Any risk in purchasing a home that had fire damage in the past? (paint, smell)

[WiseWords]

My cousin is considering purchasing a home that had a fire many years ago. I wanted to look into this for him. Are there any potential risks associated with this? Should inspections while rebuilding be enough to ensure things were repaired properly? What kind of things should an inspector keep an eye out for, if possible?

[QIS]

Hi Wisewords,
Have them check the attic to see if there are any burned structural members or wiring of any kind, or smokey smell( should be encapsulated; typically with paint). Get records of what happened, how it started, the extent of the damage, what work was performed etc... if there is lingering smoke smell it could be in the ducts, the HVAC system etc..

[thecoalman]

I'd go there on a very humid day and give it the sniff test. I had a house fire and while most of the house could easily have been saved we opted for full demo. That smell gets into everything, we had stuff in closed closets and drawers that stunk with no visible smoke damage. The only way I might consider living in house like that is if it were ripped down to the studs and painted with special paint for fire damage, anything burned fully replaced.

[hmrd]

Originally Posted by WiseWords

My cousin is considering purchasing a home that had a fire many years ago. I wanted to look into this for him....Should inspections while rebuilding be enough to ensure things were repaired properly?...

I know someone who is trying to sell a house that had a fire many years ago. A home inspector, working for a potential buyer, reported major things in the crawlspace that weren't replaced/repaired to code and the buyer lost interest. The house has changed owners at least a couple of times since the fire and apparently no home inspector (if there was one for any of these sales) reported these easily-seen problems. The homeowner is making costly corrections.

BTW, the buyer who withdrew had a really good home inspector who was definitely working for him. If I ever sell a house, I want an inspector who is as good and who is clearly working for my best interest.

[hmrd]

Last night I saw a comment that recommended checking to see what permits were pulled for the fire damage repairs (don't see the comment now). That's an excellent idea - wish I had thought of it!

You may find that no permits were pulled at all, but I hope not.

Based on the unacceptable work done on the house I discussed in my prior comment, I think there's a high probability no permits were pulled and rebuilding inspectors were never involved.

[bagster]

Originally Posted by thecoalman

I'd go there on a very humid day and give it the sniff test. I had a house fire and while most of the house could easily have been saved we opted for full demo. That smell gets into everything, we had stuff in closed closets and drawers that stunk with no visible smoke damage. The only way I might consider living in house like that is if it were ripped down to the studs and painted with special paint for fire damage, anything burned fully replaced.

This is sage advice. Sometimes the burnt smell will only be noticeable under certain weather conditions.

[silibran]

I would not want this house because it could be hard to turn over later. Think of how hard it would be to sell in a buyers' market.

I agree that checking public records for this house is a really good idea.