My giant list of questions for a home I looked at!
We have been looking around and we were shown an adorable little country home this morning. Since this is really our first time to be looking at a LONG TERM purchase we are freaking out a bit. I have sent a list of questions to the realtor so you guys have a look at my questions....(by the way she has already signed a contract to sell the house and if we decide to use her she will have to be a "joint realtor for both parties")
Here is the list....(you guys will LOVE this!)
Is the house termite bonded?
Is there any older plumbing left in the house?
Is there any heat or air loss issues with the insulation....doors and windows?
How many of the windows need work? Open easily, have screens?
If the roof checks out fine....how old is it....and are there mulitple layers of shingles already (are we looking at needing to do something within the next few years?)
Does the outdoor water pump have a filter....or need anything (since I am unfamiliar with these things)
Can we have DSL for the internet via Bellsouth? (my parents who live up the highway cannot have DSL)
Has the outside been painted within the past year or two...or will that need to be done soon?
Are the two air conditioning units set up to run seperate areas of the home...or run together for entire home?
About what is the monthly living expenses for the home....just a number I will expect to pay for utilities? (I ask because my home has a $165 power bill each month...and my parents is almost $300 and I have NO idea why!)
Has there been any major electrical or fire damage in the past?
Are there any BAD neighbors that I need to be aware of? I really REALLY appreciate any info on that because my children would be at home alone after school on a regular basis.
Does the creek running through the property drain any sewage from the farm across the road? That may seem silly to ask....and I know ALL creeks are pretty much nasty, but I mean extra nasty...not just standard creek icky...because my ten yr old son WILL be coated in this water pretty much daily. (Does it ever smell bad?)
Has the property had a survey done and are the neighbors aware of the property line? Is there any sharing or access given to someone that I may need to know about?
Having small dogs that will be inside.....are there any pesticides that have been recently used....or poison set out in the barn? We would really hate to have an accident because of poison we didn't know about.
Some of these things may seem silly, but I will "normal out" after I get the hang of what I am doing.....this is our first home to purchase and we are overwhelmed by all of this.
What kind of winter does this type of older home bring? Is it hard to heat....has the chimney been swept lately....and does it have a flu thingamajig that works. (We also have never maintained a fireplace.)
(They will think I am a nut before I am done putting my foot in my mouth.)
Here is the list....(you guys will LOVE this!)
Is the house termite bonded?
Is there any older plumbing left in the house?
Is there any heat or air loss issues with the insulation....doors and windows?
How many of the windows need work? Open easily, have screens?
If the roof checks out fine....how old is it....and are there mulitple layers of shingles already (are we looking at needing to do something within the next few years?)
Does the outdoor water pump have a filter....or need anything (since I am unfamiliar with these things)
Can we have DSL for the internet via Bellsouth? (my parents who live up the highway cannot have DSL)
Has the outside been painted within the past year or two...or will that need to be done soon?
Are the two air conditioning units set up to run seperate areas of the home...or run together for entire home?
About what is the monthly living expenses for the home....just a number I will expect to pay for utilities? (I ask because my home has a $165 power bill each month...and my parents is almost $300 and I have NO idea why!)
Has there been any major electrical or fire damage in the past?
Are there any BAD neighbors that I need to be aware of? I really REALLY appreciate any info on that because my children would be at home alone after school on a regular basis.
Does the creek running through the property drain any sewage from the farm across the road? That may seem silly to ask....and I know ALL creeks are pretty much nasty, but I mean extra nasty...not just standard creek icky...because my ten yr old son WILL be coated in this water pretty much daily. (Does it ever smell bad?)
Has the property had a survey done and are the neighbors aware of the property line? Is there any sharing or access given to someone that I may need to know about?
Having small dogs that will be inside.....are there any pesticides that have been recently used....or poison set out in the barn? We would really hate to have an accident because of poison we didn't know about.
Some of these things may seem silly, but I will "normal out" after I get the hang of what I am doing.....this is our first home to purchase and we are overwhelmed by all of this.
What kind of winter does this type of older home bring? Is it hard to heat....has the chimney been swept lately....and does it have a flu thingamajig that works. (We also have never maintained a fireplace.)
(They will think I am a nut before I am done putting my foot in my mouth.)
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Damn... A little paranoid? Some of those i wouldn't ask. No need for it. 0 -
Very paranoid....I have that curse ya know! 0 -
Ask them what ever you feel you need to ask them. If they think you're nuts ...WHO CARES!!! A house is a huge investment. You need all the info you can get BEFORE you commit.
As my mother told me about premarital sex and pregnancy "Act in haste...repent in leisure."0 -
Have a pest control report and a energy report done those two reports should be done by the sellers realtor.That would cover all your ? and youll know how much the house will cost to fix up or take off the price of the house.If you have a buyer realtor for your self ask them to get the reports.Good luck 0 -
An older country home will have an older septic system. See if they've been having it pumped every 2 to 5 years depending on the number in the household. Depending on the county, you could have to replace the entire system to current standards if something needs r/r'ed.
Exposed lids are usually a good sign it's being serviced. Also the county might have a septic plan on file.
Older homes could mean lead paint too.
