Land Contract in Ohio, Are We Stuck?

Question

We bought a house on land contract (Ohio), while we are trying to clean up our credit a little. Anyway, we were given a sellers disclosure that stated that there were no other issues than what we had seen.

It turns out that the plumbing in this house is a MESS! We have had pipes that have broken apart under the house (because they were held together with DUCT TAPE), and water backs up into the sinks and bathtubs.

Not to mention that there was a roof leak that we did not know about, the furnace and hot water tank have been leaking water.

We have tried to keep up with fixing these things, but now we are behind a month on the house payment because of it and they are threatening to foreclose. We tried to talk to them about these issues (because we don't want to have to move), but all they say is "you bought it in "as is" condition"! I am so aggrevated now that I just want to walk away from the house, but we have put almost $9,000 into it and don't want to lose all of the money that we already have invested. I can't afford to put anymore money into or hire an attorney to sue them.

What should we do?

Answer 1

I am assuming you did know that you were leasing an

AS is property.

I think you have an out.

since you are a tenant without equity, I think the AS is component of your  lease is voidable.  I do not think you can be forced to accept the as is component of the lease.  

Check with a local RE atty but I think you can be considered a tenant

and if so, you can stay there free for a long time.  YOU can deduct

all the costs of maintenance from your lease payments.

JUST because something is in any lease does not make it

legal!

IF needed, you can also sue in court to have your lease

voided and sue for the cost of repairs.

next time, never accept an as is property without a warranty

by the owner that they will reimburse you for repairs.

and yes, that must sound contradictory.  Thus, as is is not always

as is.

Answer 2

The first mistake was either not having a home inspection or using a bad inspector.

If you can prove that the duct tape was put there by the seller and not by you then you still may have a case. I would call your real estate agent and discuss the contract with him/her and your attorney.

Answer 3

Your options are few and they are all bad.  Sometimes in life, you just walk away.  It's a bottomless pit if you stay.  

It doesn't matter that you bought it on a land contract.  You bought a house and it's yours to do with as you like.  Fix it or don't fix it.

But i have also lived thru times when values increased $50,000 in 3 years.  In that scenario , your $9,000 is nothing compared to the $50,000 profit you would make by hanging on.  I would be tempted to hang on.  I've lived thru leaky roofs and broken pipes.  One burst over my head when i woke on a Sunday morning and flooded my bedroom.  I had no idea that my plumbing pipes were in the attic.

It doesn't sound like a great place but it's yours and i would do everything possible to make the payments./