All Forum Posts by: John Clark

"And as far as the work he's already done(drywall/floors), since there is no recent permits for plumbing or electrical., is it safe to assume that work will have to be taken out to be inspected?"

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Why are you asking me? Ask the seller for the permits and the inspection reports. If he won't give them to you, then why would you continue to deal with him?

"However when I asked when the inspection would take place, he responded that he was unsure. Is this normal or should the city have given him an inspection date on his court date yesterday(8/27)."

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When he gets the work done he will set up a specific inspection time with the building department. Make sure you are there when everything is inspected, tell the inspector who you are, and ask if there are any more outstanding violations OR any more needed inspections.

@Lydia S.

"She states this is an REO, in which case there is no Mr. or Mrs. seller, it's a bank or institution. Buyers won't have any luck calling them up and asking to speak about this property when it's listed through an agent."

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I've never had a problem calling a bank and asking for the REO manager's name and address. Telling that person that the agent is not passing on offers always got me a response from the bank. With any luck, the broker/agent got a kick in the arse as well.

"Can I bypass him and go straight to the seller ? No one will tell me the sellers name."

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The county recorder of deeds will have the deed showing who has title.That's easy. You can submit your offer directly to the owner, but you probably will still see a commission charge, as the seller has an agreement with the agent. Don't think you can get away with offering less because the offer went directly to the seller. Make sure you let the seller know in a short, curteous, letter, that your prior offers were being ignored by his agent.

I agree with the others who said to do the repairs yourself and put the house into turn key condition. Repairs are always an excuse to not buy. Remove the excuse. Will you necessarily get your money back? No. The house will sell faster, however, and time is money. People don't want to pay top dollar in a neighborhood and then have to deal with the disruption of repairs. It's not always a direct dollars and cents issue.

From what I gather, the description in the MLS isn't helping either.

"He/she should be able to do typical repairs (woodworking, painting, tuck-pointing, light electrical & plumbing, etc). Looking to spend around $20 to $25 per hour for the right person. "

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LOL -- Not going to happen. Tuckpointing requires setting up scaffolding, then cleaning and pointing, and then tear down scaffolding. First, you're not doing that in an 8-hour week. Second, you're not doing that for $25 an hour.

Then you have to define "light electrical" and "light plumbing." Replacing a flap in a running toilet? Sure. Replace the toilet? Meh, I can see it. Find and solder a leak? Nope. Replace a fan/light combo? Maybe, but he'd need an assistant most likely. Add a new outlet? Nope. Not at $25 an hour.

Then define "woodworking" please.

Here's my philosophy regarding employment. People work WITH you, not FOR you. Unless you share the wealth (pay them well), you get lousy workers.

Go to the web sites for the Cook County treasurer and the Cook County assessor. Should be able to find information there.

" so what’s the ideal way to come out it so that I don’t get into legal troubles? "

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First, see a lawyer BEFORE you do anything. Tell him your plan and approach (strategy and tactics) and ask him what pitfalls you have to be wary of. Laws vary by state, and there are situations and exceptions to every law/rule/guide you can come with. That means you start with the lawyer.

Second, I DO like Noorden's practice of telling the seller that he might assign the contract. Transparency is best. Just accept the fact that if you can't assign and you don't buy, you have lost your earnest money. Don't whine about it.

Third, see a lawyer BEFORE . . .

Fourth, accept the golden rule -- if you think you won't be bound to buy as a general matter should you feel like it -- and draft a contract accordingly -- then don't whine when the seller feels that he's not bound to sell as a general matter should he feel like it. 'Cuz I got dollars to doughnuts that a judge will let the seller say "here's your earnest money, I'm selling to someone else" even if you assigned your so-called "contract" to a third party.

Fifth, see a lawyer BEFORE . . .

And when all is said and done, see another lawyer for a second opinion.

"If I put in my contract that I can cancel the contract at any time for any reason what so ever, I am covered."
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Wrong. If you put into your contract that you can cancel for any reason whatsoever, without loss of anything on your part, then the contract is a sham contract because there is no reciprocal obligation, no reciprocal consideration. Sham contracts are not contracts, which means you run the risk of assigning a "contract" to a third party while the seller sells to a fourth party, and defends his action on the grounds that you never entered into a contract to purchase. Then you just bought a whole lot of trouble with your assignee.

You might be able to limit your liability to your deposit, but that's an obligation. It also means that the contract wasn't "cancelled." Words have meaning. People rely -- right, wrong, or indifferent -- on what posters post and the words they use. You made the whole contract-with-assignability seem trite. It's not. Cavalier attitudes get people in trouble

I know, I am a lawyer, with over 30 years experience, and I've had to dig people out of transactions such as you describe. Get paid very well for it, too.

Your approach to such transactions shows that you're playing with fire. That's not a nice thing to do when a newbie asks for advice.

"Also, when I was on the phone with the water company last week, they will only put the water in the name of the person listed on the deed. "

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Yup. That's why I said to have all bills go to you. Only way Water Department will do it. Just cover the first $Z dollars on each bill (as I described) and make the tenant responsible for the overage.