[observer]

urbanrealtor,

The main reason we are considering walking away is because of the distrust. One might even argue that what the sellers did was fraud. For your perspective, they kicked out the inspector when he confronted them about all the damages! They have also done quite a few of un-permitted work, so we might get surprised with even more repairs. It is really frustrating when people ignore the evidence and blatantly lie.

[observer]

Depending on how much you love the lot.  If it’s in an older area, a similar lot might not come up often.  If you don’t mind buying another house that might not have the lot you want, then I would walk.  But if you’ll regret it in the future if it did sell for <$50k less than your offer, then I would buy it if it were me.

an, The only reason we are even considering this deal is the fear of future regret. Otherwise, there are 1000 compelling reasons to walk away. We are already overpaying by $100k based on two separate appraisals, and we also need to spend probably $150k on other repairs/rehab. The extra $50k-100k  in surprises is really hard to stomach. And the sellers are not willing to reduce the price even a dime. Regret is a two-sided coin: if we buy this property, there might come along a superior opportunity, and since we have burned our cash with this purchase, we will have lots of regret.

[observer]

Walk on. There’s probably even more you don’t know about

 

We are aware of the potential for more surprises and repairs, but we like the location and lot enough to put up with a crappy building. However, the expenses are starting to spiral out of control.

[observer]

They say there are other buyers at full asking price. I asked if they had told other buyers about these critical issues, they said “not yet.”

[observer]

[quote=gzz]My old carrier nationwide wanted to do wrap around for 7k total but state farm did a normal policy for 4k, despite it being a gigantic 6/6 house abutting an east county scrubby canyon. This also required switching my cars as their multipolicy discount is huge.

Now I am switching everything to state farm in gratitude.[/quote]

State Farm would only issue to existing policy holders. I would have to join them, and wait at least 3 years!

[observer]

[quote=profhoff]We were dropped by Chubb due to high fire risk. Fortunately, we were able to get a policy through State Farm. It’s very expensive, but so far, they are still offering homeowners’ insurance in the state.

Good luck. Our rates nearly tripled this year, but it’s more coverage than FAIR.[/quote]

Was it more expensive than FAIR?

[observer]

[quote=teaboy]
Ok, but then that is not driven just by the “very high fire risk”, since other homes in San Diego “very high fire risk” areas do get coverage.

If the “very high fire risk” is the reason you’re hearing for them denying you coverage, then that’s presumably just one of many factors influencing their decision.

Try hippo.com. I know mine went up 30% this year. Good luck!

tb[/quote]
I have tried Hippo as well, and they said “The policy is not eligible because of the proximity of this home to brush and/or wildfire prone areas.”

Thanks!

[observer]

The property is in the back counrty area of San Diego. I have tried Lemonade as well, and they said they won’t cover in that area. So far the only option is to have two policies, California Fair Plan bundled with a “wrap-around” policy, and it would cost ten times what we pay for our primary home!

[observer]

The areas with “very high” Fire Hazard Severity Zone on Wildfire Hazard Map.

[observer]

[quote=Pbranding]Sdr,
What’s going on with 2901 Segovia Way? Looks like it sold for 2.5 just last month and now on the market for 2.375?

Only a few homes away from that serbal home that sold for 3.325 but clearly not as nice… but if that’s not an example of home values going down I don’t know what is.[/quote]
It was bought by HomeLight it seems. I guess they made the offer before the market started to cool off. They just had layoffs too.

[observer]

The other issue is that second home mortgage rates are now similar to investment loan rates, very close to 6%! Just a few months ago they were under 3%. In some markets some of the price appreciation has been due to increased numbers of second home buyers.

[observer]

[quote=svelte]Not to freak you out, but some insurance companies avoid insuring homes that have had prior claims, even with other owners and insurers. You may want to check with your preferred insurer. I wouldnt mention the prior claim(s) but instead get a quote just to see if they balk.
[/quote]
I have got a quote from Geico already. They were also ready to send our file to the closing department. Is it possible that they would deny us when it’s time to close?

[observer]

[quote=bearishgurl]
Just curious, Canadian, does the house have a sunken living room oriented towards the rear of the house with large windows or 2 sliding glass doors facing the backyard? Is there a (flagstone?) foyer raised a step from the living room and at least 20′ wide? Does it have a double (French) front door? Is there a floor-to-ceiling brick or stone FP with a raised hearth between the two sliding glass doors or large windows?

I’m thinking of early/mid 70’s ranch-style houses which are only available in two (poss 3) zip codes in the City of SD that I know of. I absolutely LOVE this type of home which is far more prevalent in other southwestern states than SoCal. All the ceilings are a standard 8′ foot high and if there is a vault in the sunken LR, it is typically done in cedar and the vault is 18″ or less. (No “styrofoam” rough-hewn dark beams … that was a little later.)

Many ’70’s era ranch homes have great bones and a nice-sized lot! So, so unlike the econoboxes built on small lots in recent years.
[/quote]
It is not a ranch-style, but it has some of the features you mentioned like the french door, the fireplace, or the big yard.
[quote=bearishgurl]

Congrats on finding the home of your dreams! (Even if you have to remove accoustical ceiling, lol.) I think it’s pretty tough out there for today’s SD County buyers due to prospective equity sellers staying out of the market en masse.[/quote]

Thanks! It is not really a dream house; we had to compromise. But we are grateful that in this crazy market we found something that we can call home.

[observer]

[quote=bearishgurl]

If the leaks were from polybutylene pipe, you need to find out if ALL the plumbing between the walls was replaced with copper after the final payment to each affected homeowner in the state in the settlement of the class-action suit (1994).

If only the “visible” plumbing was replaced, or partial plumbing replaced in only the wall that burst, I would not buy the property.

Just my .02.

edit: Canadian, what is the exact year this home was built? This info will clarify things. Thx.[/quote]

Thanks a lot bearishgurl. The home was built in 1976, and the pipings are copper. The owner at the time of the repairs has passed away, and the insurance adjuster is not providing us with more details. It seems the leaks were mostly related to the bathroom.

I guess when you buy an old house you should expect to deal with these situations. But then what we look for in a house is hard to find in new constructions 🙂

[observer]

Thanks a lot CA renter for your comments. We did the inspection, and found just some minor issues. We know from the disclosures that several years ago some pipe leaks have been repaired and piad by the insurance. The fact that they happened long time ago and were handled by the insurance should put our mind at ease, we have been told.

[Author]

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