New house horrors...

[somethingshiny]

Well, hello there, strangers!

So the closing and the move went super-smooth. I had everything micro-organized and it only took 4 hours from when the Uhaul was at my door until the Uhaul was at the Uhaual place. Seemed like everything was going great.

Then, it happened. Water in the basement. At first it was just a little clean water. So I called a plumber, 3 hours and 300 dollars later, I had potty water in the basement. The first plumber said he did all he could do. SO I call a second plumber, 1 hour and 200 dollars later, the water starts leaving my basement (after I had been unable to shower or use water at all for nearly 2 days. And, I had been ankle deep in potty water, not MY potty water mind you, since we had just moved in...)Anyway, so I had been using a shop vac and sump pumps to try to drain the basement. Also, keep in mind that we downsized BIG time moving to this house so I had lots of real furniture in the basement in addition to all the "storage" items.

Okay, so finally the second plumber got things in apparent working order. I start demo-ing the hall bathroom (which turned out really cute) and 4 days later, what should occur?? More potty water in the basement of course! Because, what says "welcome home" like that smell-du-jour! We finally were able to use some water but i have to be really careful about laundry and anything that uses large amounts of water at once. Our yard will have to be dug up and we are already freezing here, so it has to wait until Spring.

I talked to an attorney about the situation to see if the seller had any responsibility. (she left the shop vac I was using and a plunger, Drano, and a box fan right next to the drain that was backing up.) But, of course, she has no responsibility because she denies there was ever a problem.

Additionally, during the move we had no apparent casualties (due to my fine packing process, I''m sure). However, the second day we were here, we had the cable guy come over to get us all hooked up. Somehow my computer had been damaged and wouldn''t work at all. The silver lining in that is that my FIL works on computers, so yesterday he got me a working .

So, I''m glad to be back online, and kinda glad to be moved in, but DANG am I tired!!

 

[Skippy123]

Somethingshiny, I am so sorry about what happened. Oh gosh, that is horrible. I am sending you a huge hug!!! Did you have a home inspection before you bought? We personally were leery of home inspections and used a structural engineer (he was expensive) but he found things in several houses we almost bought. Darn, I am sorry and pray things work out and you find a good plumber!!

 

[dragonfly411]

somethingshiny - I''m sorry this is happening to you! I would see if you can find out if there is a way for the plumbers to confirm that this was a preexisting problem and contact a lawer about it. There is NO REASON this should be happening after you just purchased

 

[MonkeyPie]

Oh that SUCKS somethingshiny :/ I am so angry for you! That really seems shady, is there no way for the plumbers to be able to check how long the issue has been going on for? Like old water stains or anything?

 

[geckodani]

Oh no!

Let me ask my law student hubby that is learning real estate stuff if there''s anything you can do!

 

[Kaleigh]

Date: 10/27/2008 12:43:30 PM
Author: dragonfly411
somethingshiny - I''m sorry this is happening to you! I would see if you can find out if there is a way for the plumbers to confirm that this was a preexisting problem and contact a lawer about it. There is NO REASON this should be happening after you just purchased

That''s a good idea. I am so sorry somethingshiny!! I''d also talk to the listing agent, and your realtor.

She left behind a shop vac, fan drano etc... That alone says she knew of the problem and was only too happy tp pass it on to you!! That''s horrible.

 

[joflier]

That sucks. We had a similar experience a couple years ago when we moved in. What a headache, but we didn''t have any legal rights either, because it was a bankowned home, and had been vacant for many months (plus its almost 100 years old). Hopefully things get sunnier from here for ya!

 

[geckodani]

DH Says:

Real Estate is a State Law thing, and she''d need to talk to a lawyer in her state.

But, in MI, for residential, the seller has to fill out this checklist about preexisting problems, and sign it. If one crops up later, and there''s obvious evidence that they knew about it, you can sue them.
In extreme cases, you could rescind the purchase, if it amounts to a constructive eviction.

