Legal Question in Real Estate Law in Massachusetts
Inspection Costs returned?
I made an offer on a home and it was accepted by the seller. The sale was contingent on a home inspection.
I had a structural inspection, a pest inspection and lead paint inspection. I was happy with all the results and decided to move forward with the purchase. At that point the agent had some ''bad news.''
Apparently, the owner grew ill in 1999 and had the home signed over to her 2 daughters under a Life Estate. The agent had no clue about the life estate and moved forward with listing the house with one seller, accepting the offer and allowing me to have it inspected.
One daughter is happy to sell the home the other had no intention on selling, and has gotten lawyers involved against the other sister and the mother (owner).
I've been told that the process could take up to a year and that I could sign a release form and get my good faith deposit back. My question is regarding my inspection cost. Legally, am I entitled to getting this back. Does the Agent owe me anything?
1 Answer from Attorneys
Re: Inspection Costs returned?
Unless you can show that the agent engaged in fraud or misrepresented facts, you probably do not have a claim against the agent. You need to consult the signed offer to purchase to determine if you are owed anything else besides your deposit. Generally, this is the only buyer's remedy in the event the buyer wants to get out of the contract. It would be the same situation if the inspection showed that the house had defects and you wanted to exercise your right to walk away from the deal. The inspection costs generally are paid for by the buyer and not reimbursed by the seller unless agreed upon in the offer to purchase (or purchase and sale agreement). You may or may not have a claim agains the mother for misrepresentation, however, it probably would not be worth incurring legal expenses and court costs to try to recover.
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