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Updated almost 7 years ago on . Most recent reply

Account Closed
  • Real Estate Agent
  • Arlington
100
Votes |
162
Posts

Inspection results: when to walk away?

Account Closed
  • Real Estate Agent
  • Arlington
Posted

Hi BP community,

Once the inspection has been done, when do you walk away from a deal? I know there's no one answer to that but I'm facing that as I evaluate a fourplex opportunity.

It's a brick building that is fully leased.  Cash flows very well and it is priced reasonably for the market (if one were to assume no deferred maintenance). The building is around 100 years old.

However, the inspection flagged some significant issues:

The basement/crawlspace area is host to the bulk of the problems.

-  Basement has an obvious moisture problem.

-  Subfloors are saturated with moisture at some parts, leading to wood rot, fungus/mold, and obvious safety issues.

-  The floor unit above the basement's problem site has a concerning issue with floor sloping/alignment. This seems connected to the issue with the subfloors.

-  The electric wiring is a mess in the basement. There are at times exposed wires and knob and tube wiring (that doesn't seem to be carrying a current, but should definitely not be there).  There is also an issue with corrosion due to the moisture problem.

In my opinion, these are structural issues that call into question the building's integrity. However, I want to see if somewhat normal to encounter issues like these where a possible solution could be made by the seller hiring a structural engineer and electrician. Have you guys encountered results like this and still moved forward, or did you walk away? Thanks!

Most Popular Reply

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806
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Bryan Devitt
  • Contractor
  • Oxford, MA
744
Votes |
806
Posts
Bryan Devitt
  • Contractor
  • Oxford, MA
Replied

You walk away when the numbers don't make sense anymore. As stated by others, get professionals in, get prices to fix it all, add a solid margin for error and hidden issues and then give them your new number. It is all math, when math doesn't work, you move on to a place where it does work

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