Offer to purchase question

Napalm2880 said:
It can be worse believe me.

In my last purchase,
The estate agent was fired.
The transfer attorney was fired
The seller moved overseas
The seller got divorced
The seller purposely botched the documents because she wanted to return to SA and wanted the house back and was hoping to frustrate the process
The seller didn't have updated plans and had to arrange an architect to draw up plans before the sale could go through
The seller was behind on everything, COJ, Eskom, HOA levies.

It took 1 year and 1 month to transfer.
Click to expand...
When you think you have drama in your purchase, this makes your frustrations seem like childs play.

You need to keep your eyes on the ball and be resilient.
 
marysms said:
When you think you have drama in your purchase, this makes your frustrations seem like childs play.

You need to keep your eyes on the ball and be resilient.
Click to expand...
Most people under-estimate two things:

1. How important it is to do a proper inspection of the house and property.
2. how important the OTP document is.

You should view a property at least 3 times and take lots of photos. On your last visit, take a friend or family member. Look out for problems, and make a list of them!

READ AND UNDERSTAND every single paragraph in the OTP and make sure that there are conditions with DUE DATES e.g.:

  • "Up to date, council approved plans which include all alterations to be provided to seller by XXXX-XX-XX date."
  • "All house keys and remote controls to be provided to seller by XXXX-XX-XX or on date of transfer"
This will avoid the situation I experienced where the seller claimed they would give me the plans after the sale had gone through because I didn't specify a date. :X3:

My first home purchase was a nightmare but that's nothing compared to a guy on this forum that bought off plan on top of a sinkhole.
 
PhireSide said:
Our occupational rent has been paid and we're moving in on Friday. The levels of excitement is too much to handle and I think I should get some Nyquil just to be on the safe side.

The one attorney cocked up the paperwork so I need to to re-sign documents this week. This is not the same attorney who lost the subdivision plans a while back.

The only ones who haven't gotten into my bad books yet are the bond attorneys, although they did stop responding to my mails for two weeks because they forgot to set an OOO and automatic replies when my contact went on two weeks' leave.

Needless to say I cannot wait until this process is complete. It's been a complete disaster from the get go.
Click to expand...
So an update on this.

Plumber went out today to make sure all was good for our occupancy on Friday. Oops, apparently they have to replace multiple meters worth of pipes around the outside of the house and they found a leaking pipe in the en suite too.

They also have to 're-lay' the geyser, whatever that means. I'm guessing it's either not properly supported inside the roof cavity or something more sinister is afoot.

Reminded the agent that we need to vacate our townhouse that we sold so if we have nowhere to go, we'll be sending them a bill for accommodation and storage for us and our home contents.

The saga continues. Stay tuned for the next episode of Dragonball Z!
 
Napalm2880 said:
1. How important it is to do a proper inspection of the house and property.
xxx
You should view a property at least 3 times and take lots of photos. On your last visit, take a friend or family member. Look out for problems, and make a list of them!
Click to expand...

This is so damn true

Friends of mine a few years ago:

Went to see a property,saw it during the evening twice. Noted some moisture on the outside walls at 2 of the rooms but were happy with sorting that out. Reviewed the "snaglist" with the property agent which noted no other issues
Made their offer,got accepted,moved in,during the move they noted some issues including:
* Pool and Jacuzzi cracked and leaking,pump not working properly
* Stove tripping power on 2/5 plates
* Oven lights work but not heating up
* Severe moisture outside on most walls,inside on about half of the house
* Storage wendy at the back was unsafe as the base wasn't properly constructed,support pillars underspecced and the wood was actually rotting
* Roof leaks at the garage and 1 of the bedrooms,bad enough that the support trusses were actually rotting and needed replacing,the lights would trip when it rains from the leaks
* 2 bathrooms have damaged pipes in the walls