 

[2Artists]

That is sooooo yucky on so many levels. I am so sorry you are dealing with that. Ankle deep potty water-now there is a truly scary Halloween decoration. Sending positive vibes your way!


Mrs.2Artists

 

[fleur-de-lis]

I checked your old posts to contextualize the time frame, and it is a correct statement to say that you closed on October 10, 2008? You''ve only been in your new house for a couple of weeks?

I''d start with asking the attorney who represented you in the home sale, because s/he would be familiar with both the relevant real estate law in your state and the documents (including seller representations) executed in the transaction.

Irrelevant of the legal issues, you have my sympathies- I can easily imagine how frustrating (and disgusting!) the last few weeks have been in your new, much-eagerly-anticipated home.

f-d-l

 

[somethingshiny]

Thanks, everyone for your posts.

We closed on the house on Wed Oct.8, moved in Saturday the 11th, and potty water was coming up Tuesday the 14th. Wednesday the first plumber came, Thursday the second plumber came. All was well on Friday through Tuesday of this past week. Then, it all happened again.

So, yes, we had problems within the first week of owning the house. We''ve only lived here for 2 weeks.

The attorney I contacted said we had circumstantial evidence but nothing that would actually make the case. He told me to do some investigating to see if any plumber had told her about the issue while she resided here, and to see if the person who sold it to her told her of any issues. No luck so far. Although, the second plumber I had come in knew everything about the plumbing in this house because he had been here so much under a previous owner (the family who owned the house before the lady who sold it to us). I''ve contacted my realtor and she is adament that she would never sell a property with any problems. Yeah, so an entire yard needs dug up and replaced because of 3 days of my family?? Arrgh!

It''s just more of my luck! For those of you who didn''t know, Dh and I bought a "new to us" car in June. Less than two months later the car left me and our little boy stranded during a horrible storm in the country. The motor needs replaced and it doesn''t run. SO, we''ve been paying on a giant paper weight for a couple months too.

I don''t usually pity myself so much...just really irked.

We are a very blessed family and I should be counting those instead of recounting the potty water incidents.

 

[Elmorton]

Wow...bigtime no fun. Hugs, SS!

 

[fleur-de-lis]

Date: 10/27/2008 3:54:31 PM
Author: somethingshiny
...
The attorney I contacted said we had circumstantial evidence but nothing that would actually make the case. He told me to do some investigating to see if any plumber had told her about the issue while she resided here, and to see if the person who sold it to her told her of any issues. No luck so far. Although, the second plumber I had come in knew everything about the plumbing in this house because he had been here so much under a previous owner (the family who owned the house before the lady who sold it to us)....

I wonder if there was anything in the seller''s disclosure forms from the once-removed prior owner to the owner who sold it to you. If she had been notified and not fixed issues, you might have the seeds of a seller-fraud suit to use as leverage to get the seller to pay for the fix. (Had the person from whom you purchased the house lived there, or was she a flipper? Until how recently had the second plumber been "the plumber of that house"?)

Under the "doing some investigating" rubric, have you spoken to your new neighbors to see if any of them had noticed a plumber''s van during the last owner''s tenancy, and/or if they happened to remember who she had used a a plumber? You never know-- one of them may have recommended their own plumber, and with the name of the plumber, you could get some of the prior history.

Ugh... what a hassle. Good luck, and I hope your research yields some success for you shortly.

f-d-l

 

[somethingshiny]

FDL~ Thanks for your suggestions and help of researching this. The plumber had last been here around 5 years ago right before the lady bought the house. She lived here for the full 5 years. I''ve asked the neighbors if they knew anything about a plumber coming or the lady taking her laundry to the mat or anything, but she worked an odd shift. So, if she had any comings or goings that would be tell-tale, it would have been while the neighbors were at work.

The only form that is consistently used regarding these issues is a statement that you have to present and sign. Hers said that the basement becomes "damp during heavy rains". Every basement in this town gets damp during heavy rains, so that wasn''t a big deal. But, obviously she knew what was going on and was trying to do a cover-up.

