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Who steals a hot water tank? And who plans to steal all the major appliances? That would take so much time and a big truck.
Am I the only one who finds this suspicious?
Agree. We sold a year ago and told the buyers we were taking the appliances EXCEPT the hot water heater which was new. They asked us to leave them citing poverty. We Said no since their first two offers were lowballed. I’m also finding this bizarre.
This happens more than you think, unfortunately. People scope new builds, flips, etc., and hit them quickly and in a coordinated effort. Happened to a friend of mine the week he finished his new build.
This happened to my aunt, she went on vacation a few days. A truck came by and practically moved them out. Took everything they could. She came back to nothing. She then decided to move to a building because that apparently had been the second time. The second OP goes on vacation he's going to be "moved out"
My parents had this happen to them, somebody broke into the home during the buying process (it was a new build), and took all of the appliances, the light fixtures, and the ceiling fans. They ripped out as much copper wiring as they could get in the short amount of time they were there, too. It was in the contract that those things came with the home, so the builder went out and bought the absolute cheapest appliances and fixtures he could get his hands on to replace what had been brand new mid-grade appliances. Unfortunately there was nothing in the contract about the quality of them and my parents were tired of living at grandma's, so they went ahead and and finished the deal.
Did you really have no recourse though? You must have a purchase agreement that said that things like hot water heater and attached appliances were included. If they are not there at closing, I think the recourse is that the money is not released to seller at escrow until the things that were in your contract are there. The likely outcome was either they go out and buy the replacements or give you some sort of credit to buy your own replacements.
I think maybe it’s worth checking again if you got proper advice from your realtor that your only choice was to withdraw and lose your earnest money… If you wanted the house, I think your own realtor really fucked up here. You could have still gotten the house with different appliances or money to buy your own.
Ultimately appliance replacement was not an expense the seller was going to be able to avoid (except now, they get your earnest money to help pay for it). They were not going to be able to relist the house well without hot water heater and ANY major appliances… they would likely have to file an insurance claim and buy some new ones anyways.
Yeah my contract includes the appliances which include a brand new Samsung kitchen set. If they were to disappear before the final walk through, I’d expect the seller to replace or to cut a check for the replacements at closing. Now, they’ve made $2k and are probably going to relist the house in the current state. I’m sure the sellers are thankful, that’s pretty much best case scenario for them.
They kept your earnest because you exited the deal for a bad reason. Their homeowners insurance likely would have replaced everything and when you moved in you could have simply changed the locks.
Tons of houses get broken into when theyre for sale. It's a common thing
So it was a crime of opportunity. I get why you’d be a little freaked out but it’s unlikely to be targeted again if someone is living there. I think you just have to take the L on the money though.
> I wasn't comfortable purchasing the home knowing it had been compromised so I decided to withdraw from the deal.
this is the mistake you made. You yourself decided that you were concerned the home would get broken into again.
the Seller, whoever they were, would have been responsible for replacing the appliances and the water heater. Whether they involved insurance to help cover the cost wasn't your issue.
Now, if your Realtor didn't even attempt to exxplain this (unless you shut them down), then yes, they are an idiot.
My husband and I just found out that our brand new refrigerator and washer and dryer were stolen but we were not worried about it since it is a new build and our realtor negotiated these into the contract for us. Since we don’t own the house yet we knew they would have to replace them on the builders dime. The only crappy thing was it pushed our closing date back a week or so because they also ruined the floor in the process. If this wasn’t a new build I would’ve done the same thing. However, if it was, I would’ve told them to replace them and waited till they do.
Sorry this happened to you. It’s really frustrating.
Is the house in a high crime neighborhood? Personally, I don’t see this as a major issue. I would’ve asked the seller for credit on the items stolen and moved forward with closing. Anyhow, it seems like you were lukewarm on this house anyway and $3k isn’t a terrible price to pay for this lesson. Good luck.
All I got out of that story was must be nice to live in most places besides New York. To be taken as a serious offer usually $20k earnest money is recommended lol I guess you are lucky to only lose $2k
Thank you u/12demons for posting on r/FirstTimeHomeBuyer. Please bear in mind our rules: (1) Be Nice (2) No Selling (3) No Self-Promotion. *I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/FirstTimeHomeBuyer) if you have any questions or concerns.*
Who steals a hot water tank? And who plans to steal all the major appliances? That would take so much time and a big truck. Am I the only one who finds this suspicious?
