Deception

too many to list, so we'll keep this "short"

to the right is an image of the "family room" turned karate dojo. During a discussion about the hardwood floor, the Seller indicated he'd had "a helluva time getting the power plate to lie flat when he installed the floor." 


Except...the floor existed at least in 2010, several years before the Seller (Mr. Vasquez) purchased the home on a VA loan.  He could not possibly have installed either the oak flooring nor the electrical plug found in the center of the floor. 

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The roof

The largest lie

not only did the Seller indicate the roof was in "good condition" after having been told two years previously that the roof had reached end-of-life, he also signed in the Seller's Real Property Disclosure form that there were no known roof issues.  The SRPD is a binding, legal document, otherwise known as a "representation and warranty" stating that there are no known conflicts of interest, quality, life-span, or other items required to be disclosed under state (and sometimes Federal) law.  Not disclosing is a felony.  We can prove, based on documents provided from the solar installationcompany, that the seller was well aware of the problems with both east and west sides of the roof, shingle and substrate, sheathing and support.  This is a minimum cost of $25,000.00 to repair. 


We offered to still purchase the home, but required that either the Seller have the roof repaired/replaced at his cost, or discount the home by the amount of the multiple written estimates. If the cost were to be less than the estimates, we would refund that portion of value to the Seller after the roof replacement was complete. 


Aaron Taylor laughed at this offer and told us to take a hike.  We feel it was a respectful, reasonable offer based on the level of exposure both he and his client face. We were equally stunned when Aaron Taylor's broker did not step in to protect her brokerage, her agent, his assistant, and his seller. 

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The bathtub

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Small, but telling

Our first and second visits to the home, we noticed that while the bathroom was essentially clean (outside of the disgusting mold and alkali buildup on the shower door), there was a pair of pants that appear very much out of place in the bathroom. I lifted the pants to discover a large crack in the fiberglass side of the tub. 

OK, the first visit...maybe they just left the pants there not thinking (although there were no other clothes in the bathroom). The second visit, a towel was decoratively placed over the very large, 12-14" crack.  When our friends (former inspector and architect) walked through the home, we'd primed them to look for this. True to form, the crack was covered with a towel.  This should have been our first clue about the deceptions and aggravation we were about to face over the next four months. 


However, the inaccurate documents that clearly (in my opinion) indicate the lack of attention to this sale, that Aaron Taylor, Kolleen Kelley, and their assistants omitted throughout.