[Misky1951]

I've been helping my friends from Boston who are looking to buy a preowned home.

Some of the homes have roofs over 15 yrs old. I asked the agents about insurance. They tell us TV insurance companies will not insure a home with a roof over 15 yrs old. But they tell us not to worry as other companies do.

My friends are concerned about paying top dollar for a home and then worrying about getting insurance or being required to get a roof replacement in a few years

I guess the obvious answer is to find a preowned home with a newer roof.

Does anyone see buying a preowned home with an older roof as an issue?

Also, I would think an honest agent would tell a buyer about this. None of the agents mentioned this until I questioned it.

[PugMom]

this roof will most likely need replacing. i wouldn't chance it if it were me. maybe you could work out a deal that the purchase would include previous owner fixing it, or deducting cost of roof from final purchase price. idk that much about it-we bought new construction. does the home NEED to be preowned??

[retiredguy123]

Yes, it is definitely an issue. The agent works for the seller. I don't think you can say that the agent is not honest, especially since they told you the age of the house.

[Papa_lecki]

Talk to whomever they plan to use to insure the house.

[gatorbill1]

If house is 15 years old with original roof, deduct cost of new roof from your offer and state why. Most sellers would not have a problem with that, if they do, find another property.

[Two Bills]

Take $xxxxxx to cover the cost of replacing roof from offer price.
Tell the seller why, and if they do not budge on the price, Walk.
Estate agents will tell you the Pope is a Jew to get a sale!
Plent of other places to buy in TV.

[Two Bills]

Originally Posted by gatorbill1

If house is 15 years old with original roof, deduct cost of new roof from your offer and state why. Most sellers would not have a problem with that, if they do, find another property.

Sorry to echo your post, but was typing when you made it.
Story of my life. A minute late!

[Blueblaze]

In a normal market, I would agree that an old roof is a negotiating point.

But in this market, with homes selling in less than a week with multiple offers, you might not have the luxury of arguing over a roof that passes an inspection but is due to be replaced. Add $15K to the list price and ask yourself if you're still willing to buy it, because if you knock the cost of a roof off your offer, you probably won't get the house.

It really depends on the asking price. If the price would have been a reasonable price a year ago plus 10%, I'd eat the roof cost and make a full-price offer. But if the seller has already jacked up his price to take advantage of this market, you might have some negotiating room to argue over the roof, if there aren't other bidders.

[cypress]

We bought a house with a roof older than 15 years. The Villages insurance will insure the house but not the roof against damage. Two years later we replaced the roof and our insurance now covers everything and even went down a bit.

[DAVES]

Originally Posted by Misky1951

I've been helping my friends from Boston who are looking to buy a preowned home.

Some of the homes have roofs over 15 yrs old. I asked the agents about insurance. They tell us TV insurance companies will not insure a home with a roof over 15 yrs old. But they tell us not to worry as other companies do.

My friends are concerned about paying top dollar for a home and then worrying about getting insurance or being required to get a roof replacement in a few years

I guess the obvious answer is to find a preowned home with a newer roof.

Does anyone see buying a preowned home with an older roof as an issue?

Also, I would think an honest agent would tell a buyer about this. None of the agents mentioned this until I questioned it.

Several reminders. The,"agent," is a sales person. Unless you hired them as a buyers agent they work for the seller not for you the buyer.

Shopping for friends? I do wonder. Shopping for a home is something people should do for themselves. You might for example love the landscaping etc and your friend may not.

A 17 year old roof? Perhaps, an assumption but everything else is likely the same age.
Air conditioning. Plumbing etc. I don't recall when, but you can look it up. The requirement for securing the roof to the home has gotten stronger. Electrical codes have changed. Not sure of the date but they are no longer allowed to use aluminum wiring.

[Arctic Fox]

If the roof is in good condition then it may last another 10 years. The key is, can you find a company that will insure an older roof? Ours (American Integrity) was happy to insure our 22-year old roof but that may be because we had been with them for several years.

[Topspinmo]

It’s old house also, old don’t necessarily bad, lot of roofing scams last couple years. Course everybody wants new roof, A/C, floors, kitchen, windows, paint inside and out, no bond, and the prefect location for cheap price. Good luck. Bottom line you can demand, don’t mean you’ll get it.

[MrFlorida]

15 years is pretty much the normal here in Florida, for insurance companies that is..... we all struggle with it.

[kathyspear]

Your friends will not find insurance for that home unless the roof is replaced.

We had an issue with our current home and the one we sold when we bought this one. Both had to be replaced. With the home we sold we split the cost with the buyers. With this home we paid for the roof. Our insurance company (Allstate) gave us 30 days after closing to get the new roof put on. Had we not done that our insurance would have been cancelled.

We paid ~ 16-17k for each house but they are larger homes (2650 and 2900, I think). Depending on the size home your friends are looking at, the cost could be considerably less. My advice, FWIW, is that they should find the home they love and do what they need to do as far as the roof and insurance go.

kathy

[Papa_lecki]

Agree - I wouldn’t suggest a house for my brother, let alone a friend. I would share my experience in TV.
I am amazed people are making a $200,000 or $400,000 decision, but don’t spend $1000 for a trip to see the house.