Skip to content
Link copied to clipboard

Your Place: In sale of rehabbed house, is disclosure required?

Question: Recently, we purchased a rehabbed house where mechanicals, the roof, windows, and the like were pretty much all replaced. When we asked our real estate agent for a disclosure from the buyer, the agent said there wasn't one because it was a rehab.

Question:

Recently, we purchased a rehabbed house where mechanicals, the roof, windows, and the like were pretty much all replaced. When we asked our real estate agent for a disclosure from the buyer, the agent said there wasn't one because it was a rehab.

Looking at the Pennsylvania disclosure law, in a resale the seller should always provide a disclosure, but there's also a provision that new properties do not require one, if a warranty if offered.

What is a rehab considered, a new building or a resale?

Answer: I asked several real estate agents who confirmed that in Pennsylvania, rehabs do not require such disclosures. That said, not every rehab is done correctly, so perhaps full disclosure, while not required, would be wise.

Another part of your question concerns changes in plans for the rehab. When applying for permits on a rehab, you're required to submit plans for approval of the permits. Once you have permits in hand, if the rehab doesn't go according to the plans submitted, is there an expectation that new plans should be submitted showing the new work?

You said you were able to secure the plans the previous owner submitted to the city to perform the rehab. What the plans show, you said, doesn't match what was built or rehabbed - a roof deck was moved to a rear deck, a slanted roof became a flat roof, and a bathroom was turned into a regular room.

In most municipalities, each time a portion of a rehab project is completed, an inspector from the building department must come out and sign off on the work. I would assume that some problem arose with each of those pieces of the rehab, and the changes were made to comply with what the inspector considered a problem.

That said, normal procedures would require that new plans for the changes be submitted, or that those changes be noted on the original plans and the building department be notified of them.

Since a certificate of occupancy had to be issued before the house sale could go to settlement, I assume that the building department issuing the document signed off on the changes.

Q: Years ago, we were given a very large window fan by my husband's grandparents. It is screwed onto the window frame in our attic, and in the summer, all we need to do at night is open our bedroom window, turn the fan on exhaust, and enjoy the cool night air.

Is there anything we need to do in order to make sure that this fan continues to function well, such as cleaning the motor, oiling it, and other things? We are on our second motor with this fan, and would like to keep it going.

A: You seem to have done fine already without my counsel, but I would make sure the blades are clean and there are no obstructions that prevent them from operating efficiently. Dust and grime weigh on the blades, causing the motor to work harder, thus reducing its life.

As far as oiling the motor is concerned, it depends on the make and model. If the motor is newer than the fan, it will be easier to punch in the available information online to get the correct recommendation.

One thing I would check on regularly is the condition of the plug. Sometimes rodents appear in the most secure places and like to chew things. I'd just check it to see that it and the rest of the wiring are in good order.

Don't cry over hue. Here are the results of a survey, forwarded by KILZ, the stain-hiding paint:

A majority of respondents said their design choices revolve around a color palette, and for a third of them, choosing a color is the most daunting part of redecorating.

Men redecorate about as often as women - about a quarter of each group redorate a room in their home every year. But both sexes are more likely to do so every two to four years rather than annually.

What's in a name? Nearly one-third of do-it-yourselfers are influenced or strongly influenced by the name of a paint color when making their decorating decisions. Men are more likely than women to be strongly influenced by a paint color's name.