years and I'm sure it wasn't some fancy schmancy one

[Deleted]

Dec 5, 2014 10:19:05 GMT -5 ssmjlm said:

I wouldn't pay for something that "might break." WTF?

I would tell the realtor that you have made all the concessions you deem necessary at this point.

This. I would put my foot down for sure. It is f-ed up that your realtor did a bait and switch on the commission but I would not ask them to pay for it out of their commission. It is not their fault that things came up on the inspection that need to be fixed. I would bet that the buyer would not back out at this point over $700, because they have invested a few hundred dollars to a thousand at this point in the home sale.

[kadams767]

I wouldn't pay for it either. I'd probably risk losing this buyer, to be honest, because if you had an offer within 3 weeks of putting the house on the market, I'd be confident that you'll get another one if you have to re-list. While I agree technically that it isn't worth losing a deal over $700, to me, it's not just $700. At a minimum, it would be $3200 if you include the other repairs, plus the $4k closing costs, plus the 5% off list price. Not that I know your list price, but in my area, that is a substantial amount of compromise for a seller.

[crashgizmo]

It sounds like you guys have made a lot of concessions. I would hold firm on this.

[barefootcontessa]

Dec 5, 2014 10:41:32 GMT -5 UnderProtest said:

Your realtor should be on YOUR side, not the buyer's. Our realtor pushed us to negotiate a higher sales price and told us that most of the inspection report issues were stupid and not to be fixed. To me it is absolutely ridiculous that they are asking to replace something (or split the cost) on something that MIGHT break. EVERYTHING might break.

I can't speak to whether she would consider having it come out of her commission. She doesn't sound like the greatest so she might be stupid enough to let it fall through over $700.

Good luck.

among other things, I do not like how she just presented us a list and said this is what they are asking you to fix.  Then she got one man to do an estimate for everything because he is a "certified" handyman.  It seems like it should be her job to parse out what we really need to do and how to do so most economically.  For instance, she asked for estimates on having the drain spouts buried because "that is how they should be done" when the buyer did not even ask for that!  I could go on and on and how much I dislike this woman.  I cannot wait for this to be over -- but I can hold out if necessary.   

[womet]

Nope, I wouldn't pay for it. If she pushes, then tell her that she can pay for it out of her commission.

[sporky]

Dec 5, 2014 10:19:05 GMT -5 ssmjlm said:

I wouldn't pay for something that "might break." WTF?

I would tell the realtor that you have made all the concessions you deem necessary at this point.

Exactly this. There is no reason for you to pay for something that is in working order. 

[sjh722]

No way.

Our contracts specifically spell out that an item has to be defective to request replacement. Being at or near the end of its expected life, if it is still perfectly functional, is not a reason to request replacement. (Not that buyers don't try, but I wouldn't pay for it at this point, especially given the inspector's background.)

[shopgirl07]

I would either say no or tell them that you'll pay the $700 but you'll then only give them $3300 in closing costs.

But at the end of the day, I know it's annoying and buyers are unrealistic but I might pay the $700 to be done with it if it ends up being a deal breaker for the buyers. You never know what might come up at the next inspection.

[kadams767]

Dec 5, 2014 10:56:24 GMT -5 sporky said:

Dec 5, 2014 10:19:05 GMT -5 ssmjlm said:

I wouldn't pay for something that "might break." WTF?

I would tell the realtor that you have made all the concessions you deem necessary at this point.

Exactly this. There is no reason for you to pay for something that is in working order. 

No kidding.  Where do you draw the line?  Every single thing in a house might eventually break.  It's not a seller's responsibility to upgrade things to a buyer's standards just because they are cheaper or "builder grade".