The housing market has plummeted on tainted homes in the Gulf Coast area. While buyer beware appears to be the current premise for these sales, some are falling victim to sellers failing to disclose the condition of the homes.
WINK news in South Florida reports
A never-lived-in, four bedroom, two bath home in Northwest Cape Coral is selling for a steal — just $19,800. But buyer beware: the low sticker price is because the home is infected with Chinese drywall. Still, people are interested.
“We are probably experiencing anywhere between 10-15 calls a day in addition to email leads inquiring about property with Chinese drywall,” Realtor Jennifer Pentico says.
An out-of-town investor has a contract on this house.
“A lot of these consumers don’t know the ramifications of Chinese Drywall and what it’s potentially going to take to remediate something like this,” Pentico says.
Pentico encourages buyers to hire an inspector and sign off on knowing Chinese drywall is in their new home. David Schwartz and Val Salerno bought a foreclosure to be closer to family. They heeded the warnings.
The story goes on to discuss how some are lured in by low prices to find out that the copper wiring and other elements of the home are harmed as a result of the toxic wallboard.
Some worry what Chinese drywall home sales are doing to property values. For example, the home selling for less than $20,000 might otherwise sell for around $70,000 if it did not have the toxic wallboard. Re/Max Realtors tell WINK News they’ll essentially black-list properties known to have the toxic board so agents and appraisers don’t factor in the ultra-low sale figure.
Obviously this is a situation where people must be careful and have inspectors check for yet another element or surprise in the condition of any purchased home.