Water having been turned off before Inspection?

So i just got the call from my guy who did the building/pest inspection on a property, and first thing he told me was that the water had been turned off by the owners before he arrived. The property is owners occupied so its even more strange that they turned it off, and i must say i agree with my inspector when he said that surely there must be a reason as to why they had turned the water off before he arrived? That's along with him mentioning that the bathroom has not had any waterproofing done.

I tried calling the agent, he still hasn't responded to any of my calls or messages. Very curious to see what he has to say about the water being turned off.

Has anyone else ever come across this before?

 

The water is turned on/off at a tap out the front on the meter ... wonder why he didn't simply turn it back on to do the inspection

 

did he turn it on??

 

Was the inspector there with the agent? Who authorised the inspector to enter the premises? Either agent or owner? Did the inspector ask them why it was off? Probably would have been a good question to ask while he was there.

 

fear of the unknown...plus they tend not do invasive inspections and state as much as in their terms.
I agree with what the inspector did, informed the customer and follow up with the real estate.
From all accounts, sounds fishy OR they are extremely stingy and don't want pay for 50c of water usage.

 

Nope, he didn't turn it on. His reasoning was that they don't turn the water on themselves (if its off) in the case that there is potential leaks, in that case it would be their responsibility for flicking it back on. Like i said, this is something i haven't come across before and it just sounds really fishy. Still waiting for the agent to get back to me so i can ask him what the hell is going on.

And the inspector was there with a representative of the agency, and when my inspector asked him about why the water was off it seemed like he didn't really care or pay much attention to the issue. It wasn't the agent i've been dealing with (probably some dude the agency sent to just walk through and open/close)

 

So I just got through to him, and he pulled the whole "I don't if anyone is living there permanently, let me chase it up" so I asked him directly whether or not the property actually has a water leak or not, not that he knows of he said. Kind of stumped as to what to do, I'm not really that keen on paying for my inspector to head out there again for a second time. The agent obviously has to disclose to me, whether or not the property actually has a water leak problem or not if I ask, but he's not really giving me a straight answer.

 

Sometimes vendors will turn water off or not use a particular bathroom (if there is more than one in the house) to let it dry out if it has been leaking. It would be right to suspect they are trying to hide something IMO.

 

Only if he knows is he obliged to tell you.

 

You could go for an inspection yourself and turn the water on and see.
But you may not be able to tell if it has something to do with the shower unless you run it for a while.

 

They only have one actual bathroom which only adds to my suspicion, also i spoke to the agent again just before because i asked him to chase it up. And he returned with the vendors were doing "drainage work" leading up to the sale of the property which was roughly around 2-3 weeks ago hence why it might have been switched off. Which again, doesn't make any sense as to why it was turned off at 9.30am in the morning. Based on what i saw when i walked through the property when i was up there clearly people were living there and when i spoke to him in regards to booking in the inspection which was quite last minute he told me he had to double check with the vendor. If the property was vacant i don't think there would be any need to actually confirm times with vendor. Something isn't adding up.

Yeah but surely that not something a vendor will keep out of the agents knowledge? Specially if you ask them a direct question like that they are legally obliged to disclose, In most states where disclosures are mandatory, water leakage of any type, including in basements are included. I mean unless they find someone who buys that property without a proper inspection there is no way that will go unnoticed anyways i don't think, so what point in acting stupid if the property actually did have water leaks and risk possible legal repercussions?

I wish it was that easy, i live in Melbourne and the property is in Brisbane. Besides like you said, unless you let it run for a longer period of time i don't really think you will be able to tell anything anyways.

 

If it looks like a fish and smells like a fish.... Then it's a fish.

The fact there is no waterproofing should be enough alarm bells.

But if you really want the property then pay for the inspector to go out again and make sure the water will turned on. If he finds problems then start negotiating $$ off. Or run.

 

I'd go there with the agent, have the water meter turned on and watch it for 10 minutes to see if it moves, If it's moving then you know there is a leak.

 

Exactly right. Agent tried telling me that they didn't use to do waterproofing back then, the house is circa 40 years old but my inspector is quite certain that bathroom isn't the original and it's quite recent and who ever re-did it just didn't do waterproofing.

Anyways, positive news is that I've managed to organize my inspector to head back down to the property without charge just to check it again with the water on. I'll see how that goes, then make my decision. If that comes back all clear, I'll still be seeking an adjustment on the price based on a couple of other things I've come across in the report.

Also, when i spoke to the agent last time today he kind of let it slip that the owners are actually going through a separation/divorce which he actually never mentioned before despite me asking previously why they were selling (told me they were moving interstate). Information ill happily be using if/when i give them my revised offer, don't judge me

 

I agree. That is really suspicious! Def something I would look into more.

It really isn't normal? Surely most buyers would be alarmed by this? What are they playing at?

 

I'm reliably informed that the tap just wasn't his type.

 

Good to know he hasn't been drinking

 

So i had an extensive chat to my inspector who believes the property has def had some water damage at some point or maybe even current. There's signs of water damage on timber/walls, patched up and repainted areas around/under the bathroom in question. Broken tiles in the bathroom also shows that there's no waterproofing to be seen. I mean, on a 40 year old property having an inspection coming back with fair few problems was always expected but the water damage to the sub floors/timber which has caused rotting is really putting me off. I personally believe the property still has a current leak also, their just being way to fishy. I will find out once my inspector goes back on Monday to check it again.

I think one of the other major reasons why its having issues with rotten timber in different places of the property is the air-con and hot water units not being properly drained and are instead releasing water alongside or near the building walls. Their seemingly not even properly connected, how does that even work? These vendors are begging for water damage seemingly or they just have no clue. Ridiculous.

 

The owners apparently were quite shocked when they found out about all those issues in the report according to the agent, in regards to rotting in the timber/sub floors. The consistency in that inspection report in terms of possible/previous water damage is whats alarming, moisture reading alongside that bathroom wall was high, walls adjacent along that hallway had been patched up and repainted. Sub floors/timber underneath bathroom rotten to an extent but have dried up, will still need replacing though. Even if the property might not have a current water leak, it def has in the past.

Vendors are so surprised at the results of the report they are getting their own plumber out there on Monday to get a second opinion. If obviously, hypothetically speaking my guy goes there on Monday and confirms that there is no current water leak, i will consider requesting the vendors to get all those issues fixed including replacing all sub floors that need replacing, waterproofing the bathroom and also discussing an adjustment in price, then see how we go.

Also agent told me today while speaking to him in regards to all this, "you are overthinking the situation" which to me, came across as absolutely ridiculous, even rude. I had to pause, i was speechless for a moment or two after he said that. Unbelievable.