434 Fullterton Rd Monticello, Maine 04760

http://www.zillow.com/homedetails/434-Fullerton-Rd-Monticello-ME-04760/2134719973_zpid/

The property/listing agent:

We recently sold our Utah house and were back in the market to buy a new home.  We searched high and low, as we are both remote workers and have a gaggle of kids (4).  We found this house and fell in love with it.

We did notice that there had been another bid previously on it.  We called the listing agent and inquired.  The listing agent said the previous buyer was "insane".  "One in every three people are insane, so it is not a big leap to think she was insane too".  Exact words.  It was a major red flag.

We tried to email the listing agent for the plat information, and he absolutely was a pain in the ass to work with.  It took close to 4 weeks to get it from him, and he kept trying to say that "it was never documented in Maine".  Total bullshit, but we did get it and we did get our own real estate agent.  Here's the plat by the way: http://i.imgur.com/JvGScH7.jpg

Turns out, no one wants to work with the listing agent.  They all fucking hate him, and for good reason (not because he is a baller agent but because he's a total douche).  It was a complete pain in the ass to find someone to represent us against him.  However, we pushed through and found a nice woman to help us.

We asked about the unfinished garage and photos of it, never received any photos...because they did not exist.  This is where they hid their illegal heating system that supposedly was not used to heat the house.  That fancy wood pellet stove was a total lie, as the wood pellet stove was/had been broken for an extreme length of time and this additional "stove" did not have any chimney flashing (etc).  Basically, a total fire hazard and to top it all off...this was a hoarder's room.  So, once a mini-fire starts, the entire house is basically going up in smoke.  That is the reason why no photos. Add on, zero smoke or CO detectors in the house...so you could be trapped in a fiery blaze of death, with zero warning to get out.

My own real estate agent got into several heated arguments with him over the legality of what he was doing.  I recorded several conversations between the two, he called her a bitch and stated numerous times that "he had been in business over 50 years".  Lots of talking down to both of us and lots of arguing over total bullshit items.  The agent was a red flag, but we were handling it all with the patience of Job.

Here's a copy of said 3 way call between the two, it is the tail end of a conversation:  http://vocaroo.com/i/s19WdmeEhyyP   Ignore the 10s of silence, he had just called her a bitch and had been talking down to her for a long time before I hit record.  There are several more conversations like this...  We just wanted paperwork, after he was LATE turning it in again.  No request for an extension or anything.

Bidding:

We'd put in a bid and would never receive word back from the sellers or the listing agent until well past the due date, and zero extension requested.  That started in on the slew of excuses from the listing agent that the sellers being "sick"/on vacation/out of cell service.  All of these were excused off in the same breath and the story kept changing.  None of this was true and it turned out the sellers were living in the house (not supposed to be living there at all), and we are still unsure if these counter-offers/bids were going to the sellers or it was the agent all along.

We put in a bid, and everything was going fine with the financing (we were way ahead of the game on that, and basically "approved" all the way through to closing - even had the mortgage insurance quotes done).  Not only were the sellers unwilling to sign any paperwork, but they were unwilling to negotiate.  We figured this was not a big deal, because we really liked the house...and would pay full price if we needed to do so.

Inspection:

Then the inspection came.  Not only did they reschedule the inspection twice, but the wife was in the house at the time of inspection (remember: not supposed to be living there at the time).  So, we were barely within the 10 day time frame to get someone out there.

When he showed up, they found what we call the "hidden rape room" and the seller's wife tried to hide the fact that they have a DIY "sand filtration system" (they were boiling water from the kitchen tap).  She also fake called her "handyman" the day of, and after over 10 hours (normal inspection is 3 hours), no one showed up to fix things.

As per the rape room...basically, it was a trap door hidden underneath a throw carpet that could be lifted up.  This rape room hid the entire systems of the house and was filled with water.  It had a slew of problems from illegal wiring, to bad well pump, to bad water heater on an appliance timer plugged into an incorrect type of socket, etc.  It was so bad that the inspector did not even go down all the way inside of the room for fear of being electrocuted.  (The seller husband would later claim he's been down there several times in rubber soled tennis shoes and never had an issue.  Total bullshit.)

Here is the inspection snippets that we forwarded to the sellers.

