Home Improvement → Know when to run!

My wife has been watching a lot of HGTV, and half the time when someone walks into a potential new home they say "oh, we definitely have to redo this carpet/tile/paint/whatever". When did everyone become so stuck-up and wasteful? If the floor was good enough for the previous owner, it's good enough for you.

I don't know anyone in this market, except new construction, that would offer a guarantee on their used home. Every home sale is as-is. That is why so many, including myself, encourage buying or offering a home warranty through a 3rd party company. It encourages the sale of the home and as a new buyer, it takes care of that 20 yr old hot water tank that just sprung a leak.

It is some suggestions but keep in mind, each market is different, and each location is different. You can't spend $80,000 and expect the palace.

Excellent point. I would not say never to use the inspector your agent recommends -- just realize there may be a subtle conflict of interest present if you do so.

I had an agent get annoyed with me because I wouldn't use the inspector she recommended, and the guy I did use found some hidden problems that prompted us to back out of the deal.

Some comments on your list:

1) Here in NH is it not uncommon to have running water in old field stone basements. Not a problem unless you don't know about it.

2) Only applies to branch circuits. Utility and service entrance cable in most cases will be aluminum.

To add to the list:
1) Neighborhood and area. It is getting better, or getting worse.

2) Commuting distance to jobs.

3) If you have kids check out local schools

4) Property taxes.

5) Town administration. Some towns exert a lot of pressure on home owners. Building permits for even minor work. "Grass police" etc. The more rural you are the less intrusive government tends to be.

6) Flood, hurricane risk.

7) Chinese Drywall disaster.

8) Water and sewer vs well and septic. There are pros and cons of each. If you have well and septic find out where well, septic tank and leach field are and how often septic tank has been pumped. If possible get design documents for septic system.

9) Get documentation for any special features and user manuals for appliances. Being an engineer I've designed some purpose gear for our home. I'm going to have to leave documentation for new owners if and when we sell the home.

10) Has property been surveyed recently? If so get plot plan.

/tom

Great idea for a thread. I've been a homeowner for a year (well it will be a year on 11/12), and this is a nice thread idea.This is a biggie that is sometimes overlooked. My wife and I looked for 2 and a half years before buying our home. Most of the time it just wasn't what we wanted, and a few times when we found a place that had a lot "right" with it, the neighbors were something less than desired. (On houses we liked, we'd take drive-bys at all hours and days. I'd take drive on weekdays, weeknights, weekend, Saturday nights, middle of the night, etc. Just to get an idea of what was going on.)

Did the same thing for the place we bought, and aside from the guy 1/2 an acre over with a loud dog on occasion, the neighbors are neat and quiet. The only thng I could have asked for was eye candy on the block (besides my wife), but can't have it all, can I. Some of the best advice, I believe. Some of the best $600 I ever spent was about this time a year ago when an engineer came and for 90 mins, checked every nook and cranny of the house. He sat down with me after the inspection, and said (without being biased one way or the other), "This is a good house", and then began to explain the expected items you'd see out of a well-maintained 27 year old house. Nothing structural at all, which was a biggie for me. Roof is good, basement is good and water-free. AC works well even though it's an older CAC system.

I was so impressed with the information I received the next day via e-mail (like a 50 page report abut every aspect of the house w/ photos), that in another 5-10 years I'm thinking about just hiring them to come back and do a report then. Not because we'd be selling, but just to get an idea of what might need our attention at that time.

Okay. Like I said, I've never seen it, but I'm not an electrician. Just think some of the statements are a little broad.My brothers house is in a floodplain (few hundred feet from a river). And yes, he knew that before he bought it. Probably had some water at some point in the 60 years since it was built. Seems fine though.

The attitude has alot to do with it . If he is saying that just to get a new roof - I don't think so. OTOH - if the roof was less than 10 years (that's mine), and he came with that remark (we used 30 year shingles) - again - I don't think so. If he wants to negotiate about it - he'd better have a real reason. I'll be stacking up MY home inspectors report to his on requests / requirements like this. I KNOW my house needs new floors - heck, I'VE been wanting new floors since I moved in - that's something I'd be a bit more serious about.