These issues were noted and given to the agents as a post-move snaglist, and the transferring attorneys
Agent confirmed they hadn't done an inspection themselves just took what the seller provided,asked for quotes for the repairs
Quotes were acquired,all in looking at 300k,various companies checked and confirmed majority of the problems involving the wood/walls/moisture were due to years of lacking maintenance likely
Weeks went by,agents claimed innocence,seller claimed innocence
Initiated arbitration to try get it resolved
No progress,seller refuses to budge
Conveyancer puts the transfer on hold
Buyer threatens cancellation of the purchase
Seller proceeds to get Attorney to write up letter threatening to sue for cancellation

As I understand in the end the deal was cancelled,seller had to fix up all the issues before re-advertising,had to pay legal fees for both sides,lost months of rental/bond while paying the bond on 2 properties,agents lost the commission and also sued
But the buyers did lose the bond/transfer fees and some repair and replace costs (they re-tiled and re-painted) they had done in the interim after moving in
 
Napalm2880 said:
Most people under-estimate two things:

1. How important it is to do a proper inspection of the house and property.
...

You should view a property at least 3 times and take lots of photos. On your last visit, take a friend or family member. Look out for problems, and make a list of them!
Click to expand...
Yes, this, exactly. Visit at different times of the day.

At least once while property hunting, it's worth paying a really good inspector to view the property with you. This exercise will cost, but can be instructive.

Ask around for referrals, from banks, conveyancers and estate agents. Choose someone who has been doing it for years, and who is preferably not coming from the angle of a banker or an insurer, but rather a master builder or a structural engineer . Agree in advance what this person will and won't provide, and don't go with anyone whose inspection will last less than an hour, better longer.

Arrange a time with the seller, and warn them that your inspector is going to go through their house thoroughly, and would like to look at the plans. If the owner doesn't have plans, get their signed permission (with a copy of their ID) to ask at the municipality if there are any, at all. Try to have these before the date with the inspector.

Take along a friend whose job it is to fully participate in the inspection, asking questions, just as you should do, and both of you with a clip-board to jot down his wisdom or, if everyone is in agreement, record everything. Take photos. Follow the inspector everywhere. Move around in the room if he blocks your view while working, so you can see what he is seeing or touching.

He (or you) should switch on and off, open and shut, everything that can be steered: lights, run the water at every possible spot and check the entire pipe and tap for leaks, flush toilet, windows, doors, cupboards, locks, stove, oven, fans, air-conditioner, heaters, pool pump, creeply crawly, electric fencing, gates, remote, locks, beams. Check all the outbuildings including garage, lapa, shed, wendy-house, cottage, etc. with just as much precision. Ask him to look inside the basement, if any, and in the attic or roof, and at the garden, including plants which may be problematic, drainage across and in the earth, drains, boundaries, built fences, retaining walls and the pool if any, and benches, playground, awnings and paving.

Whenever the inspector criticises something, ask how he knows that, e.g. "there's water seepage here" because of what?... the smell / white chrystal deposits on the bricks / mildew, etc., or e.g. "the gutters aren't working" because of what?... watermarks down the outside wall / smudgy markings on the inside ceiling / water erosion on a spot on the ground, etc. Learn from him.

When he is finished, sit with him while and you and your friend ask him to name the worst aspects, and to give a rough estimate of what it would involve to repair or restore those, in money, time, and effort, and also what else would need to be done about this issue, before and afterwards, etc. Ask him for the worst case scenario, and whether he can see reasons why he himself would not buy. If there's a major baddie, obviously you'll probably walk away, but don't stop there: having noted that baddie, bracket it out so that you can ask about each room, inside and out. Include core functionality of things that are already wrong or likely to cause problems right away, or later, and also less essential, more aesthetic aspects. Even if the house is basically okay, ask him for the general (or if he will a detailed) cost of what he thinks one would need to invest immediately, or within the first year or two.

After having done that kind of inspection with an expert, I found that I could see the property ads, and view further properties, quite differently.
 
Colsuldel said:
House hunting is hard.
house listed Tuesday and went to view today, already 7 other people viewed and
two buyers already put in an offer this afternoon, 10 more buyers had appointments to view.
Click to expand...