Foundation:

Improvement will require altering the foundation so that it is supported below the frost line or protecting the ground from freezing. This will be an expensive project.

Interior support of the first floor framing below the left section (within the basement) consists of a combination of adjustable steel columns and wood posts. Several of the wood posts are exhibiting evidence of structural rot and moisture related deterioration, and the adjustable columns are corroding and in some cases the top plates have been over-stressed.

We recommend that the wood posts in the basement area be replaced with concrete filled steel columns on proper bases. We observed evidence of rot and moisture related deterioration in many of the wood posts in the basement area.  The adjustable steel columns should also be upgraded. Several of the top plates have curled downward indicating overstress of the top plates, and many of these columns have corroded heavily. We recommend that they also be replaced with concrete-filled permanent steel columns on proper concrete footings.

We found evidence of rot damage in the basement. The affected members include many floor beams, particularly at the front of the basement and repairs will be required within the next year or so to protect the first and second floors from settlement related damage. Approximately 40 % of the first floor joists have been affected.  Light duty wood braces have been attached to the foundation wall to provide support, but they have weathered and cannot be depended upon for continued support.

Framing inside:

Original bearing walls have been removed. Additionally, throughout the home there are several large expanses where the type and condition of support beams and framing could not be observed.  Based on visible evidence, the structural condition of this building is below average. To accomplish most of the work we have recommended, a considerable investment of money and time will be required.

Basement:

The basement floor was covered with several inches of water at the time of inspection.  There was what appears to be a relatively new sump pump in the basement that was not functional. Although the power cord was energized and the float switch was “on”, the pump was not operating. The owner was advised of this condition.

The basement floor is covered with a layer of peastone and some polyethylene vapor barrier. While this is recommended practice, the presence of water above the floor surface and the extent of debris on the floor suggest that improvements to the vapor barrier system are needed.  Basement or crawl space ventilation is needed to remove ground moisture.

Roofing:

The ventilation in the attic and roof framing appears to be inadequate. Frost was observed on the underside of the metal roofing in the attic, and the wood purlins were damp and moisture/mildew stained. There are no soffit vents and ridge ventilation appears to be limited to what is provided by the metal ridge cap.  In addition, we observed that there is no sheathing on the roof system; the roof deck consists of board strapping, 16-24” on center, perpendicular to the rafters, over which the metal roofing has been installed.

The metal roofing has been installed in an unprofessional manner. Overhangs at the eaves and some rakes extend well beyond the wood framing, subjecting this roofing to possible damage from future snow and wind loads. The roof configuration above the inside corner of the right wall of the left section and the front wall of the back section is unusual, and this area will be susceptible to future leakage.

Ventilation:

The ventilation in the basement of this home is inadequate. The basement windows have been closed off.   Insufficient ventilation has been provided for the crawl space.  Indoor air quality is a growing concern.  The outlet for the kitchen fan is unknown.

Heating:

The pipes that were visible do not appear to be labeled, and we cannot attest to the integrity of this system. Some of the observed pipe to hydronic baseboard connections appear to be somewhat casual in nature. Further, many of the baseboard units are not equipped with endcap trim.

The wood stove was the only heating unit that was functional at the time of inspection.  The chimney appears to consist of a single walled stovepipe passing through the roof with an elbow at the top. This is a very dangerous situation, which could result in a fire at any time.  Further, the clearances to adjacent combustible materials is substandard. Most codes and manufacturers recommend a minimum of 36 inches clearance to combustible materials. Adequate shields are required wherever this minimum is not satisfied.  There is a pellet stove installed in the living room. This stove was not in operation. The chimney had failed prior to the inspection. It was found to be leaning above the roof and slanted within the living room with a joint above the stove separated.

Plumbing:

The current owner advised that she filters her water prior to drinking or cooking through a do-it-yourself sand filtering system. Water samples for a water quality test were taken during the inspection.  The visible equipment (tank, controls, etc.) was in fair to poor condition. The well pump control switch is lying on the wet basement floor and the cover has been removed. This presents an exposure to persons in this area to electric shock and also could result in short-circuiting of the electrical supply for the well system.

