Help! My builder killed my sod

I am a first time homebuyer.

My builder neglected to water the back yard for more than a month (and repeatedly ignored my emails about this) and now a majority of the lawn is brown and there are bare patches of dirt in the worst spots.

As we approach closing (this Friday) I told my realtor that I either want new sod put down (the back lawn is about 3k sq ft.) or I want a credit to do it myself.

My realtor’s first response was that I just need to water it and give it a year, in which case if it doesn’t grow back, it would be covered under the builder warranty. When I told her that I am 99% sure no lawn is covered under any builder warranty since it’s a perishable item, she next suggested having a signed letter saying that if it doesn’t grow back in June (1 year since it was put down) it should be replaced by the builder. I’m am weary to do this and I don’t want to look at dead grass until June. I’m certain it won’t grow back, at least not to what it originally looked like before it died.

What should I do? Is it not reasonable to ask that it be replaced? I want to buy the house but I’m really bummed that I would be buying a lawn of dead grass. On top of this my realtor knows that I have to be out of my apartment by the end of September and she has shared this with the builder.

Just for added context, this builder is highly reputable and only builds a few houses at a time.

I greatly appreciate any input.

submitted by /u/throwsiesfinance
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source https://www.reddit.com/r/RealEstate/comments/1fe8b7i/help_my_builder_killed_my_sod/