Legal Question in Real Estate Law in California

Do I have legal grounds to sue this seller?

My email was very emotional and I asked Miranda to come to the house to inspect this smell. On Saturday, 10.17.15, my agents visited my house and the smell was overwhelming. In an email to Miranda, Ken described the smell as "worst public restroom in subway station."

Neither Miranda nor the seller, John, have personally visited our house yet and it has now been 14 days. I found out from talking to my new neighbors that the house we bought was occupied by squatters just prior to being listed. I am livid as this information was not disclosed to us. John has insisted we use the company, AttiCare, he used to service the house which is still under warranty. I agreed but called AttiCare and asked if they did deep cleaning of hardwood floors or carpets and they stated they only clean and renovate the attic and crawlspace but do not do cleaning of any living spaces (hallways, closets, kitchens, bedrooms, living rooms, etc.). Miranda and John did not respond to me. Since AttiCare was unable to come until a later date (on 10.23.15 or 10.25.15), my agents scheduled an inspection with ServPro (a national fire and water cleanup and restoration company) for Tuesday, 10.20.15.

The ServPro technician's assessment was that all the floorboards in those two guest rooms and the closets in those rooms and the master closet would have to be replaced because the stench of ammonia is overpowering and has seeped into the unsealed cedar floors. The tech said the urine has most likely seeped down to the subfloor of the house and that the use of air fresheners and sprays, deodorizers would only mask the problem and be temporary solutions as the odor of urine would always remain until the flooring was either removed, cleaned and sanitized, then replaced or completed replaced with new wood.

When I relayed this information to Miranda, there was no response. On Sunday (10.25.15), she was supposed to come to the house with the AttiCare technician but didn't. The AttiCare technician assessed the work that AttiCare had previously done on the house (in the attic and the crawlspace) and stated there was not an issue with their previous work. He said the problem was most likely urine in the bedrooms and closets and that AttiCare does not do that kind of cleaning or renovation. He also used a UV Light to detect bodily fluids and found that while the walls and paint were a normal neon-blue color, the sealed wood floors in the closets and under the new carpet (which had been laid by the seller) showed with a bright yellow/green indicating there was bodily fluids there. He assumed it was urine because of the strong scent of urine in those rooms and closets.

In an effort to work with Miranda and John, I've given them plenty of time to come see and smell this issue but they have been very reluctant to accept responsibility. ServPro's estimates to fix this pre-existing issue is around $23,000 and John offered us $1,500 if we would sign a waiver releasing him of liability.

I have been filled with anxiety over this issue. It has been unbelievably stressful on me and my family. Is there a way I can make the seller properly address this issue?

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