Condition Of Property Upon Transfer
Its an often overlooked status but one that maybe important for you to consider. Everyone who has ever been to college, or university, and found an apartment to rent for the academic year has found that how the apartment looks when there are shown round is seldom the same as when they move in.
The same can be said for the real estate housing industry; what the house looked like when you were shown round is not necessarily how it will look when you move in. To explain why this is you can use the following analogy.
As new university graduate in marketing, Tina is looking for her first job and is shown around a media company. The bosses are all friendly and the offices are swanky and full of sunshine. Tina is impressed and when offered the job eagerly accepts. The first day arrives and Tina comes to work full of energy. When she arrives at the office she notices that all the curtains are drawn, the office looks less than new and her desk is in the corner of a dark room with few people. To top it all off, in the place of the large dining area table she saw on her interview day, there now sits a cardboard box! Shocked Tina asks what happened to the nice atmosphere and feel of the place; not to mention the great offices. The answer she gets from a fellow colleague is that last week they were recruiting her and this week she has already signed the contract.
The moral of the story is what you see one day may not be the representation all the time. So if a house looks clean when you have a tour, don't expect the same condition when you buy it; it will probably be a complete mess.
Agree On Cleanliness Before Hand
The last thing that anyone wants is to move into a new home that they have to spend weeks cleaning and making livable. To avoid this it is important that you highlight specifically in the contract what you consider as minimum standards of cleanliness, housing condition and also what you see as belonging to the house; some people will literally rip light fixtures out of the ceiling if its not written in the contract.
You are entitled to ask for any specific conditions in your offer; whether you get what you want is a matter of negotiation on your part and the seller. Your realtor or real estate agent can help you with any negotiations.
If your not sure what to ask for think about what you would expect from a house, and also look around your house; however the major areas that you may wish to focus on a outlined below:
Curb appeal and the outside of the property
Curb appeal describes how the outside of the house looks. Generally if you are buying a house you would want the exterior to look relatively clean and tidy. You may wish to ask for the following to be carried out by the sellers, before you purchase the property:
Make sure that the lawn has been mowed Any flowers have been arranged neatly All weeds have been cleared away Resurface the driveway if it is in really bad condition Make sure all guttering has been cleaned Wipe down all exterior window and pains Clean out the garage Interior general cleaning
What To Discuss
If you want the house to be fit to live in when you move in then you should ask that the inside of the house be clean and tidy. Make a note to ask, or discuss the following with the sellers before finalizing the contract:
· Clean all the windows
· Dust all furniture that has been purchased with the property.
· Shampoo all the rugs
· Paint any stained walls
· Clean out the attic
· Thoroughly clean all the rooms, especially the bathroom and kitchen
Replace all worn fixtures and fittings
No one wants to move into a new house and find that the bathroom light is broken or that the door handle falls off in his or her hand. To guard against this make sure that the sellers do the following repairs:
Clean the areas thoroughly, with stain removers if necessary. Fix any leaking faucets Clean up any damaged areas Scrub all tiles Fix the toilet flush, if it is broken
Making all of the above demands is the first start, however you must remember that the sellers will not want to spend too much money on fixing things that seem minor to them, as they want to make as much of a profit as possible. You should negotiate by starting with what you absolutely must have clean and fixed and then work you r way down the list, compromising on this that you may not consider to essential.
You should also make sure that you know what items come with the property and what are legally the sellers. Your realtor of attorney will be able to explain what constitutes house property and individual property. These should be specified in the offer or contract, so that there is no miscommunication, meaning that when you move in you move exactly what you should have in the house, and its condition.
