Any way to recoup the cost of inspection?

Usually you don't do inspection until after you are in contract. Until then it is assumed there are other bidders and verbal means zilch.

That's what I thought. In this case, the seller insisted that we do the inspection before going into contract. In other words, it was a condition of going into contract. Since this unit has been on and off the market a couple of times, we thought that maybe previous sales fell through because of something that came up during the inspection. I sort of feel that we were put up to this so that the listing agent could buy some time to strong arm someone else into making a higher offer. After doing some research on the listing agent after the fact, it seems like a stunt that she would try to pull off. Why our broker didn't advise against this, I don't know.

That's not always true. We've done inspections pre-contract, post-accepted offer where there are obvious possible deal breakers (not enough electricity, etc.). Most attorneys now expect some payment if the deal doesn't go through.

It's not that common. A nothing other than a well-seasoned broker wouldn't have a clue.

Anything other^^.

We didn't have an attorney so we don't need to worry about that. We're out about a 1000 bucks between the inspection and getting the paper work together. Sounds like I'm just gonna have to suck it up, but man I'm steamed.

Anything juicy in the inspection report that you can use? Maybe you can publicize it out to torpedo the deal, make the other guy lower his offer etc etc...Have violations that DOB will mandate etc. Yo u won't get your 1000 bucks back, but you might feel alot better.

Snuffles, the inspection came back fine. I will file complaints with REBNY and the BBB though.

I'm sorry, Clyde, but you have no reason to be steamed about this. Your complaints will go nowhere. If the seller really did require an inspection of you before considering contract, why in the world did you not talk to your attorney? That is what attorneys are for. I actually think you did not have an accepted offer to begin with, really.

I've paid for plenty of inspections before contract. I went to an open house once when a prospective buyer brought her inspector in tow, it was obviously a paid professional relationship. She might have thought this would intimate the mob of people at the open house, I don't know.
The point being that this is part of the cost of finding housing or purchasing an investment property.

Another thing Clyde---all real estate contracts must be in writing. This is an old old law called the Statute of Frauds. If you seller made an inspection a condition of having an accepted offer, that's an oral contract, but that never (almost never) works in real estate. So as they say, if you think education is expensive, try ignorance.

And Clyde get yourself a good real estate attorney who does NOTHING but real estate, a specialist. Don't go for cheap, go for good. The market tooth, nail and claw and you need somebody smart on your side.

Clyde_Mohanty, this makes no sense....You submitted a board application without a contract? 99.9% of applications require a fully executed contract as part of the application.

JMHunt, the unit is in an HDFC building. My understanding is that this is typical for these buildings. It allows the board to see that you meet the income requirements and prove financial stability. There is sometimes a secondary approval process once the contract is signed. I may be incorrect but according to people that I know who have bought into HDFC buildings, this is the way that the process works even if it may be completely backwards.

Most of the apartment inspections are not worth the cost because they can't check the infrastructure of the building. I had a buyer who brought in an inspector and the whole thing took 15 min. He checked the water pressure, looked for leaks under the sink, saw that the wooden floors were level, looked over the windows and the a/c's, and then figured out the amps in the circuit breaker. He wanted to take off the front plate on the circuit breaker and I wouldn't allow him to do that. (It was in a hallway that had just been painted and removing it would have made painting touch ups necessary.) As it was, I had prepared a fact sheet detailing the work done on the apartment including the warranties and dates of purchase of all the appliances. Unless you see something about the apartment that raises concerns, I wouldn't bother with an inspection for an apartment. I have done it when I've bought houses.

Just noticed your inspection cost. My buyer's inspector charged MUCH less than that.

Clyde, you can recoup. You just need some steel nerves and bluster vs the BS of the seller. This is NY.
Remember also that at this point the seller's main objective is as sale, no longer the incremental dollar, so if you have the time and energy then use your opponent's weakness against himself.