"Would you buy this house" (foundation/older sewer line) (Dallas: to rent, mortgage)

[chickaboom]

Hi all! Would appreciate your thoughts on our situation. First of all, we are expecting to live in Dallas for 3 years- this was a corporate relo and they are covering some of the expenses of buying. We found a house that has had foundation repairs, which my structural engineer (TW) says have failed, but are under lifetime warranty. My other concern with this house is the sewer line is nearing the end of it's time, and those are costly to repair. Price wise this house is "in the middle" as it has some upgrades but an older kitchen, etc. I'm not that emotionally attached but was hoping to find something by the beginning of the school year. We are fine with renting but want specific things which are harder to find in a rental. Anyway- just looking for your thoughts on if you'd walk away from this house... Thanks so much!

[escanlan]

Originally Posted by chickaboom

Hi all! Would appreciate your thoughts on our situation. First of all, we are expecting to live in Dallas for 3 years- this was a corporate relo and they are covering some of the expenses of buying. We found a house that has had foundation repairs, which my structural engineer (TW) says have failed, but are under lifetime warranty.



What has your SE recommended be done to correct the situation? A failing/failed foundation repair can be a simple issue or much more intense/involved to correct. Have you approached the seller about this issue and what are they willing to do?



My other concern with this house is the sewer line is nearing the end of it's time, and those are costly to repair.



How did you determine that the sewer line "is nearing the end of it's time"? Did you have the lines scoped by a licensed Plumber? Did you scope both the main sewer drain from house to street as well as main house drain from house perimeter and under the home? If this is a raised foundation have the lines under the home been fully inspected? What were the results of these inspections?



Price wise this house is "in the middle" as it has some upgrades but an older kitchen, etc.



Did the agreed on purchase price reflect this? Are you happy with living with this since you will only be there 3 years? If no to either question are you financially able to update it the way you would like it to be?



I'm not that emotionally attached but was hoping to find something by the beginning of the school year. We are fine with renting but want specific things which are harder to find in a rental.



What specifically does this house provide to you that you can not obtain in a rental?



Anyway- just looking for your thoughts on if you'd walk away from this house... Thanks so much!

Answers and questions (mostly) in blue above.


Each client I have had for homes with these issues have had their own plans and financial means that drove their decisions. Each looked at what they wanted, what they could afford to accomplish on the home, and then made their decisions. Each had many more aspects that were unknown to us RE professionals that drove their decision to buy or walk away. I suspect there are many more aspects you are also looking at? If you share some then possibly others can understand your full situation and provide more than guesses as answers.

[chickaboom]

Thanks, I am definitely having trouble sorting out our motives lol!


The SE recommended new piers and mudjacking once or twice, as well as extensive landscaping work and root barriers. We are closing in three weeks so I don't know if these things could be done that quickly, but I don't want to deal with doing it after we move in. Our realtor did mention that none of it *has* to be done so I guess there's the option of just doing none of it? It mostly to correct and prevent further damage to the foundation.
Regarding the sewer line- the inspector said it was near/past the end of how long they typically last, but mentioned water was running easily. I asked for a scope (this is standard where we are from) but was told it wasn't possible... ?
I only mentioned purchase price/kitchen for resale- I can basically live with anything. For a rental, we need at least 4 beds and want a pool in a specific feeder area for schools and haven't found anything yet. We could just choose anywhere with good schools (or give up on the pool) but were hoping not to have long commutes.
I guess the most important thing is we don't want to deal with a house that has a lot of hassle/risk involved with fixing it- we have children and both work and won't be in the house long enough to warrant both the financial cost as well as emotional/time cost.

This has already been a helpful exercise so thanks for your input!

[compSciGuy]

In general, most people that rent out houses don't want to deal with the liability of having a pool (and maintenance issues).

[Rakin]

"Lifetime warranty" is a vague term.

You need to know the company and how legit, reputable they are. I've seen a lot of lifetime warranties and the company is no longer in business.

If they are legit, YOU should call them and discuss the warranty. Don't rely on 3rd hand info through your agent or the seller. Then you can make a decision on the warranty.

[cordata]

The sewer line nearing end of life is a strange one. My sewer line is a clay pipe almost 100 years old. Still working ... and I have never heard of any of my neighbors having trouble. Yes, if the clay pipe collapses this is big $$$ and you are out of service for some time while it's fixed. The most normal trouble with sewer lines is leakage which encourages root growth and entry.


I've had mine scoped by the way, no problem. The usual issue with scoping would be that there is only a single cleanout towards the sewer side and not one angled towards the house. But usually you can snake the scope the "wrong way" up this single cleanout.


How old is this house ?

[kitty61]

Originally Posted by chickaboom

Hi all! Would appreciate your thoughts on our situation. First of all, we are expecting to live in Dallas for 3 years- this was a corporate relo and they are covering some of the expenses of buying. We found a house that has had foundation repairs, which my structural engineer (TW) says have failed, but are under lifetime warranty. My other concern with this house is the sewer line is nearing the end of it's time, and those are costly to repair. Price wise this house is "in the middle" as it has some upgrades but an older kitchen, etc. I'm not that emotionally attached but was hoping to find something by the beginning of the school year. We are fine with renting but want specific things which are harder to find in a rental. Anyway- just looking for your thoughts on if you'd walk away from this house... Thanks so much!

Don't do it. I wouldn't even consider spending hard earned money on a middle of the road mortgage for something derelict like this one. To get this plumbing up to snuff you have to tear up the house to get at it.
All the cosmetic upgrades is like lipstick on a warthog (worse looking than a pig). If your company is subsidizing your move, I would get something contemporary. Renting at first is the smart thing.

[EDS_]

Originally Posted by chickaboom

Thanks, I am definitely having trouble sorting out our motives lol!


