Electra on the Bay

Response:The complainants were principals in a real estate transaction for a single family dwelling in Cameron Park, and their complaint involves the repairs performed on the dwelling in accordance with a wood-destroying organisms report prepared by an experienced and reputable termite inspection and mitigation companyUnfortunately, the complainants had neither a satisfactory understanding of the scope of the repairs required nor did their agent provide them an adequate explanation of the contractual allocation of costs to which they committedContrary to the statement by the complainants, the amount of dry rot discovered within the entry columns was significantIn addition, these columns were discovered to be structurally inadequate, with the entire weight of the entry overhang found to be supported by the siding applied to the exterior of each columnThe interior construction of the columns was suitable only for providing a means to attach the decorative siding rather than for transferring the load to ground, which was confirmed by the termite inspection company’s measurement of substantial sag in the overhangRepairs authorized by the seller included removal of all rotted materials and the installation of 4xload-bearing posts, thereby restoring satisfactory support to the entry overhangNo decorative siding or paint was applied to the repaired columns for two reasonsFirst, as with the miscellaneous deck boards repaired at the same time and also left unpainted, objective evidence of satisfactory repair is readily apparentSecondly since areas of active infestation or infection could be hidden by paint and decorative elements such as siding and trim, the application of such items does not constitute “repair.” Some inspection and repair companies will provide general carpentry and painting when requested, but few will offer these additional services at no chargeThe complainants were also mistaken as to the contractual obligations associated with their purchase agreementPrior to submitting their offer, the buyers agreed to increase the sales price by an amount equivalent to the cost of pest repairs; however, the financial obligation for the repairs remained with the property owner throughout the transactionModifications to the property may not be performed by potential buyers prior to transfer of title, and no contractor or service provider will enter into an agreement to make such modifications with any party other than the property ownerThese are details that an experienced agent (or one with proper oversight from a supervising broker) would communicate clearly to that agent’s clients

I am rejecting this response because:I have attached several contract items for you to review including photos of the columns when we made the offer on our house, and three photos of the columns after Mr [redacted] made significant changes to the front of our homeI wanted you to also notice the drain is now danglingWe are first time home buyersWe saved a great deal of money to purchase a home we loved, and the day before we signed all of our paperwork, the change was madeWe had agreed that we would pay for the pest workWe never discussed structural changes with Mr [redacted] or his clientWe paid for an appraisal on the home with the columns the way they were originally, and now they absolutely take away all curb appealWhat's the first thing a home buyer does when they get keys? They take a photo in front of their new home! We didn'tWe couldn'tMr [redacted] refuses to take accountability for neglecting to communicate the changes to our realtor, he has not fulfilled their end of the contract and he did not maintain the same stylistic elements to the columns - we did not agree to his changes!? However - It is worth noting that the day we authorized funding, and Mr [redacted] had a conversation with our realtor's managing broker and according to our realtor's managing broker, Mr [redacted] admitted fault to poor communication.? Pest inspection report page (attached)"Existing materials will be? matched as close as possible? as availability permits""Without tearing out, or? defacing of finished areas, the owner or owners agent will be contacted for further direction."Pest Addendum #(attached)"Seller to pay additional pest/dry rot repairs? up to $if they should arise"The columns prior to pest work - attached WP fileThe columns after the pest work - attached V__F496, V__D298, ? V__6C2FMr [redacted] brought up the deck that we also paid to have corrected (not changed)And thank you for bringing that up, parts of the deck were replaced but were left untreated, and should have been stained to protect the integrity of the Pest company's work.? Also, upon move in, on May our garbage can was filled to the brim with rocksThe previous owner left his garbage bin full of garbage in our kitchenWe had nowhere to place garbageThe county left us a note that it was filled with unacceptable itemsWe had to unload the garbage can into our grandfather's truck and haul it to the dumpThe seller left garbage (paint, shoe racks, tiki torches, "wine" racks, cement blocks, etc.) throughout the house, in the garage and basementThe house was not clean at allWe moved in to a mess, and we've had a lot of unnecessary stress.In the end, based on the contract attached, Pest Inspection report page 3, and Pest Addendum #2, the seller has not fulfilled his end of the contract.Thank you for time.Sincerely,The [redacted] Family