Blanket off the cuff remarks just to draw a reaction will not win you any points with me. Serious discussion will be treated appropriately. You come combatative at me - you're going to get that and worse from me.

True story from my past - we were selling a condo in Northern Virgina (the first place we owned). The buyer had a home inspector come through, and there was this remark about "some paint on trim was "rough" , please fix" . No clue about where this "rough paint" was, and what it looked like. I told them I didn't see what they were talking about. Later - I did find it - about a 6 inch strip that about 5 minutes of sanding took care of. It was all in the presentation.

Jon

The people that I specifically mentioned (above) had not seen serious water issues in over thirty years either, but then 2008 came along. After the houses were condemned (mold) they were forced to bring the entire house up to current codes (electrical, etc) instead of being grandfathered in. A significant portion of them could not afford to strip out everything(plumbing, electrical, etc) and replace it. So now those houses are just sitting and most of their owners have just moved on.

Sickly/poorly placed/poorly maintained trees. Sure, a Willow looks great down by the creek, but not next to your house or over the septic tank.

And that Oak looks so stately-too bad it is being eaten from the inside out.

Don't get me wrong-I love trees. But, they don't stay up forever. So consider the quality/health/cost of maintenance when considering a property.

You didn't get that specific in your other post. If it's a reasonable request, then you should be negotiable. If you have 20 years left on your roof then yes, that's not reasonable. If you only have a year or two left as the inspector said, then it's not reasonable to raise your price to cover replacement.

I wasn't being combative or trying to get a reaction. The way you phrased it was ridiculous. So no need to go all Internet tough guy on me.

The thing is - the "full market value" or "appraised value" of the house is the value of the house in it's current condition, not the vallue of the house if it was like-new.

Neighbor DOGS! I don't want to live next to someone who has a yippy dog that is barking all hours of the night next door to me. Both my neighbors have dogs and I have nothing against them. I just don't want an obnoxious attack dog or ankle biter staring me down every time I grab the mail.

If it has a dishwasher MAKE SURE IT RUNS A FULL CYCLE! Mine "ran"...it just never stopped!

Dryer - same deal. Mine "ran" - it just didn't DRY.

I'd also look at the heating system and see if it has a repair log/record on it. Mine hadn't been serviced in YEARS and required almost a full rebuild. Under $250 for me to do it, well over $600 for someone to come in and do it.

Outside/Buried oil tank. EPA will come down hard on you if there is ever a leak. Around here they require a disclosure statement that there was never one outside/buried.

AC. Central AC is nice but has it been maintained? Is it as old as the dinosaurs? Mine had a AC through to the garage (moisture problems!) and unfortunately there's no where else to put one through wall.

In ground pool. Maintenance and TAXES could kill you if you don't want one or want to maintain it. Also a b*tch to remove if in ground.

Filthy! My house was DISGUSTING! I happened to have several friends in damage restoration, though....but it was hell to clean. He said it was on his top 10 list of dirtiest carpets he's ever cleaned.

Not all deal breakers or "run away screaming" but a couple of issues I ran into/missed.

Or in north metro area of Atlanta. I work for a school system and we had an elementary school on a 500 year plain, water to the roof... as the water went down, you could see drop ceiling tiles float away. about 250 houses around it are ruined, one flooded to just above the first floor, and the second floor caught fire and burned to the water line. Where I live was on a 500 yr plain but fortunate for me the area has great drainage to a lake that was pretty low (not anymore though)

Things I've found since buying my house this past May as a first time buyer:

1) If you have an unfinished basement that is insulated, take some of it down and see if the foam board on the outside is continuous. Mine had major gaps that I had to fill allowing heat, moisture and bugs through.

2) Be prepared for connection fees. You may not have to put a deposit down, but they don't tell you about the 30, 60 etc. dollar connect fee.

