"Wow, I hadn't really looked at it in this way before. I had just
assumed it wouldn't be acceptable, and and my realtor was talking about

hiring a handy-man to fix it up"

I think you're right in assuming it won't be acceptable. If it's
really noticeable, the buyer would have to be pretty stupid to just
accept this. It's possible, but if the caulking is very noticeable,
it's unlikely you'll get away with it. This is one reason why it's
better for both parties for the seller to just give credit for work
that needs to be done, instead of having the work done.

" have to admit, however, that part
of the deal is that we're also trying to close on the purchase of our
new house the same day, and so I don't want anything to screw that up.
But if we really have satisfied the functionality issue, and asthetics
really don't matter after the buyer has made his offer, then that would

be great if it isn't our problem anymore! I will certainly bring this
up with our realtor. "

If you're trying to get by on this, I'd be real careful about who you
talk to and what you say. If you're gonna try to claim that you just
fixed what they asked to be fixed, then having discussions with a real
estate agent just provides one more witness that can say you knew you
had a botched job, knew about it, etc Plus the agent may take the
position that once they know about it, they have a duty to disclose it,
even if they are your agent. If you're gonna take the position that
it's OK, then you better leave it alone. Plus, I hope you have an
attorney. That would be someone appropriate to discuss this with.

"Yes, this is what I was expecting, which I think makes the contractors

comment of having to specify clear caulking a little bogus. I am
especially curious to call several other siding contractors now to find

out what they would do in similar situations. "

If it comes down to it, this is something that would have to be decided
in court. A lot is going to depend on what your contract with the
contractor says. You have a contract right? Does it specify what
color caulk was to be used? If not, what discussions did you have with
him? Any witnesses? If you made it clear you just wanted to caulk to
sell the house and were not going to be painting, then it's pretty
clear that you are right. If you just called the contractor and asked
to have the siding caulked, then it's not clear you are right. I think
the guy should have asked and made sure, but it's not clear to me it's
an absolute requirement.

A related issue is where the caulking had to be done. If it was just
around windows, that area is frequently done with clear. If it's in
joints all over the place, then IMO to have it look right, it really
needs to be painted even if he did use a clear caulk. And I've never
seen painters use clear caulk on general siding joints.

" but it sounds like it would be a good idea to find out what he thinks
about it. "

None of us can see what it looks like. But, if you're gonna try to
take the position that it's acceptable, then asking about this specific
repair is a dumb idea. What does the sales contract say about repairs?
Does it provide for a re-inspection, your notifying that repairs have
been made, etc? A better approach would be to follow the contract
procedure.


Bottom line is this:

If this caulk job is easily visible and you take the position that you
did what they wanted and keep quiet, I doubt you will get away with it.
What will likely happen is the buyers will object to it at some point.
That could be before or at the closing. In that case, you're probably
stuck with paying for most or all of a paint job. The solution then is
to hold in escrow an amount to pay for the paint job or else let them
walk. If they object after closing, you are in a better negotiating
position. Worse case, they can sue you for the cost of painting the
place. Or you could negotiate to pay for part of the paint job.

And when negotiating who pays for what, keep this in mind. Unless the
house was painted recently, it's unfair for you to pay the entire cost
of painting the house. It would need to be painted every 7 years of so
anyway. So, if it were last painted 3 1/2 years ago, then you paying
half would be fair. And if they close and you're in a good negotiating
position, then that offer will look a lot better than if you bring them
over now and ask what they think of your caulk job.

And finally, you may have a small claims case against the contractor,
but that depends on what you have in writing, witnesses to
connversations, and what was actually agreed to.