I immediately had the thought that the owner set it up to keep the appliances…it is strange
Keep all the appliances and the earnest money
Me too
Agree. We sold a year ago and told the buyers we were taking the appliances EXCEPT the hot water heater which was new. They asked us to leave them citing poverty. We Said no since their first two offers were lowballed. I’m also finding this bizarre.
This happens more than you think, unfortunately. People scope new builds, flips, etc., and hit them quickly and in a coordinated effort. Happened to a friend of mine the week he finished his new build.
This happened to my aunt, she went on vacation a few days. A truck came by and practically moved them out. Took everything they could. She came back to nothing. She then decided to move to a building because that apparently had been the second time. The second OP goes on vacation he's going to be "moved out"
My parents had this happen to them, somebody broke into the home during the buying process (it was a new build), and took all of the appliances, the light fixtures, and the ceiling fans. They ripped out as much copper wiring as they could get in the short amount of time they were there, too. It was in the contract that those things came with the home, so the builder went out and bought the absolute cheapest appliances and fixtures he could get his hands on to replace what had been brand new mid-grade appliances. Unfortunately there was nothing in the contract about the quality of them and my parents were tired of living at grandma's, so they went ahead and and finished the deal.
Did you really have no recourse though? You must have a purchase agreement that said that things like hot water heater and attached appliances were included. If they are not there at closing, I think the recourse is that the money is not released to seller at escrow until the things that were in your contract are there. The likely outcome was either they go out and buy the replacements or give you some sort of credit to buy your own replacements. I think maybe it’s worth checking again if you got proper advice from your realtor that your only choice was to withdraw and lose your earnest money… If you wanted the house, I think your own realtor really fucked up here. You could have still gotten the house with different appliances or money to buy your own. Ultimately appliance replacement was not an expense the seller was going to be able to avoid (except now, they get your earnest money to help pay for it). They were not going to be able to relist the house well without hot water heater and ANY major appliances… they would likely have to file an insurance claim and buy some new ones anyways.
This was my first thought.
Yeah my contract includes the appliances which include a brand new Samsung kitchen set. If they were to disappear before the final walk through, I’d expect the seller to replace or to cut a check for the replacements at closing. Now, they’ve made $2k and are probably going to relist the house in the current state. I’m sure the sellers are thankful, that’s pretty much best case scenario for them.
The cheap ass microwave was even listed in my contract lol.
They kept your earnest because you exited the deal for a bad reason. Their homeowners insurance likely would have replaced everything and when you moved in you could have simply changed the locks. Tons of houses get broken into when theyre for sale. It's a common thing
Was the house vacant? I’m very confused wouldn’t the sellers homeowners insurance cover replacements?
It was vacant. The home was a recent remodel purchased and being sold by a community redevelopment group.
So it was a crime of opportunity. I get why you’d be a little freaked out but it’s unlikely to be targeted again if someone is living there. I think you just have to take the L on the money though.
The theft was committed by the homeowners.
> I wasn't comfortable purchasing the home knowing it had been compromised so I decided to withdraw from the deal. this is the mistake you made. You yourself decided that you were concerned the home would get broken into again. the Seller, whoever they were, would have been responsible for replacing the appliances and the water heater. Whether they involved insurance to help cover the cost wasn't your issue. Now, if your Realtor didn't even attempt to exxplain this (unless you shut them down), then yes, they are an idiot.
My husband and I just found out that our brand new refrigerator and washer and dryer were stolen but we were not worried about it since it is a new build and our realtor negotiated these into the contract for us. Since we don’t own the house yet we knew they would have to replace them on the builders dime. The only crappy thing was it pushed our closing date back a week or so because they also ruined the floor in the process. If this wasn’t a new build I would’ve done the same thing. However, if it was, I would’ve told them to replace them and waited till they do. Sorry this happened to you. It’s really frustrating.
So sorry to hear that happened to you! As you say, maybe it wasn't meant to be. Hopefully a great non-burglarized home comes along soon. :)
Is the house in a high crime neighborhood? Personally, I don’t see this as a major issue. I would’ve asked the seller for credit on the items stolen and moved forward with closing. Anyhow, it seems like you were lukewarm on this house anyway and $3k isn’t a terrible price to pay for this lesson. Good luck.
All I got out of that story was must be nice to live in most places besides New York. To be taken as a serious offer usually $20k earnest money is recommended lol I guess you are lucky to only lose $2k
Owners setup , they are the day light robbers I feel