So disgusted/upset over old house issues (sale, inspection, rent)

[twodoor2]

Here are the good things about the house

1) 3 full bathrooms, 2 half bathrooms)
2) four nice sized bedrooms
3) a ranch, which is hot in the area, as many older people like to move there. We have very elderly parents too, so this helps.
4) near a large park
5) super quiet street with a dead end
6) gorgeous finished basement with a bonus room (can be used as a bedroom or study) and a full bathroom/sauna.
7) no water issues that anyone could find
8) All other mechanicals are fine (HVAC, electric, plumbing) as well as windows, roof
9) Lots of curb appeal and it is an all brick house
10) open floor plan
11) It's all brick, no siding.

Now it does have some cosmetic issues, but I see that as a non-issue. I wish it were only cosmetic issues. Some updating has been done as some of the bathrooms, especially the master bathroom, is amazing, and all new hardwood floors in the recently remodeled great room (a wall was taken down to combine the living room/family room). It's dramatic and beautiful. It also has beautiful windows and a nice yard.

Now, does that outweigh the foundation issues? I don't know, so I'm kind of on a see-saw here trying to figure it out.

[Silverfall]

Originally Posted by twodoor2

Even if the foundation is completely fixed the right way? I'm talking hydraulic lifting of the house on piers, not just fixing cracks (band-aid way out). The fix also has a warranty.

Push piers or helical piers will support the home, but often they need to be adjusted in the future if the house is sitting on land with soils issues. Some buyers will be totally fine with the piers, but many will not be for future resale. Having sold a couple of homes that needed piers, it is harder to sell them. Your agent will know. In areas that are highly desirable though, it might not be an issue.

Piers are not cheap. Out here they are $1600 each.

[froglipz]

The solution is NEW construction! You get the benefit of all the updated building codes incorporated in the construction, along with energy efficiency. Everything in the house is new and not out dated or worn out, plus you get a home exactly how you want it for YOUR tastes and needs. Remember that buying an existing home is buying someone elses problems. Downside is the construction time and not being able to move right in.

[kab0906]

I wouldn't buy a house with foundation issues.

I had a similar problem when we were looking. I found the perfect neighborhood - 70s homes but good streets, mature trees, big yards, quiet area - and I really wanted to move there. But house after house had issues that were deal breakers. I finally realized that I had to go back to a broader range of areas. If you stay focused on just that one neighborhood then you will probably miss out on good houses.

[twodoor2]

Originally Posted by Silverfall

Push piers or helical piers will support the home, but often they need to be adjusted in the future if the house is sitting on land with soils issues. Some buyers will be totally fine with the piers, but many will not be for future resale. Having sold a couple of homes that needed piers, it is harder to sell them. Your agent will know. In areas that are highly desirable though, it might not be an issue.

Piers are not cheap. Out here they are $1600 each.

They can be $1500 to $2500 each with the company we choose to work with. I know, did the research. Thank you for this helpful post.

While it is a desirable area, major issues do affect property value, and there's no way of telling what the future holds. Will the piers even be a guarantee of a stable foundation??? I guess not.

[twodoor2]

Originally Posted by kab0906

I wouldn't buy a house with foundation issues.

I had a similar problem when we were looking. I found the perfect neighborhood - 70s homes but good streets, mature trees, big yards, quiet area - and I really wanted to move there. But house after house had issues that were deal breakers. I finally realized that I had to go back to a broader range of areas. If you stay focused on just that one neighborhood then you will probably miss out on good houses.

I've looked in a gazillion areas, and my husband is also limited by the government county that he can live in per his job requirements. It sucks, but it is what it is. We also have enormous property taxes in this area, and this is one of the few that has reasonable taxes (not low, but reasonable). We're also limited by schools, and my son's autism. I've really zoned in from 20 or more neighborhoods to two, after doing enormous research. It's now that the homes are in very poor condition for the values. You would think that people living in an upper middle class neighborhood would take better care of their property. I know we did when we owned.

[twodoor2]

Originally Posted by froglipz

The solution is NEW construction! You get the benefit of all the updated building codes incorporated in the construction, along with energy efficiency. Everything in the house is new and not out dated or worn out, plus you get a home exactly how you want it for YOUR tastes and needs. Remember that buying an existing home is buying someone elses problems. Downside is the construction time and not being able to move right in.

Taxes here are outrageous on new construction, and the only places where they are building new construction are out of our price range, or less than stellar locations. Been there, done that.

Besides, as others have pointed out, new homes have their sets of issues as well. I bought my last house as new construction, very very stressful.

[chet everett]

Originally Posted by twodoor2

I can deal with cosmetic issues, but my husband wasn't able to deal with cosmetic issues AND a less than desirable location, so for us, that was a deal killer.Completely understandable! And, over the long haul, you might be able to address some of the cosmetic issues, but not a whole lot to do about poor location. Wise to think that through. At the time, our budget was $100K less than it is now. We've increased that budget substantially. Again, a sensible way to deal with the issues. That's how bad we want to get in the area. We have seen other homes sell in our price range in this area, and nice homes too, so I think we're just very unlucky.Do not go there! It is not luck, it is timing -- undoubtedly some of these deals happened too fast for you to find out about. Would not be surprised if some were "pocket listing" -- that often happens in areas that have long term desirability. NEED TO FOCUS ON LOCAL real estate office that can move quick, NOT the "new fangled" folks that vary widely in ability!! The "hot mess" house had a lot of problems that were concealed, but thanks to a great inspection, we found them. On the outiside, it just needed a little TLC. Even the redfinRED FLAG! agent that listed on the webpage for the home said it had potential and needed a little TLC, so these things were concealed to her as well. It had a great layout and location, we only thought it had cosmetic issues, which are no big deal to me if the location is great.

