Legal Question in Real Estate Law in Pennsylvania

Seller giving money to buyer

I live in a historic district of a city which is currently on an upward revitalizing trend. My neighborhood consists of many Victorians (currently in various stages of rehabilitation). We own a semi and want to purchase a single family home in the same neighborhood. However while we can afford the initial monies for the home purchase ( a house owned by a neighbor) we will not have a lot of cash on hand to do alot of the necessary repairs initially (due to adoption expenses we had for our baby this year).

They are asking $125,000 for the house (fair to low for the comps in the area). Is it possible to give them $160,000 for the property and then after settlement have them pay us $35,000 back (not having any of this as an addendum for the sale, just a seperate personal agreement)? This way we thought we could start the important repairs and make the house more livable and comfortable, and a possibilty for us. Thank your for your time.


Asked on 6/28/05, 5:31 am

1 Answer from Attorneys
Mark Johns Mark Johns, Esquire

Re: Seller giving money to buyer

With mortgage banking competition the way it is, if you can get an appraisal at 160 then some way you should be able to get the extra money for repairs. Without further details I would caution against what might be described as a kickback. You should be uprfront as the mortgage company would welcome repairs/upgrades which would increas the value of the collateral for the loan.

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Answered on 6/28/05, 5:54 am


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