Vandalized and water damage after going under contract

[Ed Yoo]

I closed on a first primary property last week in this crazy market. I felt pretty lucky since the seller would accept offer before the weekend and only had to go through bidding with one other buyer. I was also told that soon after we went under contract the seller received a back up offer that is 30k higher than mine which puts me at a position where I won't be able to negotiate much.

The following Monday when inspection and appraisal was scheduled, I got a call from my agent informing me that the property had been vandalized over the weekend, resulting in a broken window, vanity from the main bathroom torn off which caused flooding from the first floor to crawl space and into the basement. I had little grasp of the extent of the damage but when we went to go see the property later that day, first floor looked relatively okay from water damage but it was the basement that had been entirely flooded. All new engineered flooring in the basement had been removed in order to dry it out. No idea why anyone would go through tearing off vanity and take it over all the new appliances that were there. This is probably the worst outcome possible from someone breaking in.

I'm not aware of the extent of the damage nor if the property can be fixed to the level of finish and quality as when we went under contract. Remediation is to take about a week and seller will be providing all invoices and services done, and keep us in as close communication as possible. Right now I can only hope to find out as much as we can through inspection and not sure how I can compare the state of the property before and after at this point.

I would describe the current situation as the property had gone through a flip so the seller is probably motivated to sell asap. By the time we get inspection report we will be about two weeks into contract. I need a home before end of March.

My question is, given all the circumstances, what is the best course of action as a buyer? Can I find out if the back up offer still stands? How can I make sure fix is done well and there won't be lasting damages? Is there room to negotiate the offer price? Is this enough of a reason to walk away?