We now have a signed contract, and had our own home inspection conducted on the property. Our home inspector has determined that the cause of the leak was due to improper drainage at the rear of the house, at the base of the chimney. This has caused the chimney to settle improperly, with the base leaning slightly away from the home, while the upper portion has rather dramatically tilted towards the roof. Our inspector recommended we have an engineer determine if the chimney is structurally sound, and what steps need to be made to repair/replace the chimney.

Our question is two-fold. First, is the >

Answer: Working with a >

Because the company has not lived in the house, and has no real knowledge of its condition, quite often those houses will be sold in their "as is" condition. This means that you buy the house in its present condition and the >

However, from the facts that you have described, it really makes no difference if the seller is a ">

You had the home inspected and a couple of major problems were discovered. Does your contract contain a home inspection contingency? The typical standard home inspection contingency gives purchasers two options. If they are dissatisfied for any reason with the inspectors report and timely advise the seller of their concerns, they can cancel the contract and get their earnest money deposit returned.

Alternatively, they can present a list of defects to the seller, who has three days to advise the purchasers that 1 all of the work will be done, 2 only some of the listed items will be corrected, or 3 that none of the work will be corrected. Unless the seller agrees to do all of the work, the purchaser than has an additional three days in which to accept the sellers proposal or cancel the contract.

You must read your contract very carefully. Most inspection contingencies have time limits which must be strictly followed. If the purchaser is to notify the seller within three business days, and misses that deadline, this contingency is considered to have been waived and the purchasers remain bound by the terms of the contract.

In your situation, if your sales contract only requires the seller to convey title to you "as is", then the seller will most likely not agree to correct the condition of the fireplace. In that case, and assuming that you do have an inspection contingency, unless you are prepared to spend your own money fixing the situation, one of your options is to cancel the contract.

You do have other options, however. If you can get a licensed contractor -- or better yet a city housing inspector -- to give you a statement that the fireplace condition is a housing code violation, that will give you a lot of leverage. In some jurisdictions, the existence of such violations is grounds for cancelling your sales contract. You should discuss this with an attorney licensed to practice in the jurisdiction where your house is located.

There is one other option that may be available. The seller gave you an earlier inspection report that represented all the leaks have been corrected. While the >

Heres a suggestion should the seller be willing to make the necessary repairs. Get a couple of bids from independent contractors and tell the seller that you would prefer a cash credit at settlement instead of having the seller do the work. All too often, the seller may not hire a licensed contractor, and you may have problems in the future.

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