Can you re negotiate during due diligence period?

[vice]

I have gone conditional on a property for a rental, and have just received the builders report back.

Some general maintenace as expected has come up, but one concerning thing is the bath has a crack in it, and there are moisture issues behind the lining. Bath replacement has been advised.

Can I now go back to the agent with a quote to remedy this, with the amount given to be taken off the accepted s&p offer?

Or what else would you recommend I do in this situation?

Thanks in advance

[Bob Kane]

Yep - you can try asking for a reduction in price.
They may say no - it's worth a try.

[eri]

personally

i hate it when people try to agree to buy

without agreeing on a a price

by all means

ask for some consideration

but at the same time don't be surprised if they sell it to someone else

[Anthonyacat]

Yes, you can renegotiate at any point, up until the offer goes unconditional. And I'd recommend you ask.

So can they, of course. And as Eri has said, if you're too difficult they may find another buyer.

[vice]

Thanks for the replies guys. I don't want to be too difficult for sure, my initial offer took into consideration the overall condition of the property but the bath issue was something overlooked/hard to see.

So from here- do I arrange a builder and then get the agent to take care of arranging access?

[Nick G]

You can go unco on the condition they sort the bath. I just sold a place with a handful of small items.

[OneStepCloser]

Definitely go back and ask if it is a genuine problem - that is what the builder's report was for. I know it is may be annoying for the seller but it is equally annoying for the buyer to find something unexpected.

[Damap]

Assuming you're an investor then you have a responsibility to keep your business profitable. You can always renegotiate and either get seller to fix or get price reduction. Never feel bad about it, it is just business.

[Nick G]

Getting the seller to fix it is fair, otherwise you need to ballpark the cost to do it and you will (should) allow for more than it will cost to be conservative. Just make sure a qualified tradesperson will validate the work. For the record I sold a block of flats and agreed to replace a couple of vanities, a sink and remove an old TV aerial. The buyer was willing to go unco and I agreed for a bit of money to be withheld by the lawyer pending the completion of those works. Easy.

So if you are happy with everything else I'd offer to go unco pending the completion of the fixes. Work out the cost to do them and agree that 2x that will be withheld at settlement until the work is done and checked.

[vice]

Ah yes ok, that makes sense to ask the seller to fix and hold back some funds at settlement if it is not done.

Like I said I'm not trying to be difficult but I'm worried that if the bath has been cracked for a while all the framing/flooring could be rotten and turn a relatively cash neutral deal into a seriously cash neg one.

Cheers for the replies everyone, it's nice to get a little advice from people who have been there done that

[Nick G]

Cool - you're being reasonable and if the seller balks either they know something is worse that it appears or they have another better offer. Anyway, ask them if they're happy to do the repairs, make sure it includes checking for and repairing water damage. If they aren't and you still have DD time then get a quote to do it yourself and you can make a decision from there. Good luck.

[Sportsvee]

Would you buy a car with 1 bald tyre without asking the dealer to replace it?

It's not being difficult, you are buying an item that you want in good working order. Just make sure the money held back is a reasonable amount so they can't just walk away and leave you hanging (most wont).

[BigDreamer]

The sellers can't just go find another buyer unless your due diligence period expires or they have a backout (forgot the actual clause name) clause in agreement.

I suggest you ask. Worst thing that could happen is they say no. You still have a chance to go unconditional if you choose to.

[Meehole]

If the vendor doesn't want to negotiate a repair or reduction and the sale does not go unconditional then the agent is obligated to advise any future purchasers that there is a crack in the bath that requires remediation. The vendor would be better off to work with the deal on the table I reckon.

[vice]

Thankyou to all who replied. Just a quick update- the vendor would not re-negotiate on price but agreed to fix the crack in the bath. I had figured that as long as that was done then at least there would be no further damage occuring underneath the bath until at which point I could update the bathroom and repair any rot etc at that time.

Two days before going unconditional the vendor advised us the crack had been fixed. Good news I thought, until the re inspection report came back to say absolutely nothing had been done! Cheeky bloody vendor!

I'm glad we got the re inspection done, in the end we let the property go. On to the next one!