The SE recommended new piers and mudjacking once or twice, as well as extensive landscaping work and root barriers. We are closing in three weeks so I don't know if these things could be done that quickly, but I don't want to deal with doing it after we move in. Our realtor did mention that none of it *has* to be done so I guess there's the option of just doing none of it? It mostly to correct and prevent further damage to the foundation.
Regarding the sewer line- the inspector said it was near/past the end of how long they typically last, but mentioned water was running easily. I asked for a scope (this is standard where we are from) but was told it wasn't possible... ?
I only mentioned purchase price/kitchen for resale- I can basically live with anything. For a rental, we need at least 4 beds and want a pool in a specific feeder area for schools and haven't found anything yet. We could just choose anywhere with good schools (or give up on the pool) but were hoping not to have long commutes.
I guess the most important thing is we don't want to deal with a house that has a lot of hassle/risk involved with fixing it- we have children and both work and won't be in the house long enough to warrant both the financial cost as well as emotional/time cost.

This has already been a helpful exercise so thanks for your input!

How old is the house?
I'm assuming were are talking about a cast iron sewer line(s)?
Does the foundation inspector believe the roots mentioned above may have crushed the sewer line?
As mentioned below if the owners won't allow a sewer line scope & static pressure test - WALK AWAY.
My house is 53 years old with the original cast iron sewer lines. The lines have normal "channeling" (like erosion on the inside bottom of each pipe) but the static pressure loss at 3 hours is zero.


1). It's tough to give much advice about the foundation with the info given. Although the deflection/severity sounds on the minimal side as the realtor said none of it has to be done.

2). IMO you need a scope and a static pressure test. Assuming the home has a sewer line clean out. A plumber inflates an air bladder through the cleanout opening blocking sewer water movement. Then the toilet the farthest from the cleanout is pulled and the line filled with water. If the line has breaks, holes etc. the water level will fall. Scoping misses many holes and small breaks. A scope may be needed afterwards if the water level falls too quickly. Or if the plumber expects the line might be corroded and has lost enough internal diameter to be a problem - acids dumped down the drain may causes this.

The problem with iron pipes and expected life is the variance is so high. Some fail after 30 years and others live well past 100 years.

3). Leaks and foundation damage.
A broken sewer line even under the house may not cause foundation issues.
A broken/leaking fresh water line under pressure very often will. There is at least a chance the foundation issues are related to a fresh water leak. To check turn off every faucet, wait a few for flushed toilets etc. Pull the water meter cover out from and make sure the little spinning triangle isn't moving. If it is wait a few more minutes and look again. If it still is moving have the owners call the city for advice. This can be done over time by logging the number on the gallons used dial and coming back later. A plumber doing the other scope and static test can do this in easily.

Sorry for the poor writing I'm in a time jam.

ETA - as Rakin says above be leery of "lifetime" warranties in the foundation business. Some are literally worthless as owners take their business(es) through planned bankruptcies usually voiding past warranties. So do some due diligence. Others are gold as there are some really good people in the business.

[chickaboom]

Originally Posted by EDS_

How old is the house?
I'm assuming were are talking about a cast iron sewer line(s)?
Does the foundation inspector believe the roots mentioned above may have crushed the sewer line?
As mentioned below if the owners won't allow a sewer line scope & static pressure test - WALK AWAY.
My house is 53 years old with the original cast iron sewer lines. The lines have normal "channeling" (like erosion on the inside bottom of each pipe) but the static pressure loss at 3 hours is zero.


1). It's tough to give much advice about the foundation with the info given. Although the deflection/severity sounds on the minimal side as the realtor said none of it has to be done.

2). IMO you need a scope and a static pressure test. Assuming the home has a sewer line clean out. A plumber inflates an air bladder through the cleanout opening blocking sewer water movement. Then the toilet the farthest from the cleanout is pulled and the line filled with water. If the line has breaks, holes etc. the water level will fall. Scoping misses many holes and small breaks. A scope may be needed afterwards if the water level falls too quickly. Or if the plumber expects the line might be corroded and has lost enough internal diameter to be a problem - acids dumped down the drain may causes this.

The problem with iron pipes and expected life is the variance is so high. Some fail after 30 years and others live well past 100 years.

3). Leaks and foundation damage.
A broken sewer line even under the house may not cause foundation issues.
A broken/leaking fresh water line under pressure very often will. There is at least a chance the foundation issues are related to a fresh water leak. To check turn off every faucet, wait a few for flushed toilets etc. Pull the water meter cover out from and make sure the little spinning triangle isn't moving. If it is wait a few more minutes and look again. If it still is moving have the owners call the city for advice. This can be done over time by logging the number on the gallons used dial and coming back later. A plumber doing the other scope and static test can do this in easily.

Sorry for the poor writing I'm in a time jam.

ETA - as Rakin says above be leery of "lifetime" warranties in the foundation business. Some are literally worthless as owners take their business(es) through planned bankruptcies usually voiding past warranties. So do some due diligence. Others are gold as there are some really good people in the business.

Thanks! good to hear about the static test, I think the inspector did recommend it. From what I understand the foundation is -2" on one side of the House, the side that has already been piered. Maybe this is nbd and I'm just being neurotic! They did the spinning triangle test and it was fine. Tomorrow we are having both the original company as well as other foundation company come out and take a look and find out if the original would redo and get a quote from the other. This has been very helpful thank you everyone! (Kitty btw we would love to rent but it's hard to find what we are looking for plus financially makes less sense to rent for a year then buy for two and we'd have to stay in same area due to kids/schools but thank you!

[HP48G]

you're only going to be here for 3 years... why sink all that cash in a mortgage in a house you are already stressing about with repairs, quotes, etc.