This has been very confusing for me. I received a phone call this past Thursday from the county stating that the cops raided my house. My tenants only been there since the end of dec 09, I’ve been in the house in Jan and Feb 2010. They had to have started this between feb and now. but they were growing weed in the basement.
because of this the county said the house is inhabitable until I get someone to check for mold, the structure of the house and electric. They will send me a package in the next couple days to tell me what type of people I need to get for the structure and the mold, but they’re telling me this could run about 15K just to get checked out and then 30-40K to get it back up to code. Keep in mind this house is only worth about 45K.
I’m to the point where I don’t have 15K to get these things done far less 20-30 or 40K extra to put out to make these so call repairs. I’m been to the house and the only thing I see is the I need to get all their stuff out, paint and get that smell of chemical out of the basement.
Depending on what I find out in the next couple of days, I’m wondering about the following
if my insurance would cover lost of income
If they would cover making any repairs "if they made any holes in the wall or tamper w/ the electric or any mold happen due to the tenants, to me wouldn’t that be covered under vandalism? I’m not trying to talk to the insurance company yet. I’m trying to see if anyone can advise me on what to say or tell them to make sure they will help me.
If the insurance company can’t do anything, I’m afraid that I will just have to let this house go and that will kill my credit. I rather sell the property, but according to the borough I still have to get everything fixed before I can try to sell (I don’t see how that’s possible) if someone else decide that they can get the work done for cheap and have the funds, why can’t they buy it as long as the info is disclosed?
If anyone can share their experience in this type of situation or just their thoughts I would appreciate it because right now, this is a scary situation to handle alone and I’m really looking for some incite.
philly,
I hope someone who has dealt with this gets back to you.
What was the chemical smell? Were they also cooking meth? Can you just clean out the house thoroughly and then get the authorities back in there to give a second opinion. You’ve got a big problem.
The smell was suppose to be the Marijuana and what ever they are using to grow it. Hopefully. I would think just airing the place out and get some things to kill the smell should be enough.
HoldAndBuy: I will report pack who exactly I’m suppose to get. I thought the county was trying to get money out of me by using 1 of their guys, but they told me I can get who ever as long as they’re certified.
I lost focus of everything the guy was telling me once he pretty much told me it’s my fault because “landlords are only interested in money and not the community” is what he said and if I was making monthly stops at my tenants house I probably could have avoided this.
Those figures sound really weird to me also considering what I saw. Hopefully today or tomorrow I will have the letter and I will post what it says and who I need.
I’ve heard similar nightmare stories of landlords who had their houses flagged as grow op properties by the police. Once it’s flagged, it’s next to impossible to get it refinanced. At least you learned on a $45k house and not an apartment building about letting sh-itty tenants into one of your properties. It’s not worth rehabbing with the kind of stuff they require like ripping out all the drywall. I heard of retired claim adjusters who offer their services to negotiate on your behalf for a settlement with your insurance company on something like a 10% commission and got much better results than what you could do on your own. It’s best to hire one to negotiate a settlement with your insurance company to take this building off your hands IMO.
I wish you luck in getting God to answer ypur prayers in getting out of this one without taking a big hit.
Dave thank you, I didn’t know that. I will start my research on who I can find. just came by from checking the property out again and people already broken in the place so tomorrow my contractors will be out to board up the house.
The problem isn’t mold in the house. Every house has some degree of mold in it and the whole re market would be upside down if they enforced it universally. Occasional roof leaks=mold. Occasional pipe leaks=mold. A lot of things can cause mold. The problem is that the police flagged the house as a grow house and now you have to go through a lot of IMO unnecessary hoops and costly rehabs to resolve it and there’s nothing the owner of these houses can do about it. It’s best to just have the insurance company write it off and take what you can get for it.
I dont know what kind of inspectors these are, but if they are charging $15k to come and look around and tell you whether or not you have mold, then I’m leaving this RE board and going that route. Check with your local fire inspectors. They may have some sources for you.
They’re assuming and all I can do is go by what they’re saying until I get the information they have for me on the type of people I have to get to certify it’s livable again. but my thing is, they only had a 2 month window to do all of this, I don’t see it being as bad as the county made it seem. so I’m hoping he’s not correct in how fast mold could grow because they had to keep their weed plants most in a dark area
I recommend EVERY potential real estate investor on this site see the video listed by PSU-Lion. It’s back a few posts.
That really opened my eyes. Now I know what to look for in a house that would flag it as a previous “Grow-Op”.
Thanks for sharing. Philly, let us know how you ended up solving the problem. I would especially like to know the response from your Landlord Insurance Carrier.
That video was pretty disturbing, especially the fact that the inspectors were so clueless.
One thing I don’t get is didn’t the buyers smell mold when they first viewed the houses? I’ve been in one REO where there was mold in a single room, and you could smell it when you walked in the front door.
The engineering report should run you a few grand. The electrical inspection, if it’s ok to get the standard visual one from the electrical safety authority should be a couple hundred bucks. I have no idea what a hygenist charges, but it sounds expensive like a Phase II environmental report (which is around $8K). I’d just give the letter to your insurance broker and have him ask the insurance company what course they want to pursue, whether it’s a buyout, pay for the reports or hire a lawyer to appeal it.
I’ve had a certified structural report done for $350. A licensed electrician should be able to get you a certified electrical report for about the same (or less). Your on your own for the Industrial Hygienst ???
In the two years I’ve been following REIClub this is perhaps one of the most informative posts I’ve seen. philly0128, I’m sorry to hear about your troubles, but you’ve opened the eyes of a lot of posters in this forum and with PSU_Lion’s video I am sure a lot of us will be doing some personal visual inspections to check for these issues ourselves in the future.