I probably would have had a house by now if my husband wasn't so picky either. There are a lot of split levels in the area, and he hates all of them. All of them? Not good, I have to admit that I am generally not a huge fan of split levels, but some layout are actually quite acceptable. I have seen that have even had nice upgrades that really do make them pretty much the equal of any modern open floor plan. Heck I even seem some admittedly rare but clearly architect designed split level renovations that manage to give them some real charm / distinctiveness. GOT TO KEEP AN OPEN MIND ABOUT THE POSSIBILITIES IF YOU WANT AN ESTABLISHED NEIGHBORHOOD!!! That also decreases what we can find.

If we buy this house, we will make the sellers give us a credit for the fix, and we will fix it ourselves the right way. If they don't, we'll just walk away from this one as well. Smart and relatively unemotional way to deal with it! They're not going to be able to sell the house with such an obvious structural defect and they'd be idiots not to know that, especially at the list price they're asking, which is fair retail market value. We did the comps with our realtor and we know. The owner is a doctor as well, so I can't believe he couldn't have fixed this issue ahead of time. Does he not realize how a bad foundation ruins the property value of your home? You'd be surprised! Lots of "smart people" in every conceivable career, from engineer to attorney to physician to even some builders, are BLIND to the faults in their own home. Just keep a clear head and don't let their foolishness misguide you!

When I say "old house," I mean not relatively new. My husband loves new constructionWhy? If he thinks it'll automatically be "less trouble" he is wrong. It comes down to QUALITY and many new houses are not build with good materials (I don't), so I'm used to any house being "older" that may have asbestos, or lead paint issues, old dated Brady Bunch interiors, etcHonest inspections and even good real estate agents that know when a home has already been upgraded / well maintained are your friend -- work with one that has a record of success!. . .

I can tell you have spent a lot of time on your search and it will work out! I know from experience there are some local real estate agents that really do know their markets MUCH better and can help you find the kind of home that you and your husband can BOTH feel good about.

In areas where there are lots of split levels it is very likely that some have been remodeled. Most are probably not showcasing the rather tricky ways that they can be made more livable, more distinctive and better suited to modern lifestyles because it truly does take more skill and even a bit more money to successfully renovate a 70s era split level than it would take to make over a more classic home OR build from scratch.

Some of the keys are to consider where the bathrooms are -- in too many splits where you MUST go upstairs to the "family" bathroom or downstairs to the "guest" powder room the main level really cannot be reconfigured to yield a bath on the same level as the main living areas / kitchen and THAT is definite negative. If you can find a floor plan that either has a "guest" powder room or can be reconfigured to give you one it might help to focus on that.

With a truly GREAT local real estate agent it is likely that they sold a family a split level and the family did such a nice job remodeling it the agent has taken skeptical shoppers for a little walk through to showcase the possibilities. It might make sense to seek out some one like that...

Don't get bogged down in the emotions of bad sellers that ask too much for homes that have problems that either cannot be fixed (location) or are unrealistically costly once repairs are factored in -- for some they might eventually be purchased by a contractor that can "fix it on their own time & dime" and that eventually will help you by increasing the value of homes in the desirable area.

Good Luck!

[twodoor2]

Thanks Chett for the support. Our realtor is my husband's best friend, and the plus side to that is that he cares less about his own commission than making us happy. He's a really great guy, and I'm not just the only one who's saying that, but all his friends and colleagues trust and adore the man. He has worked his tail end off going through comps, getting us the latest listings, and he even got us a short sale in a hot area to invest in (a condo) before anyone else got it. It was a great investment, as the value went up significantly since we bought it.

He goes out of his way to show us listings when we need to see them, and is very easy to get a hold of. He knows the area we're interested in (he actually lives in a neighboring burb), and he understands the pitfalls. He's the one who points out he bad defects to us when we go through a home. We're very happy with him, but yes, it is hard to find a decent house now that prime selling season is over. We were chasing the market, and didn't realistically "up" our budget until it was too late, now we lost out. Oh well, maybe the right one will come along eventually.

That being said, there's some really nicely rehabbed split levels in the area, but they tend to linger on the market a bit. They have those floor plans that drive my husband crazy where you have to walk stairs to go from almost every room in the house. I fell in love with one of them, but my husband HATED it. He was probably wise because it was sitting on the market so long, the sellers took it off the market. I don't believe it sold. I saw another nice one, better floor plan, nicely remodeled, but again, the location was just not doing for us, even though it was in the same area with the same high school we want. It was $300/square foot, so that tells you some of the prices we're looking at. It is still on the market even after price drops and several open houses.

Thanks again.

[froglipz]

Sometimes its the thrill of the hunt!