I dont have time to address it all but I did answer that yes he had a full physical inspection by a licensed general contractor. The pluming checked out fine at the time. I agree its easier to fix plumbing on a raised foundation but that assumes you know of the problem. With a slab a plumbing leak is readily apparent as the water comes up through the flooring. With a raised foundation it can leak beneath the house undetected for years.
Had he bought up in NC in his price range he would not have bought new he most likely would have bought a 1970’s or 1980’s home. He would be down perhaps $100K but would not have had MR and in most cases no or a small HOA. His 1st mortagge most likely would not be underwater nor would he have spent over $30K fixing structural problems. He would have had that to upgrade the home.
Whether you “think” he was unhappy the entire time he lived there is meaningless. He told me he was. Its funny you dont think those issues are uncommon or deal killers. I doubt you could find a single person on this board who would agree. The house became unhabitable and a city inspector said no permits would be issued for any work until the chimney was repaired. That would be require him spending in excess of $20K and it would have had to come out of his pocket.
I’ll just skip to the end because I cant bear to read all of it. The problems were neither foreseeable nor preventable. He was not counseled to walk he was utterly defeated by this house. I only listed some of the issues that came up and are common in homes of this age. Contrary to what you espouse they are not perfect for everyone. Despite his best efforts he was unable to keep throwing money into a never ending pit while sacrifcing the health and well being of his family. He had purchase money loans and took advantage of the leverage he had to admit defeat and move on. He did his best and I dont think a person in the world except you would blame him. More factually he falls so far outside the deadbeat, tax lien, credit card lien model you lump all distressed sellers into. How can you keep denying that.
