Homebuyer In The Dark
REM # F662
By Ilyce R. Glink
Summary: A home buyer agrees to let the seller remove all the light fixtures from their new home. After learning that the fixtures came from the original builder, not the seller, the buyer is upset. Ilyce suggests to never agree to a seller's demand without speaking to an attorney or agent.
Q: The home seller told me that he purchased all light fixtures and ceiling
fans in the property and that he was going to removed them when the property
sold and take them with him to the new house.
About a year after I purchased the property, I found out that all the homes that were built in my community came with all light fixtures and ceiling fans.
Do I have any recourse against the seller since he lied to me and removed fixtures
that should have remained on property?
A: Let's see. The seller tells you he's going to leave you in the dark and you
say that's okay.
It's a bad deal on your part, but perhaps the price you paid for the home was
low enough that you felt like you were getting a good deal despite the fact
that you would have to spend hundreds of dollars buying light fixtures.
Now you find out the home originally came with ceiling fixtures and fans and
you're mad because the seller said he paid for them and he really didn't.
Unfortunately, while lying in this case is bad behavior, but I don't think it's
actually against the law.
There is no recourse for exercising poor judgment, which is what you exhibited
when you agreed to the seller's silly demand. At the very least, you should
have insisted that if he was going to take the fixtures and ceiling fans, he
replace them with ones of comparable quality.
But since you did agree to this deal, and I'm sure this was written into the
contract, you're out of luck.
Next time, simply say "no," and see how the seller responds. My guess
is he'll back off. Or, ask a real estate attorney (or your agent) what is commonly
done in the area.
If you want to check on whether you have legal options, you'll need to speak
to a competent real estate attorney.
NOTE: This column is distributed by Real Estate Matters Syndicate, PO Box 366, Glencoe, Illinois, 60022. This column may not be resold, reprinted, resyndicated or redistributed without written permission from the publisher.
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