If its priced well... it will go quickly! Lol
 
Colsuldel said:
House hunting is hard.
house listed Tuesday and went to view today, already 7 other people viewed and
two buyers already put in an offer this afternoon, 10 more buyers had appointments to view.
Click to expand...
Totally priced right, well done.
 
Colsuldel said:
House hunting is hard.
house listed Tuesday and went to view today, already 7 other people viewed and
two buyers already put in an offer this afternoon, 10 more buyers had appointments to view.
Click to expand...
I would not trust the estate agent that says a million other people are also interested. It's a sales tactic.
 
Gozado said:
Yes, this, exactly. Visit at different times of the day.

At least once while property hunting, it's worth paying a really good inspector to view the property with you. This exercise will cost, but can be instructive.

Ask around for referrals, from banks, conveyancers and estate agents. Choose someone who has been doing it for years, and who is preferably not coming from the angle of a banker or an insurer, but rather a master builder or a structural engineer . Agree in advance what this person will and won't provide, and don't go with anyone whose inspection will last less than an hour, better longer.

Arrange a time with the seller, and warn them that your inspector is going to go through their house thoroughly, and would like to look at the plans. If the owner doesn't have plans, get their signed permission (with a copy of their ID) to ask at the municipality if there are any, at all. Try to have these before the date with the inspector.

Take along a friend whose job it is to fully participate in the inspection, asking questions, just as you should do, and both of you with a clip-board to jot down his wisdom or, if everyone is in agreement, record everything. Take photos. Follow the inspector everywhere. Move around in the room if he blocks your view while working, so you can see what he is seeing or touching.

He (or you) should switch on and off, open and shut, everything that can be steered: lights, run the water at every possible spot and check the entire pipe and tap for leaks, flush toilet, windows, doors, cupboards, locks, stove, oven, fans, air-conditioner, heaters, pool pump, creeply crawly, electric fencing, gates, remote, locks, beams. Check all the outbuildings including garage, lapa, shed, wendy-house, cottage, etc. with just as much precision. Ask him to look inside the basement, if any, and in the attic or roof, and at the garden, including plants which may be problematic, drainage across and in the earth, drains, boundaries, built fences, retaining walls and the pool if any, and benches, playground, awnings and paving.

Whenever the inspector criticises something, ask how he knows that, e.g. "there's water seepage here" because of what?... the smell / white chrystal deposits on the bricks / mildew, etc., or e.g. "the gutters aren't working" because of what?... watermarks down the outside wall / smudgy markings on the inside ceiling / water erosion on a spot on the ground, etc. Learn from him.

When he is finished, sit with him while and you and your friend ask him to name the worst aspects, and to give a rough estimate of what it would involve to repair or restore those, in money, time, and effort, and also what else would need to be done about this issue, before and afterwards, etc. Ask him for the worst case scenario, and whether he can see reasons why he himself would not buy. If there's a major baddie, obviously you'll probably walk away, but don't stop there: having noted that baddie, bracket it out so that you can ask about each room, inside and out. Include core functionality of things that are already wrong or likely to cause problems right away, or later, and also less essential, more aesthetic aspects. Even if the house is basically okay, ask him for the general (or if he will a detailed) cost of what he thinks one would need to invest immediately, or within the first year or two.

After having done that kind of inspection with an expert, I found that I could see the property ads, and view further properties, quite differently.
Click to expand...
Tedious. Saw a house we liked in an area we liked, walked through it with a keen eye and put in an offer. Living in it now.
 
rietrot said:
I would not trust the estate agent that says a million other people are also interested. It's a sales tactic.
Click to expand...
This. I put in an offer on a house a while ago and the agent also said "but there are higher offers on the table" so I said "but then I'm not going to put in an offer". Quickly changed her tune to "no but maybe they won't succeed." Later on when my offer expired I was begged to extend it, because the "owners are close to deciding". I told her I'll look for another place instead.
 
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