HeyBub wrote:

Buying a house is NOT "Buyer Beware!" Look at the papers -- there should be
one stating the seller in unaware of any problems not mentioned in the
documents. The purpose of an inspection is to discover problems NOT KNOWN to
the seller.

If the seller knew of a problem that he did not disclose and such problem
caused the buyer to experience an unanticipated expense, the seller has
perpetrated a fraud upon the buyer. Slam, dunk, black-letter law.

I sure wouldn't eat over $6,000 worth of repairs foisted on me by a sneaky,
corrupt, goblin of a seller! I'd sue that sonofabitch and everybody he ever
knew!

Moreover, since you can PROVE he knew about the crappy plumbing, it is
reasonable to assume he knew about the crappy fireplace, the crappy wiring,
the crappy roof, the crappy foundation, the crappy carpet pads, the crappy
crabgrass, and generally everything crappy on your side of town.

In legal parlance, he does not "have clean hands."

Trust me on this: He's a goner. He, or his homeowner's insurance, will
settle for big bucks.

You should just hope he hasn't left town.



Our lawyer does think it's a legit case, unfortunately, the cost puts us
into small claims court, even if I add in the $200 I paid to get the
stove and dryer fixed as well (they were included as part of the sale).
And our understanding is they were divorcing and in need of the money to
do so, so I don't know that there will be any money left to get back
from them, as they were only here 3 years, so I can't imagine there was
much equity to get back.

Thanks for all the support and commiseration, everyone!

-Karen-