Underground oil tank

[Mark Nemeth]

Looking at fix and flip with an existing underground oil tank. Property is being sold "as is" my question is how to handle the oil tank? Property is in NJ.

[Annette Hibbler]

Don't let anyone, not a seller or a bank try to convince you that they do not have to shell out 100% for the costs of removal of an underground oil tank. There is no way they will successfully sell that property to anyone until it is completed. Stick to your guns, the law is the law and all must comply with it.

I bought a house at auction.com early this year. It was a foreclosure. I knew that there was an underground oil tank and a possible contamination issue. In NJ, seller is liable for all costs related to removal and clean up. Banks like to think that if they sell it "as is" it somehow excludes them from this responsibility. I can assure you that is not the case.

We forced the bank to comply with the law and obtain a "No further action required" notice from the state. It took six months. What's more is that even after the tank had been removed and the cleanup conducted, one division of the bank didn't know about it at all and was still trying it on with us.

Finally, we called the state EPA and tracked down the notice ourselves. Once we got the go head from the state and sent a copy to the bank, they tried half a dozen times to cancel the closing hoping we'd give up and walk away. Why? Because now that the work was done they new they could relist the property for much more in the hopes of recouping their costs. Finally, after our lawyer threatened them with court action they gave in and we closed.

Selling "as is" does not mean they can evade the law in NJ. Don't fall for it.