Construction - floor leveling question (agent, sale, inspector, rent)
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In the house below which is for sale the floor between the first and second story is not evenly flat - its a wooden floor and towards the back of the house bends down pretty sharply and has been like that for 10 years. I would say the back is about 5 inches lower. It all feels hard, there's no give in the floor but its like going down a hill.
My questions to someone who knows construction are:
1. What might this be?
2. How can this be fixed ?
3. What might be a ball park cost- the space is about 1200 ft?
4. Is there a danger of anything else breaking?
The house is for sale and it will be quite a while before I'm back there (el Paso ) to get a look.
The house I just bought has a few spots like that. Some idiot somewhere in the house's past thought it would be a good idea to cut through the support beam in the basement to make it easier to install duct work. The floor has been stabilized with jacks, and we will slowly raise it back up. Will it ever be level again? I doubt it. Was that enough to keep me from buying the house? Obviously not.
There are other things that could be causing the problem in the house you are looking at. If you choose to make an offer on this house make sure to get a good inspector and if he recommends having an engineer look at the house do it.
Sometimes it is just settling. Some older homes have fireplaces that settle differently than the house and it can pull the floor with in (have seen this in centrally located fireplaces in older homes).
Sometimes it is just not great engineering for the type of soil that you have so it could be foundation woes.
And I have also see racelady's issues where people just start cutting through beams for random things not really think about the fact that they are there to support the floor.
You should be able to get it fixed. Most foundation companies will come out and get you a free estimate. Get a couple to come look at it and give you their thoughts. That's your safest bet.
Without knowing the exact cause of the problem nobody will be able to offer you any kind of estimates on what it will cost to fix. The jacks we used are similar to a bottle jack that you would use for your car and were $20 each at Home Depot. I have 3 of them down there.
You said the second floor is sagging. The first isn't? If so I doubt it's the foundation.
If the second floor sags the ceiling below also should be. Is it? If not then could that have been a roof at one time onto which the second floor was built?
Before anyone can tell you how serious the sag me be more information is needed.
If your in a ruch to move why not rent on a month to month basis in your new area until you know more about this place or find another?
Here's a link in the correct thread to a picture of the bedroom- thanks for your help - let's see if this makes your guesses easier or more accurate. I will if able to get this house do some sort of inspector thing.
In the original picture - this room is to the left and back of the house.
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