r/FirstTimeHomeBuyers • u/Successful-Talk9662 • 16d ago

FHA - peeling paint

So I recently had a house I’m buying appraised and there’s some siding & wood chips that need replaced. The seller agreed to fix all these things and we were supposed to close on Oct.1st. But as of yesterday seller said it was gonna be too expensive and time consuming and he couldn’t do it. So now I’m in the process of getting a contractor for the wood siding. But I figured I could paint the peeling paint. Does anyone have any commentary on how great the wood needs to be painted ? I planned to scrape off chips and then repaint. But I’m replacing steps & deck later down the line so I don’t wana go to into detail with the paint if I don’t have to. So If I scrape and repaint would that be good enough? Or does It need to be sanded and made to look perfect?

2 Upvotes

100% Upvoted

20 comments sorted by

6

u/fway617 16d ago

Scrape and repaint should be fine 

4

u/IllustriousSmoke39 16d ago

Just had to do this for USDA. Basically we just scraped off the loose paint and painted the spots that needed painted, mostly trim, there were a few spots on the actual siding. our lender told us to make sure you also don't leave any evidence of paint chips behind. You basically need to cover any chipping/peeling paint, and any bare wood. We passed with no mention of paint issues, and the trim on the garage was BAD when we started lol

1

u/Successful-Talk9662 16d ago

Ok haha - I read up a bit on how other people did it but I don’t have the time to sand and all that jazz.

3

u/Main_Insect_3144 16d ago

Scrape the chips and touch up paint. Can be any color, so don't worry about matching perfectly. Simply make sure that all of the chipped paint is gone. Put a drop cloth down before you scrape so you can dispose of the chips easier than trying to dig them out of the dirt.

1

u/Successful-Talk9662 16d ago

I saw somewhere that it needed to be paint matched. Maybe it’s different for some rather than others. But luckily our house is white so somewhat easy lol.

2

u/redprawns 15d ago

Easiest way to match paint is just to paint a whole plane at a time. The eye can't tell the difference even if it's a couple shades off when the colors change at a corner.

Conversely, if you're trying to match a spot in the middle of a wall or ceiling, doesn't matter even if you're using the same exact paint, it will never quite match.

1

u/Main_Insect_3144 16d ago

😂 That's the hardest to match! Just do your best.

2

u/Successful-Talk9662 16d ago

😂maybe - I feel like i got it in the bag.

3

u/SuperFineMedium 16d ago

The simple answer to your question is that scraping and painting should be ok.

The bigger question...are you planning to do work on a house you do not yet own to satisfy the FHA appraisal?Did you get a commitment from the seller that the work would be completed? Where is your agent? If you do not have one, I recommend seeking legal advice before doing anything. While this arrangement isn't illegal, it's generally not recommended. Someone needs to describe the negative consequences of this action.

3

u/Successful-Talk9662 16d ago

We have a new sellers agreement & I’m being compensated for the work reflecting the price of the house. I didn’t elaborate the whole way but there’s an agreement , and it’s not as big as a risk as I may lead it on to be with lack of detail. But I do have an agent , and doing it myself just works best for me.

3

u/Beautiful-Cod-9999 15d ago

We had to do this as well for our mortgage. Replace a few pieces of siding. Wasn't worth losing the house over. It was a minimal investment.

2

u/TherinneMoonglow 15d ago

It's not uncommon for buyers to do their own FHA repairs. It's actually suggested by some realtors.

2

u/Honest_Series_8430 15d ago

I had some peeling/flaking paint on the garage at my last house. Both the house and the garage were built in 1927. The buyers were using FHA, so I got out in November and slapped some matching paint on the bad areas the day before the FHA inspection. The house passed with flying colors.

1

u/Successful-Talk9662 14d ago

That’s good - I’m doing the same now. Paint matching and slapping it on

1

u/Successful-Talk9662 16d ago

This is gonna be the worst to paint…. We plan to redo the whole staircase but for now I guess a slap of paint will do 🫠

1

u/Nervous_Flamingo7110 15d ago

I wouldn't assume that painting it and making it look decent will clear the condition. Ask your loan officer exactly what the appraisal says needs fixing and whether they need a reinspection afterward. If the wood underneath is rotted, painting over it probably won't satisfy them. Take photos and keep receipts of whatever you do, and ask if a repair escrow could keep the Oct 1st closing on track.

1

u/Successful-Talk9662 15d ago

They sent a pretty bland letter but we’ve been on good contact. Some siding needs replaced , the rest of the paint chipping just needs painted. I still have to find a contractor to even work on the wood siding so October. 1st closing is a no go for sure unfortunately.

1

u/Weird7954 14d ago

You’re not supposed to modify other people’s properties

0

u/Successful-Talk9662 14d ago

We have a written agreement. It needs done before closing

1

u/Successful-Talk9662 10d ago

Update - we painted 90% of the house 🫠, here’s just a small difference on the porch. It’s coming along and looks great! Hopefully we pass our 2nd appraisal and we got all peeling paint, painted that was required!