 

[movie zombie]

its a false sense of security having the seller sign off on one of those disclosure forms. there are so many ways to word things and the legal costs can exceed the $ and inconvenience of the situation.

i''m glad you had no closing problems but so sorry to hear about this problem. think of it this way: you''re getting all the bad luck out of the way and 2009 is going to be problem free.

movie zombie

 

[Elmorton]

Wait...but you have inches of sewer water? Damp and inches are not the same thing... I know what MZ said is true, that a suit would probably cost more, etc...ugh. Yuck.

 

[somethingshiny]

Yes, inches. Horrible, terrible, disgusting inches of filthy rotten stink water.

I already had 3 rugs laid in the basement, and they are obviously ruined. Most of the boxes I had on the floor were the assorted glassware and plastics from the overflow of kitchen stuff. Unfortunately, my fairly new dining table (that didn''t fit upstairs) is also in the basement but I''m unable to get to it and check it. I have a horrible feeling that it''s going to be damaged. I''ve been taking pictures of everything so if I need to file a claim I can.

But, MZ''s right. No more sh!t from here on out! LITERALLY!!

 

[Vintage_Glamour]

Did you have the house inspected after you went into escrow?

 

[~*Snow*~]

Date: 10/27/2008 4:40:33 PM
Author: fleur-de-lis

Date: 10/27/2008 3:54:31 PM
Author: somethingshiny
...
The attorney I contacted said we had circumstantial evidence but nothing that would actually make the case. He told me to do some investigating to see if any plumber had told her about the issue while she resided here, and to see if the person who sold it to her told her of any issues. No luck so far. Although, the second plumber I had come in knew everything about the plumbing in this house because he had been here so much under a previous owner (the family who owned the house before the lady who sold it to us)....

I wonder if there was anything in the seller''s disclosure forms from the once-removed prior owner to the owner who sold it to you. If she had been notified and not fixed issues, you might have the seeds of a seller-fraud suit to use as leverage to get the seller to pay for the fix. (Had the person from whom you purchased the house lived there, or was she a flipper? Until how recently had the second plumber been ''the plumber of that house''?)

Under the ''doing some investigating'' rubric, have you spoken to your new neighbors to see if any of them had noticed a plumber''s van during the last owner''s tenancy, and/or if they happened to remember who she had used a a plumber? You never know-- one of them may have recommended their own plumber, and with the name of the plumber, you could get some of the prior history.

Ugh... what a hassle. Good luck, and I hope your research yields some success for you shortly.

f-d-l

I second FDL.

Ask the neighbores if they ever lent a sub-pimp to them, or used to help them bail out the water/waste. I know in Canada Title Insuracen is pretty much manditory here, did you happen to get it before you bought the house?

 

[somethingshiny]

Date: 10/27/2008 10:39:03 PM
Author: Vintage_
Did you have the house inspected after you went into escrow?

The inspection wasn''t in depth and didn''t look into the sewer at all, just general electric, heater, upstairs plumbing, roof, that type of stuff. Our real estate agent made it sound like we had everything we needed through that inspection. And, honestly, it never crossed my mind that someone would not disclose the information about such a severe problem. Apparently I''m naive.

 

[Diamond*Dana]

Ugh, this sucks! How rotten of her if she is indeed trying to do a cover up here, that is so not cool! I am so sorry that this is happening to you!

 

[asscherisme]

Ugg, I''m so sorry about your issues. Raw sewage is the WORST!!! I had a raw sewage back up in my basement this year and it was awful!!

I hope you get it settled and taken care of soon. What an awful thing to deal with in your new home.

If you have not already, please call a company that speacializes in cleaning up the damage to make the space safe. Raw sewage can be really dangerous and cause disease and mold issues. We had a company come in and clean it up. They are usually listed inthe phone book under water damage companies. Our plubmer recommended a really great company.