3) Gift cards to Home depot, lowes, etc. are like gold. Use them wisely

4) Rustoleum Universal made a brass light oil bronsed

5) If you are a techie like me (who isn't here right?) and the existing communication wiring is substandard. If you have to open walls, do it before you paint. If you have the funds (remember the gift cards?) use some sort of flex conduit to make sure you only have to open the walls once.

6) Get a good set of air filters for the first couple months. You will be kicking up dust and it can get bad fast. Filters will help you from sneezing when you are moving that couch up the stairs.

Great information guys . Won't be buying for about another 3-4 years but want to get a head start learning the stuff and what needs to be done.

We currently rent a house, and just from that I'm going to make the neighborhood priority number one. When we first moved in here it was nice, quiet, many retired older folks, and was a great neighborhood. This year it has gotten worse and worse. We've got the ghetto creep (spread of low-rent housing and welfare) coming up one of the streets. We also had the 2 houses across from us rented out by some young guys (all around 20). BOTH of them have bands and play the drums. It's literally drumming from about 9:00am until 2:00pm then a small break. Then again from 4:00pm - 10:30pm just about every single day....it's about to drive us nuts. If one group is playing, the other is.

I'm all for them practicing, but every day gets really annoying. Especially if you work a late shift, and try to get some sleep and start hearing *thud thud thud* at 9 in the morning.

Quick question about inspectors. How would you all recommend finding one? Nobody I know have bought a house in years. They all rent or live in an apartment. Do you rely on word of mouth recommendations, phone book, realtor recommendation (some seem to not want this)? Any good questions you should ask them before hiring them, specific licenses or knowledge etc?

My realtor recommended a couple, went with the more expensive one because he could be out there that same weekend. (FHA changed from 30 day to 45 day period for their inspector, which moved our timeline up) Guy ended up spending close to three hours (hour per floor basement/attic = hour) best $400 I ever spent.

i hate first time home buyers. they are getting smacked with reality and not realizing there first house is not going to look like mom and dad who have had there house for 40 years...

eh, not all are that way... but i know where you are coming from there.

I know I wasn't... I actually got more room than my parents this market is great for those that have been saving and used this oppotunity to get a good deal. Got my house close to 60K cheaper than when it first went on the market two years ago, and I also got a killer interest rate.

If the bathroom looks like this (and the asking price is $125k!), run.

More here - »lovelylisting.com

Like what?!

i know you are joking but the house down the street looked liked that. it was 70k cheaper and we were thinking upsize but after looking at we realized it cost twice that to redo it. it was coated in paint in tile but house had not been maintained hence the cheaper cost..

It's no joke, it's a genuine real estate listing. Although maybe it's standard for a hunting cabin in Alaska.

In the basement particularly.

Careful with a home inspection, better than nothing, but just not foolproof.

School districts affect future selling price so always check the schools even if you don't have kids (yet.)

Make sure you are above the 100 year flood, and you won't be cut off from the rest of civilization even if you stay dry during the flood.

RUN

that is a good point i recall daddy laying down in street gauging elevation. sure enough that one in a million flood came and 20 or so houses around did not flood as the rest of street did.

Then there is also the nuke plant in my back yard(seabrook), but I knew that when I bought the place.

Make sure you do not have large trees that have grown near the house. Sure they offer shade, but if they are susceptible to termites and other insects that can weaken the tree it could end up on your home and cause massive damage.
Also tree roots can cause damage to your foundation.

Wood stove controller
TV/FM antenna
Weather station
Bathroom fan control/timer
Dialup modem phone line adapter (no longer being used)
Remote control shed lights
Telephone/Alarm/Network wiring and cross-connect

I've documented some of this stuff on my site:
»www.tschmidt.com/writings.htm

/tom

Good tips. I got semi-burned on this deal by the sellers. Not burned too badly but they definitely knew about problems and issues, covered them up, didn't disclose them and sold it as-is. Still I like the place and have no plans to move in the future unless situations change.

If I do it again, I'll ask a lot more questions, make sure the answers are documented, and if they lie, I'll burn them with their own deceit.