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My husband and I are currently waiting to hear back about repair requests. The house is mid 400s, appraised for 5k more than our offer and we're not even sure how much in damage is done. The thing is the houses here are nice and this one was too, or so it looked at first. There's moisture damage on the window sills inside in multiple areas, loose shower tiles and missing grout in the master bath shower - unsure of damage under there, stucco was not properly installed with 2 sheets of felt and only 1, and there are moisture areas all around the stucco, especially by windows, one window is so bad it most likely caused structural damage. The house is not crazy old, from the 90s and I just feel like it's extreme neglect, who doesn't notice window sills getting so much water damage and just ignores it? There are cracks in the stucco, no sealings, no flashings, no regular maintenance of it. The furnace also has some issues that warrant it being serviced prior to moving in per inspection. I feel like this house could be one heck of a headache, my husband wants it to just get out of the area we're in now as long as they fix. Biggest concerns are issues down the road, mold, ugh.
Has anyone ever dealt with Stucco and moisture issues? Can these be remedied and not cause further issues? The stucco wasn't properly installed, but we would seal it after the fixes. My biggest concern right now is safety and resale. We chose this area specifically because it's a desired area and houses sell quickly so that is good if we want to move into something better, but not sure how desired this house is now for resale.
The entire SE got inundated with EIFS stucco issues due to improper installation, lack of proper flashing, high humidity, and lack of maintenance- or no maintenance at all.
Most of these homes were not in a condition to actually live in while the construction/repair was being done. Most of the homeowners that had to go through this nightmare DID NOT go back with stucco. Most went with brick; some were brick/siding combinations- they just weren’t willing to take the chance again! They actually improved the perceived value of the home- and in some cases, the actual appraised value increased.
The only way this kind of house works is “fire sale” price- and an estimated appraisal of the house with the new cladding(s) that is profitable without over-pricing the comps.
I haven't seen the other threads referenced, so I will reply and chime in to say that from the little I do know about stucco and moisture problems, with homes built in the 90s and early 2000's, the remedy can be very pricey.
We actually were not aware of the issues, and found a very well maintained home in a lovely development in a great town and so on and so forth. We put in an offer which was accepted, and in the course of inspections, it was found to have some serious issues. The house looked fine- there were no obvious signs of a problem. We had a stucco inspection and there were several problem areas they found. They estimated that remediation would be anywhere from 20K to 70K. Since the seller was only willing to adjust the price by $5K - we walked away.
The point is, from what I am seeing more recently, this has become a serious issue. If the house you are looking at already has issues with moisture ( the one we looked at had none of the telling signs) then I cant imagine what it would cost.
I have seen houses have it remediated and then put siding on to be once and done ( but only once the moisture issue is relieved). So, neglect is one thing and if you plan to redo the shower, great or recaulk or replace windows ( not so cheap)then its acceptable------but if the stucco is not put on properly you are talking MEGA BUCK.
I have seen houses have it remediated and then put siding on to be once and done ( but only once the moisture issue is relieved). So, neglect is one thing and if you plan to redo the shower, great or recaulk or replace windows ( not so cheap)then its acceptable------but if the stucco is not put on properly you are talking MEGA BUCK.
And you will not know or be able to predict the extent of the damage and rot due to water and moisture until all of the EIFS has been removed, so if you’re willing to gamble with the unknown, that’s certainly your prerogative!
So it's not ACTUALLY stucco, it's that cheesy imitation stucco-look foam board.
You mention "they fix" - in a hot area where houses sell fast, you're unlikely to get anything other than an unsatisfactory patch-up job.
If you really like the house, I'd roughly budget out what it would take to rip off the fake stucco-look crap, put some proper siding or brick veneer there, and fix the bathroom, and knock that off the fair market price for the house and make the offer.
The sellers will probably refuse and if they do, they'll have done you a favor.
I'm not sure where this home is located or what the climate in the region is like, but if it's in an area that has anything more than mild weather I would take a hard pass on this house. These are the problems that were identified and you'll likely find more issues if/when you were to peel back the layers of the house. It sounds as though the builder cut a lot of corners and wanted to build houses fast and cheap. From what you describe, it would take $40K-$100K in reno work for me to be feel comfortable in that house. You've already described water intrusion, a bathroom renovation, roofing/siding/windows & possible doors/flashing issues, etc. Then you might have mold when do some digging; which may or may not be a big deal. For all that hassle, I'd just look at a different property.
Home inspector here (retired) with a fair amount of experience with stucco and EIFS applications.
Short history, any EIFS installed prior to 1994 had/has HUGE issues, because of the installation specifications were not really correct for wood frame homes in SE. There were lots of lawsuits and entire sub divisions with moisture issues.
After 1994, they changed installation specs a bit to address moisture issues. Even then, the installers managed to continue to NOT follow manufacturers specifications, and guess what? Continued moisture issues.
There was, and still is, a retro fit for doors and windows to help alleviate the issues. Sometimes it works, sometimes it does not. Many times, thee is underlying moisture damage to the sheathing behind the EIFS, which requires stripping off the EIFS and re-installing it.
Can a damaged EIFS house be fixed? Yes. Will it remain fixed? Maybe. Will you have the same EIFS stigma when you go to sell the house down the line? Absolutely!
I've inspected hundreds and hundreds of EIFS homes. In some cases, the entire house was stripped of the EIFS, and the owner installed another cladding material. Determining the unseen moisture damage is very difficult, even with infrared cameras. When testing EIFS, we used a moisture meter that had two very long probes to test for moisture. We used a special tool to punch the two holes in the stucco to get to the plywood/OSB sheathing under it. MANY times, the probe went all the way in, because the wood sheathing was completely rotted out. It did not show any active moisture because it had not rained in a long time, but it had extensive damage.
By the way, you don't really "seal" EIFS. Its a hard coat surface that is sealed already. Thats what the problem is, when moisture gets into the wall cavity, it doesn't evaporate out easily.
Personally, all things being equal, I would not buy a EIFS house.
So it's not ACTUALLY stucco, it's that cheesy imitation stucco-look foam board.
You mention "they fix" - in a hot area where houses sell fast, you're unlikely to get anything other than an unsatisfactory patch-up job.
Personally, I’d never let the sellers fix any deficiencies on a house that I was going to purchase but rather negotiation and agree to a price reduction that I would be comfortable with and then either contract or accomplish the work myself!
Stucco is most suitable for a desert climate. Back in the '70s and '80s I did a lot of repair projects here in the PNW that involved knocking the stucco off, repairing all the rot, and re-siding with a material that doesn't collect moisture.
If you buy that house, you are buying a disaster. Walk away.
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