Had this exact same issue arise when purchasing a property in Florida. The law governing this sort of thing varies from state to state. In Florida, you can rescind a contract based on mutual mistake. i.e. Both the buyer and seller mistakenly believed that the house was larger than it was, and the consideration offered and accepted was based on that mistake. Not sure if that applies in Texas. Check with local counsel on that issue.
We resolved the issue on the Florida property by simply negotiating a new purchase price. The price reduction did not reflect a 1 for 1 discount, but it was a reasonable reduction acceptable to both parties.
Find out what legal recourse you might have, then strike a deal that works.Legal Advice:Put a bid on a home listed with 4080 sq ft. The appraisal came back stated the house is 3630?
Great responses by all! You have truly helped us look at this another way. I appreciate your time and effort.
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sq footage is figured many different ways. The bottom line is that there is no one way to figure it.
You purchased a HOME that you liked. And I know that the sq footage was NOT!!! the way you purchased the house. You decided to purchase because you like the house, the location and it's features.
You are questioning the fact that it is NOT 4080 and that the apprasier is correct. Could it be the other way around. And as a NOTE, the county measured the home to assess it. The builder did NOT!!!!! just give the county the sq footage. You are off by 400sf. I'm guessing that there is a unfinished space or 2 car garage that could have been included in the sq footage.
Purchasing by the sq foot is like buy a car by the pound.
Bottom line, you are NOT entitled to a 12% discount. And the difference is NOT a reason to walk away. If they had said there were 3 baths and there was only 2, then yes you may have a case. But not in this case.
Talk to a real estate lawyer as the difference is over 400 sq ft. What did the builder include in the numbers the appraisal did not? In some areas for example an enclosed porch or such is listed differently and this is a cause for differing numbers. Other areas they do not count the basement area and some others do especially if that area is finished. I had a house where one agent did not count the lower level rooms in the square footage and another did. Funny though was both counted the rooms in their info. Only someone looking carefully would have noticed the sq ft difference.
There is no 'set standard' method of square footage calculation for a house. For some reason, you are willing to accept the appraiser's measurements and not the county's figure. Has it occurred to you that the county figure is correct, and that the appraiser made an error or used a different calculation method ?
Your real estate agent is correct. Square footage is not a part of your contingency. You agreed to buy the property you viewed. The listing agency made no error, since it obtained square footage from the county, which is standard procedure when stating square footage on a property.
You seem hung up on numerical square footage. The house remains as it was when you viewed the property. Has this numerical difference changed the house you viewed ?
I'm willing to wager that if the size of the house and land are listed on the agreement, they are followed by the universal disclaimer, ';More or less.'; This lets the seller off the hook for any errors in calculating area unless the numbers are WAY off. If it measured to 2,000 sqft you might have a point, but a 10% difference (especially as there are different ways of figuring the living area of a home) isn't going to be significant.
Even if the words are not in the contract, the MLS listing for the home certainly does carry the disclaimer and virtually all sales agreements make reference to the MLS listing.
Your ';calibrated eyeball'; told you that the home was large enough for your needs and that's why you made the offer that you did. If you fail to complete now, you risk loss of your earnest money. If the size of the dwelling wasn't a material part of the offer you have no leg to stand on.
BTW, nobody here can give you legal advice in this forum, even a licensed attorney. If it's legal advice that you seek, consult with a local attorney.
I hope you have even seen the house. If you haven't, you may be in for some very ugly surprises when you get there. If you had seen it and you liked it at the price before you saw a different square footage number, you should still like it unless you are merely buying square feet.
Eric, you need to do more homework. Are you correctly reading the appraisal. For example, does the property have more than one level? Appraisers account for Gross Living area, which is above grade living space. If the house has a basement, that is counted, but not in the GLA. If the GLA is correct on the appraisal , but the listing agent and company advertised the property at a higher SF, then they may be on the hook for false advertising. You could consider asking them to pay the difference per SF, at closing. Wouldn't be the first time an agent made a mistake. But check the house yourself and have a 3rd party measure as well. While I wouldn't think the appraiser made a mistake, it's possible as well.
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