Buying a House That isn't Occupied (sale, foreclosure, appliances)

[jmax]

What are the downsides and what should you specifically look at when buying a house that isn't occupied and has been vacant for an extended period of time. We saw a house in the fall that did not have anyone living there (the owner died - the family still looked after the house - it's not a foreclosure that is boarded up). I just noticed that it is still on the market. It has to be coming up on a year. Does this affect any specific workings of the house - gas lines, heating/coolong systems, pipes, appliances, etc... that haven't been used in awhile.

[Just Peachy]

I just closed on my house Dec 17th and it was vacant for a very long time..over a year I think! Everything worked fine when we moved in! Its an older home too..like everything inside is from like the 70's! It has gas heat and that works fine even though it is old. We had no problems buying a long time vacant house that also happens to be an old house, but its got great potential and the price was great!

[StephM]

I would wonder if the house has been properly winterized. If the pipes froze and they burst, it would be horrible. We looked at one house that had that happen, and no one noticed. There was mold EVERYWHERE.

[AndreaII]

I would think that if it's been kept up (meaning utilities running and paid for, etc.), there really shouldn't be a problem. Can't think of a down side; actually it means you would be able to move in faster than if you had to wait for the owners to move.

[TomMoser]

As long as it was winterized properly or kept heated you should be ok. Make sure that your inspector checks the plumbing and heating systems carefully.

[Elke Mariotti]

You might also want to talk to your RE agent about a Homeowner Warranty

[modmondays]

Originally Posted by Elke Mariotti

You might also want to talk to your RE agent about a Homeowner Warranty

What is that?

[Kbinspections]

The only issues could be mice......they like unoccupied homes.

Do you know what tempature the house is set at?

[TomMoser]

Originally Posted by modmondays

What is that?

It is a warranty that insures you against major mechanical breakdowns during the first year of ownership.

[Chrisk327]

I wouldn't think there would be major issues. My house was unoccupied for 9 months prior to sale and 6 months subsequent to sale and most things were fine.

I would say a few things.
Plumbing backed up within the first week of ownership, not sure if that was a result of the downtime, needed to get rotarooter in.

Next, of the owner died recently there is a tendency of older people to let maintance items go, tune ups, work done on chimneys etc etc... just things to watch out for.

Also, with mine he had a lot of plants, ivy, shrubs etc. the heirs cut the grass, but didn't really mind the ivy shrubs etc. a year of growth unchecked made for a bunch of work to get back to "normal"