Domestic hot water is provided by an electric water heater. It was not in operation at the time of the inspection. The owner advised that the water heater is on a timer and was not functional during the inspection.  It appears that the water heater is powered by a 120 volt circuit instead of a 220 volt circuit. We observed several 120 volt cords extending from this water heater, one of which was to a receptacle mounted time, the other to a light duty lamp cord that appears to energize some form of circulation pump. Based on our observations, the wiring to this heater is not safe.

Where visible, the plumbing distribution piping in this home consists of CPVC tubing. This system was in operating condition at the time of the inspection.The second floor toilet is loose and requires repair.  The first floor toilet is loose and requires repair.

Given the age of the left section of the home, this septic system may be more than twenty years old.  Since these systems often do not last much more than twenty to thirty years, it is possible that replacement will be required within the next five to ten years.

**Side note:  It would later turn out the well had plenty of hard water (over 112, when it should not go above 10) and it had all forms of bacteria in the well.  So, the well would need to be disinfected and a hard water filtration system would need to be installed**

Electrical:

The electrical system in this house consists of a three wire service with 120/240 voltage. There does not appear to be a main service disconnect.  The service entrance cable is loose, and it should be properly secured to the side of the house. Further, the incoming main service wiring insulation above the meter is frayed.  The service cable has been spliced within the basement in an “open” manner, in that the splice is not located within a junction box, panel or raceway. Further, there are several additional smaller, Romex cables with flying splices in the same vicinity. There is some switchgear in the basement, some of which appears to be active. Given the wet conditions in the basement, this presents an exposure to persons in this area to electric shock.  There are several openings in the parlor panel cover. All knockouts in the circuit breaker panel box in the parlor should be properly covered.

The covers were removed from the parlor and pantry subpanels, and it was found that few, if any cable connectors were installed in the panel sidewalls. As such the cables are subject to chafing. Further, many of the Romex cables have been routed through just one large panel opening, again without adequate protection from chafing.  Additionally, few of the circuits are identified.  Conditions observed at the service entrance and in the distribution panels suggest a casual, do-it-yourself level of workmanship.

Siding:

There are numerous areas about the house where the shingles have not yet been completely installed. There is missing corner trim at various locations. Wood trim has not been installed around most of the exterior doors. The eaves and rakes are unfinished. Expanding urethane foam insulation has been used instead of caulking (expanding foam insulation is not rated for exterior service).  There are large open gaps around the kitchen sink fixed window frame.  The exterior of this home is in need of a greater amount of repair than many homes we inspect. Of particular concern is the inside corner formed by the right side of the left section and the front wall of the center section. There is no corner trim here, and roof discharge from the valley above has created an ice formation against the lower portion of the wall in this area.  Some of the siding around this house is close to the ground. As a result, splashback (during rainstorms) and upward migration of water from the adjacent ground can lead to rot and deterioration in this area.

Flooring:

The sheet vinyl and carpet in many of the rooms is loose and wrinkled.

Stairs/General Safety:

The guardrail at the top of this staircase is very loose and there are no balusters.  The left section stairway is not equipped with handrails.  There were no smoke alarms in this home.

Decks:

The deck to house connections should be augmented with lag bolts, at least one bolt at each joist connection. Chronic dampness at house/deck joint, rot in the deck, carpenter ant activity, bulges developing in the wall near the deck are all indications of more serious hidden problems.  As part of the repair, we also recommend that you provide for suitable drainage and ventilation along the house/deck joint.  Also, there needs to be adequate flashing to protect the house framing installed.  There is no railing at the exterior decks.

Summary:

In summary, we consider this home to be in below average condition when compared to others of similar age and construction type.

Aftermath:

After seeing the entire report (over 40 pages worth), we called the inspector and questioned him about it all.  He was extremely concerned for our safety if we were to buy this house.  Mind you, he couldn't even get into the area of the house that had a crawl space.  It was completely closed off.  So, we also had no idea if the rest of the home also had foundation issues or not.  (Hint: It did)  He stated that this was a DIYer house from hell, and I decided we would *not* request the seller to fix any of these issues (can't trust him to fuck that all up, too).

We dropped the bid, a lot.  This was based off of what was "salvageable", and what we thought/knew the property was worth after everything was said and done.  Basically, all of the major systems in the house would need to be replaced.  The property itself was worth a good chunk, but the rest of the house was basically what people call a "tear down".