I am rejecting this response because:Mr*** did not communicate with my agent that there had been any change in the pest work we paid to have corrected, let alone communicate a significant change to the front of our homeMr*** chose to work with the pest company we paid for, and later after the work was "complete" the pest company could not provide me with a ledger for the work either Additionally, they did not complete the work on 4/13/206, but that was the date listed on the bill*** and I were at the house on Sunday 4/17/(the neighbors had friends over playing corn hole in their driveway) *** and I sat in front of the house for minutes discussing the yard work we would do first upon move inWe were dreaming of the changes we were going to make, and the columns were just as they were the day we had our home appraisedAs first time home buyers (FTHB), we thought the work had been completed LONG before we sat there on 4/17/Mr***, is an experienced realtor, and he is pointing fingers at FTHB for not noticing the change until 4/22/2016, yet we agreed to pay for the work on 3/23/2016, the day he and his client accepted our offerAnd the work wasn't completed for almost BUSINESS days after we agreed to pay for it! business daysMr*** wants to blame two FTHB that work full time, have a toddler and are (at the time) newly pregnant that it took us a few days to see the work that had been done (red herring - what does this have to do with the original issue)Mr*** never told us anything had changed to the original pest work plan! He communicated that the work was "complete"His executive decision (his exact words used with my agent) I am rejecting his response because he failed to communicate properlyHe failed to handle this transaction with care, and at this point he needs to be investigatedThis back and forth isn't healthy.I will contact CalBRE this weekendHopefully they can help us find resolution.Thank you for your time,*** ***

Response:The complainants were principals in a real estate transaction for a single family dwelling in Cameron Park, and their complaint involves the repairs performed on the dwelling in accordance with a wood-destroying organisms report prepared by an experienced and reputable termite inspection
and mitigation companyUnfortunately, the complainants had neither a satisfactory understanding of the scope of the repairs required nor did their agent provide them an adequate explanation of the contractual allocation of costs to which they committedContrary to the statement by the complainants, the amount of dry rot discovered within the entry columns was significantIn addition, these columns were discovered to be structurally inadequate, with the entire weight of the entry overhang found to be supported by the siding applied to the exterior of each columnThe interior construction of the columns was suitable only for providing a means to attach the decorative siding rather than for transferring the load to ground, which was confirmed by the termite inspection company’s measurement of substantial sag in the overhangRepairs authorized by the seller included removal of all rotted materials and the installation of 4xload-bearing posts, thereby restoring satisfactory support to the entry overhangNo decorative siding or paint was applied to the repaired columns for two reasonsFirst, as with the miscellaneous deck boards repaired at the same time and also left unpainted, objective evidence of satisfactory repair is readily apparentSecondly since areas of active infestation or infection could be hidden by paint and decorative elements such as siding and trim, the application of such items does not constitute “repair.” Some inspection and repair companies will provide general carpentry and painting when requested, but few will offer these additional services at no chargeThe complainants were also mistaken as to the contractual obligations associated with their purchase agreementPrior to submitting their offer, the buyers agreed to increase the sales price by an amount equivalent to the cost of pest repairs; however, the financial obligation for the repairs remained with the property owner throughout the transactionModifications to the property may not be performed by potential buyers prior to transfer of title, and no contractor or service provider will enter into an agreement to make such modifications with any party other than the property ownerThese are details that an experienced agent (or one with proper oversight from a supervising broker) would communicate clearly to that agent’s clients

I am rejecting this response because:I have attached several contract items for you to review including photos of the columns when we made the offer on our house, and three photos of the columns after Mr*** made significant changes to the front of our homeI wanted you to also notice the drain is now danglingWe are first time home buyersWe saved a great deal of money to purchase a home we loved, and the day before we signed all of our paperwork, the change was madeWe had agreed that we would pay for the pest workWe never discussed structural changes with Mr*** or his clientWe paid for an appraisal on the home with the columns the way they were originally, and now they absolutely take away all curb appealWhat's the first thing a home buyer does when they get keys? They take a photo in front of their new home! We didn'tWe couldn'tMr*** refuses to take accountability for neglecting to communicate the changes to our realtor, he has not fulfilled their end of the contract and he did not maintain the same stylistic elements to the columns - we did not agree to his changes!? However - It is worth noting that the day we authorized funding, and Mr*** had a conversation with our realtor's managing broker and according to our realtor's managing broker, Mr*** admitted fault to poor communication.? Pest inspection report page (attached)"Existing materials will be? matched as close as possible? as availability permits""Without tearing out, or? defacing of finished areas, the owner or owners agent will be contacted for further direction."Pest Addendum #(attached)"Seller to pay additional pest/dry rot repairs? up to $if they should arise"The columns prior to pest work - attached WP fileThe columns after the pest work - attached V__F496, V__D298, ? V__6C2FMr*** brought up the deck that we also paid to have corrected (not changed)And thank you for bringing that up, parts of the deck were replaced but were left untreated, and should have been stained to protect the integrity of the Pest company's work.? Also, upon move in, on May our garbage can was filled to the brim with rocksThe previous owner left his garbage bin full of garbage in our kitchenWe had nowhere to place garbageThe county left us a note that it was filled with unacceptable itemsWe had to unload the garbage can into our grandfather's truck and haul it to the dumpThe seller left garbage (paint, shoe racks, tiki torches, "wine" racks, cement blocks, etc.) throughout the house, in the garage and basementThe house was not clean at allWe moved in to a mess, and we've had a lot of unnecessary stress.In the end, based on the contract attached, Pest Inspection report page 3, and Pest Addendum #2, the seller has not fulfilled his end of the contract.Thank you for time.Sincerely,The *** Family