Properties Magazine December 2012 : Page 36
FINANCIAL STRATEGIES Smart use of fiscal planning & action Wise Guy A ALEC J. PACELLA popular show growing up in my household was Hogan’s Heroes . I was fairly young at that time and it was my father who enjoyed the show the most – odd because he served in Europe during WWII, but nonetheless he rarely missed it. One of his favorite characters was Sergeant Schultz, the portly Sergeant of the Guard whose famous standard line was “I hear nothing, I see nothing, I know nothing.” is 25 years old and the seller holds their breath every time it rains, the seller may suspect there is an issue but not have any actual knowledge of one. My advice to sellers is to have a third party inspect any items that are in question. And my advice to buyers is to have their own third party inspections performed for any items they consider necessary. All too often, sellers (as well as bro-kers) take this same approach during the sale process, especially when que-ried about property-specific topics. This month, we are going to discuss exactly what has to be disclosed by the seller, what should be disclosed by the seller and what the buyer needs to consider. Property condition This seems like such a simple topic and it should be. Any known material defect has to be disclosed by the seller. Period. The problem often becomes the gray line between “known” versus “sus-pects.” For example, if a big puddle of water forms in the middle of the floor every time it rains, the seller knows there is an issue with the roof. But if the roof Tenant condition This one is similar to property con-dition: it should be pretty simple. If the seller knows something – with cer-tainty – about a tenant that will affect occupancy, it needs to be disclosed. And again, the problem most often is the definition of “certainty.” The terms and conditions contained in the ten-EDUCATIONAL EQUIPMENT Serving Cleveland and Northeast Ohio Since 1936 We are specialists in: • Operable Panel Partitions • Accordion Doors • Chalk/Marker Boards • Bulletin Boards • Trophy & Display Cases • Signage • Directories SALES INSTALLATION SERVICE 845 Overholt Rd., P.O. Box 154, Kent, Ohio 44240 — Phone (330) 673-4881 Fax ((330) 673-4915) 36 3URSHUWLHV | December 2012
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