They didn't take the bid.  Instead they countered with only 2k off of their asking price, wrote AS IS (all nasty-like), demanded even more earnest money from us, and upped the move in date.  They also bitched about the inspector and called him unprofessional.  Guys, they attacked the inspector.  The one that saved our lives.  To make matters worse, the wife tried to claim she had the handyman come out to fix the issues and to this day, none of the glaring issues have been fixed (some were outside and can be seen while driving past, like the pellet stove's chimney being broken).  They also offered up insane excuses for things like the chimney on the pellet stove, being broken while "cleaning it".  Total bullshit.  They also admitted to frost damage in the crawl space near the loft area, which if you noticed, we never mentioned exactly where we found the frost damage (it was actually in the pantry/laundry area).  So, we knew immediately that they had frost damage everywhere. 

Yeah, no.  We walked the fuck away.  We are out our inspection money from last time (a huge amount) and we are extremely lucky that my real estate agent sent back the earnest money (this was a struggle to get the paperwork signed and her to actually send it back to us).  This was basically some DIY husband who destroyed a house, made it look nice inside, and was trying to push tons of problems onto other people.  I think the worst part of all of it was the inspection, as none of this was disclosed on the property disclosure (and should have been, since they *knew* about it all).  Hell, even on the listing, it didn't mention shit about a basement existing.  We had no fucking idea.

That inspector, is the only one in that area.  So now, not only is word getting out again about the listing agent but word is getting out that the sellers are total assholes.  The inspector will never go out to that property again, and that means they will most likely never sell this house.

Oh, and the reason we called it the rape room?  The husband is a listed sex offender and the wife has a warrant out for her arrest in her home state of Alabama for solicitation of a minor.  Don't worry, we reported all 3 involved on that side of the many shady things they were doing to numerous various agencies.  However, the house is still listed for sale...

We are extremely lucky that we found out about all of these issues.  In the end, we were praying they would NOT accept our low as hell bid.  They were trying to push their illegal doings and problems onto someone else, and now it has cost them.  A lot.

To this day, we are terrified of coming into a similar situation.  We do have a bid on another house, but we are being extremely cautious with it all and are not truly in "love" with the house.   We know that we are "out of staters" and people take that as an opportunity to try to screw us over.  I have 4 kids.  My husband and I are extremely pissed off that this happened in the first place, and put their lives in jeopardy.  It is truly disgusting that the seller (mainly the husband) was such a prick to basically negate all the safety issues and putting the kids' lives on the line for the sake of...money.

Update Feb 2017:

Just wanted to let everyone know that the listing agent attempted to blame the failing of the sale on "buyer financing" to the real estate commission board.  Exactly like he tried to blame the original buyers dropping out on them being "insane".  Don't worry, I debunked the fuck out of that.  We are obviously in a good place financially, and it is quite frankly none of his damn business anything about my finances.

He also cut off email chains in an attempt to make himself look better, which is funny because I sent the ENTIRE chains where he was being an asshole and causing issues.  H left out some interesting items, and tried to claim that he was having issues with the sellers being in contact with him...which is not our responsibility as the buyers.  If he needed more time to wait on his sellers, then he needed to file extensions - which he never did.

I basically tore apart his "response", which was basically a bunch of excuses (over 12) of why the sellers did not hand in paperwork on time/at all.  The excuses ranged from bad cell service, seller husband's mom dying, them receiving medical care, them being on vacation, etc.  The list in his 3-4 page response was actually laughable.  He contradicted himself numerous times, just like he did with my agent and us.

It took about 3 weeks to receive our earnest money back, and the house was relisted before the deal was even fully cancelled out all of the way.  Thus, this house is back on the market.  While I cannot link the exact inspection report due to copyright issues, I can keep the summarized information above (as the sellers have seen this, and I wrote it myself).

When all was said and done, the house is worth maybe $85k due to the estimated over $80k in repairs needed.

We are currently in the process of closing on a different house, which is worth more money than this house.  We have 2 weeks until move in date, and everything is good as gold.  Only minor repairs needed (~$800).  Obviously, this was an issue with the sellers/listing agent and not us (the buyers).  We are very happy we walked away from it all.