Ran into structural problems in a house,NEED ur HELP (Dallas: sales, apartments)

[dora1088]

Hi!
So we finally liked a house (huntington home built in 1994)& bid on it, got it inspected and found out that one entire wall has shifted due to compression or expansion of soil & its effect can be noted on windows & doors & the wall itself is wide.Dallas soil shifts a lot or so I heard.
The Inspector told us to get a sturctural Engineer see it & then decide what to do.
There was also flooding in 2000 that led water in a room but the builder fixed it.My question is - is it worth to buy a house that we know has foundation/structural issues?

Will the Engineer check only the wall in question or the whole house to see if there might be problem areas anywhere else in the house?

IF there is a problem & the seller fixes it Will it affect the appraisal and resale value of the house when later we try to sell it as it will be in the discloser?

Thanks a Lot!

Dora

[kmc757]

Dora[/quote]

UOTE=dora1088;9967318]Hi!
So we finally liked a house (huntington home built in 1994)& bid on it, got it inspected and found out that one entire wall has shifted due to compression or expansion of soil & its effect can be noted on windows & doors & the wall itself is wide.Dallas soil shifts a lot or so I heard.

PART OF THE DALLAS AREA IS IN AN AREA OF BLACK TOP SOIL THAT EXPANDS AND CONTRACTS BY LARGE VOLUMES DEPENDING ON THE MOISTURE LEVEL IN THE SOIL. IF PEOPLE DO NOT MAINTAIN EVEN WATERING AROUND THE FOUNDATION, IT CAN LEAD TO CRACKS IN THE FOUNDATION DURING THE SUMMER MONTHS.

The Inspector told us to get a sturctural Engineer see it & then decide what to do.
There was also flooding in 2000 that led water in a room but the builder fixed it.My question is - is it worth to buy a house that we know has foundation/structural issues?

IT CAN AND PROBABLY WILL IMPACT THE RESALE VALUE OF THE HOME. ALSO, SOME HOMES WITH PREVIOUS WATER DAMAGE MAY BE HARD TO INSURE DUE TO FEAR OF MOLD. CHECK WITH AN INSURANCE AGENT BEFORE YOU COMMIT, YOU MIGHT HAVE AN AGENT PULL THE RECORDS ON THIS HOUSE TO SEE HOW EXTENSIVE THE DAMAGE WAS.

Will the Engineer check only the wall in question or the whole house to see if there might be problem areas anywhere else in the house?

THE ENGINEER WILL CHECK WHAT YOU ASK THEM TO CHECK AND PAY FOR. THEY USUALLY CHARGE BY THE HOUR. MAKE SURE THEY HAVE APPROPRIATE CREDENTIALS. FIND SOMEONE VIA THE INTERNET, DO NOT JUST TAKE A RECOMMENDATION FROM THE REALTOR, GET SOMEONE INDEPENDENT.

IF there is a problem & the seller fixes it Will it affect the appraisal and resale value of the house when later we try to sell it as it will be in the discloser?

ANY HISTORY OF FOUNDATION DAMAGE OR MOLD DAMAGE CAN IMPACT FUTURE RESALE VALUES. FOUNDATION REPAIRS TYPICALLY MAKE PEOPLE A LITTLE NERVOUS FOR FEAR THAT MORE PROBLEMS WILL DEVELOP IN THE FUTURE. IF YOU REPAIR THE FOUNDATION, IT WILL SHOW UP AS PART OF A HOME INSPECTION WHEN YOU DECIDE TO SELL. EVEN THOUGH IT HAS BEEN REPAIRED, THE HOME WILL HAVE LOWER VALUE COMPARED TO A SIMILAR HOME THAT HAS NOT REQUIRED FOUNDATION REPAIRS.

I WOULD NOT BUY A HOUSE WITH FOUNDATION ISSUES, BUT IF YOU DECIDE TO, YOU SHOULD EXPECT TO PAY LESS THAN COMPARABLE HOMES IN THE AREA THAT HAVE NOT HAD FOUNDATION DAMAGE.


Thanks a Lot!

Dora[/quote]

[loves2read]

it is the clay soil that is the major player in soil problems--not black top soil

the certified engineer that you use to inspect the foundation will check all of it and your lot for problems

some problems can be repaired for less money than others--some problems are isolated and some are just beginning of larger ones
just depends
that is why you need a full inspection

I think the homeowners probably knew about this -- since it involves windows and doors as well--and maybe were taking a chance that the inspector would not notice or consider it serious enough to suggest a follow up...some of them don't because they really aren't engineers...

the price should reflect these problems and they will have to be included on future sales on the owner disclosure documents...will they effect the price/purchase in future--probably--just depends on who wants to buy, the market at that time, the way the problem is resolved...

we have had an HVAC leak in our older home that we are getting ready to market--but that is not from a "flooding" problem...
the remediation people came out the night we discovered it (althought it had gone undetected for several days since we are not living in the house) and did what they do to dry out the floors/walls...
after they finished there was no moisture and no mold--mold need persistent moisture and air--
and the water that caused our damage was basically like distilled water which is very clean--not contaminated like water from a real flood/rainwater/street overflow which has lots of contaminates...

the flooding aftermath is probably not so much to worry about but the foundation on that house is probably just poorly done and will only get worse...it can be fixed but at what price/effort is the question...

[escanlan]

Originally Posted by dora1088

Hi!
So we finally liked a house (huntington home built in 1994)& bid on it, got it inspected and found out that one entire wall has shifted due to compression or expansion of soil & its effect can be noted on windows & doors & the wall itself is wide.Dallas soil shifts a lot or so I heard.
The Inspector told us to get a sturctural Engineer see it & then decide what to do.
There was also flooding in 2000 that led water in a room but the builder fixed it.My question is - is it worth to buy a house that we know has foundation/structural issues?

Will the Engineer check only the wall in question or the whole house to see if there might be problem areas anywhere else in the house?

IF there is a problem & the seller fixes it Will it affect the appraisal and resale value of the house when later we try to sell it as it will be in the discloser?

Thanks a Lot!

Dora

Hello Dora,

From your description the home appears to have experienced sufficient movement signs to call on an independent and licensed Structural Engineer. Use and independent Engineer (one not affiliated with a repair foundation company) for any evaluation whether to buy or not. Here is a list of some in the DFW area:

K.M. Kirk Professional Engineer 972-333-6584
Jim McNeme GeoDynamics | Expert Foundation Inspection for homes, apartments and office buildings | (http://www.geodynamicsdfw.com/index.php - broken link)
Drebelbis Engineering Drebelbis Engineering Services
Gregory H. Wilson Gregory H. Wilson, Inc. Structural Engineer - Home
John Dupre DUPRE CONSULTING SERVICES[SIZE=2][/SIZE]


I know of K.M. Kirks work and he is a very good Engineer.


You have received some good tips and I would also have your insurance agent pull a CLUE and/or A+ report for the home (CLUE Insurance Databases). This will tell if there were any insurance claims on the home in the last 5 years. This can give you an idea as to the homes history. Also ask your agent how these will affect your premium costs.


As for the value of a home that has had foundation movement I could not answer that. However, many homes here sell even with previous foundation repairs. If performed properly and maintained properly then piered foundations are many times better than those that are waiting to have problems.


One thing to keep in mind though about a home that has foundation problems and has not been piered is the potential for additional damages during the foundation repair. Repairing the foundation always carries the potential for other damages when it is manipulated to be piered.


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