You’ve finally found the house: In the best school district in Cobb County, close to work, fenced in yard, perfect windows. It’s exactly what you want. The sellers accepted your offer and now you have a contract to close in 45 days.
You hire an experienced professional home inspector and meet him at the house. He goes through some of the minor issues and then he gets to the part about plumbing.
He paused at the water heater longer than anywhere else.
“Gray poly,” he said. “I found it under the sinks too.”
“Is that bad?”
He didn’t answer right away. “It’s not the worst news in the world but it’s not great. Some insurance companies won’t cover it. Most lenders won’t care but a few do. It tends to fail without warning. There’s still a lot of this in Marietta. We’re finding more failing PEX and copper these days but there’s still a lot of gray poly around here.”
That night, lying in your current kitchen, the questions pile up.
Are we really going to buy this house and tear it up to change out the pipes? Should we consider walking away from this deal? Try to find another perfect house? Ugh.
Here’s the thing: Repiping a home is a 2 to 4 day process that typically costs between $8,000 and $14,000 including plumbing, drywall repair, and paint match. Crews cut small access holes rather than tearing out walls. You won’t see the seams once it’s painted.
You have leverage.
Repiping homes in the course of a real estate transaction is very common. Many buyers walk when failing pipes show up on an inspection report. Others demand a credit. Sellers know this, and they also know their list price didn’t account for a repipe. Repipes during real estate transactions happen often enough that experienced agents already have a playbook for them.
You have an opportunity.
Most sellers will agree to offset all or part of the cost of a repipe. They may go ahead and have the repipe done prior to closing or they may provide funds that are set aside at closing and earmarked for the repipe.
The timing works for you.
You probably won’t be moving in for a few weeks after closing. The home is clutter-free, and you get to oversee the work and make sure it’s done right.
It adds long-term value.
Playing your cards right results in you moving into the home you want with a new home water system with a transferable warranty. You know the plumbing system will last 30+ years and that you won’t worry about leaks in the future. The work comes with a 25-year manufacturer warranty plus a 10-year workmanship guarantee, both transferable to the next owner.
The seller will handle the repipe or you will take credit at closing. The choice is yours. If the seller’s plumber isn’t a repipe specialist but is willing to giving repiping a shot, take the credit. A specialist after move-in beats a generalist before closing. A botched repipe presents its own set of long-term problems including pipes improperly run in attics, undersized lines, unnecessary pipe noise, and other problems. Asking the seller to pull a permit on the work can help but doesn’t guarantee quality work.
Make sure the repipe company provides a transferable warranty and remember a warranty is only as good as the company behind it.
What to do this week
- Get a written estimate from a licensed repipe specialist, not a generalist plumber.
- Bring the estimate to your real estate agent and ask her to forward it to the listing agent.
- Decide whether you want the seller to handle the repipe or take a credit at closing and run it yourself.
- If you take the credit, ask for the estimate plus a 10% buffer for the unknowns.
- If the seller handles the repipe, require three things in writing: a transferable warranty, a pulled permit, and a repipe specialist (not the seller’s everyday plumber).
The due diligence period is your opportunity to strike a deal that works for your family.
If you’re under contract right now and need a number to bring to the negotiating table, Plumbing Express can give you a phone ballpark in five minutes and a written on-site quote within a day or two. Call (678) 439-9540.
