Water Damage – Property value goes down?
May 4, 2010 by
Filed under condo water damage
I have a downstairs unit in Phoenix, AZ… Last week, the tenant in the unit above turned on the washing machine and left. It flooded for a long time, and police were called to knock down the door.
My condo was flooded (holes in the celing, walls hit) every room has damage. The water also hit four other condos.
I have insurance and everything will be fixed, BUT….
I know my condo will be ‘blacklisted’ (as my agent mentioned) because of so much water damage. If I try and sell it, I will need to disclose that it had so much damage.
What can I do about this? Shouldn’t the owner above be responsible? Though, i wouldn’t actually know how much I’d lose because of it.
Owne upstairs has no insurance, but HOA and MY insurance are fixing my condo. Not worried about repairs, but worried about the loss I will take when I try and sell.
When your agent lists the property you can always provide an inspection report with the listing letting the new buyers know everything has been fixed to par. You can even provide a list of all the contractor repairs and maybe even a letter from the contractor of any warranties for their work transferring to the new buyer. With all this documentation I don’t see why you would take much of a hit. In fact this should let a buyer feel more comfortable that you are being upfront with all the issues of your condo.
As long as your unit is properly repaired it will not “take a hit” because of this claim. It could “take a hit” because of general market conditions or lack of maintenance by you, your choice of decorating colors/finishes. But if the unit is properly repaired – this claim will not affect it’s value.
If you are that worried about it – when you go to sell it have a sellers inspection done. You can also hire an environmental hygienist to do an inspection of the home and certify that there is no mold.