Building report Perth-what can I do?

Hi

My nephew has just put an offer on a property subject to a building report. Though there are no structural issues the report has highlighted a few issues such as loose wiring in the roof space, leaking taps, dampness in the walls, broken tiles in the roof, sagging eaves etc.

In WA is it possible to ask the seller to remedy these defects or maybe ask for a reduction in price before we proceed with the purchase? I am just concerned that as these are not major structural issues the seller may have the right to refuse.

 

It's still worth asking (if you don't ask, you don't get).

You could also try asking the building inspector to give a quote on how much it would cost to remedy the defects and base a revised offer on that. Your nephews solicitor/conveyancer should be able to advise him on the offer procedure as well.

 

How was the Subject To worded in the contract? Depending on how the contract was written the Seller may or may not be asked for remediation/compensation.

Was it a worded clause or did they use the REIWA annexure for Structural Reports. Both may produce different outcomes.

 

You really have to decide if you wish to proceed or not.

If not, crashing the contract will depend on the wording of the relevant clause.

If you wish to proceed, by all means reduce your offer. But the vendor is not obliged to accept your amended price, and is entitled to stick to the price on the contract.

Any house a few years old or more is likely to have a few minor problems. If this is an issue for you, you may be best to buy a new property.
Marg

 

It was worded as per the REIWA annexure. So not sure what the outcome will be. Perhaps we need to clarify with the settlement agent? We don't intend crashing the contract but hope the seller will act in good faith and remedies some of the issues.

 

More than likely the seller could see these issues and they are already built into the price.

 

Yep. You need to look at the contract. If you are not sure a few dollars spent now on legal advice may save thousands in the long run.

 

The annexure is quite comprehensive and is unlikely to cover the items you listed but some of the items you listed might be covered by different clauses.

Was there a clause that says "seller warrants that all plumbing, electrical and gas is in working order at time of settlement" or similar? That should cover you being able to ask for the leaking taps to be fixed and might cover loose electrical wiring

Sagging eaves would have been visible at inspection and offer so not sure you can ask for those to be fixed.

The damp issues don't come under the Structural clause unless the inspector says they are caused by a structural issue.

There really is no "good faith" in this situation. Some items will be visible (eaves and possible damp bubbling) and some not and an offer carries an amount of risk when putting it in. You can ask for a discount and it might be met with simple refusal and you may have to accept that - but depending on the seller they might offer some reduction. Follow the advice of your lawyer handling the settlement

 

I have spoken to the Settlement agent and the guy that did the structural/building report. Fortunately the issues that have been highlighted are not of major concern

Firstly my sincere thanks for your detailed and painstaking response. Yes there was a clause warrantying plumbing, electrical and gas. The settlement agent has advised that the warranty is for fixtures being in working order. So for instance a leaking tap is considered in working order as long as it is enables water flow notwithstanding the leak.

The coveyancer has also advised that it is better for us to ask the seller's agent directly for a reduction rather than it coming officially through her firm as it may immediately put them on the defensive and less inclined to agree. We will try this approach and see how it goes.

On another issue with the Estate Agent...we tried to put the offer as "Building inspection to our satisfaction" but the Estate Agent insisted we fill in the REIWA style annexure. I was wondering if shouldn't have been more insistent on not agreeing to sign the annexure?