I've gotten into the habit of driving by a prospective house on the weekends and nites just to see what the neighborhood is like. Good luck, Mike0 -
Not unusual questions. DO have a good independent home inspector go over the place as a condition of sale. It is worth it. Depending on part of country, may ask about Radon testing. Do ask about lead paint and asbestos if is older home. Termite inspection usually done separately. DO expect inspector to find small things- and DON'T expect older home to be perfect- repairs can usually be negotiated. Our home had 3 chimneys, and inspector stated they needed cleaning before they could be inspected. We split the cost of a pro cleaning job ($100 each) With a well, you should also be furnished with a report that says water is not contaminated with bacteria. And don't be afraid to ask questions. 0 -
Realtors in Illinois cannot legally tell you what the neighborhood is like. For a blunt instance they cannot say "The black people live 2 blocks down the street." They can get sued for saying anything close to prejudicial or discriminatory. They can probably refer you to a web site that indicates where the sex pervert live in the area, but that would be it.
Zipperzap should a website like that here once. Type in the address and a little map would show the closest schools and any registered sex offenders.
A lot of the questions can be answered by looking in the basement and attic. THese are questions you can ask yourself.
Does the fuse box look neat and organized?
What do the water pipes look like? Corrosion. Newer plastics, copper or old galzanized?
Does the furnace look old and worn out or new and clean?
DOes the furnace look like it has been meanieized in past repairs?
In the attic you can also get an idea of the wiring. If you see signs of a "do-it-yourself" job, have reservations.
Open and close all the windows you want. If they are selling a "used" house, it's being sold "as-is"
If there is a water filter system, it's that weird thing in the basement. When walking through the house, bring a glass and taste the water, if you like.
If your concerned about utility bills, ask your Realtor if they can provide a copy of some of the past gas and electric bills.
It very legitimate to ask questions about the septic system. Ask about the known size of the septic tank and septic field. As a former ditch digger, I know of a few farm houses in the area where the septic is connected to field tiles. It happens and you would want to know if the older house goes down to the creek.
From my experience, some soils don't need a septic tank pumped. If the system is right for the soil, it should last a long long time.
It is also legitimate to ask about previous water in the basement. If you see suspicious stains on the basement floor or walls, ask questions and judge the answers.
Personally, I wouldn't worry about pesticide use. The stuff used in the house is pretty light weight compared to the pesticides applied to the fields or stored grain. That's just my opinion, but I can understand it being a concern to others.
As far as termites, you know the area. For instance, when we moved back to Granite City, we knew termites were very bad in the area. All houses have some termite damage. We had the house inspected before we bought it, and he found nothing. Personally, I don't think the inspector ever finds anything. The inspector knows the Realtor butter his bread. We found some bad a$$ termites a year later, but again, we knew termites were a problem for the area.0 -
We had a whole house inspection once. We were being transfered and the company was paying for it, so we thought what the heck. Not a bad idea. He can be very critical, but that doesn't mean the house is a crap pot. He is just pointing out the things wrong. Keep in mind it is a used house.
We chose three of the "bigger" points and in our offer we asked that they be corrected or give us "X" amount of money off the price for the repairs to be made. So our offer was $xx,xxx with these repairs or give us $1,000 dollars at closing to make the repairs, and we will make the repairs. I think we broke down what we expected the cost of the three repairs to be. Basically, I used it as a negotiation tool to justify a lower price. I made the repairs myself.
UPDATE. I read this to Mrs. Plaid and she was right. We made the offer contingent on the findings of the whole house inspection. Then made a further negotiation for repairs. We could have backed out based on the finding of the whole house inspection. So the first offer was pretty much butt wiping paper. All it did was allow us to get the foot in the door to have the Whole House Inspection.
We also walked through the house with the inspector. Don't have him do the inspection without you. This way he points out the problems to you, and you know the severity. When you read the final report, the severity of the finding is not as easy to understand. Plus I think we presented the final report to the seller. This way we didn't look unreasonable to only have an issue with the three items. It shows the seller we realize it is a "used" house.
Mrs. Plaid also recommend placing in the offer that the buyer purchase a home warranty. This is common. It's basically an insurance policy. If the water pump of air conditioning takes a dump, the insurance policy covers it. It usually is a one or two year warranty. We did place this in an offer once, but didn't have to use it.
It does make things a little more difficult using one Realtor for the buyer and seller. We did this another time, but the house was flawless. The Realtor cannot give us any recommendation during the offer or negotiations. The Realtor really has to watch what she says. Again, having a whole house inspection can help in some areas where the Realtor cannot compromise his duties to the seller.0 -
One more thing. After making an offer contingent on a whole house inspection, you cannot say "we don't want it anymore", but you can say "We want this, this and that fixed to this standard." Then the seller can say "no". 0 -
make sure main windows aren't facing east-west. 0 -
Giant list??? For buying a home this looks like a tiny list [:D] We just closed on ours 2 months ago so I know how you feel. 0 -
quote:Originally posted by 11b6r
Not unusual questions. DO have a good independent home inspector go over the place as a condition of sale. It is worth it. Depending on part of country, may ask about Radon testing. Do ask about lead paint and asbestos if is older home. Termite inspection usually done separately. DO expect inspector to find small things- and DON'T expect older home to be perfect- repairs can usually be negotiated. Our home had 3 chimneys, and inspector stated they needed cleaning before they could be inspected. We split the cost of a pro cleaning job ($100 each) With a well, you should also be furnished with a report that says water is not contaminated with bacteria. And don't be afraid to ask questions.
Have to agree with this. Find a good independent inspector to go throught it for 2 or 300 bucks. It depends on the size of the house, so ours was cheaper than that.
This was my first house and I would have missed a lot he found. He looked over everything pretty well and took a lot of pictures, bringing a few things to our attention. This is an old house and one example he found was that our breaker box did not have a main breaker, which can be a fire hazard.
Had my cousin (union electrician) help me install a new one before we moved in. The breaker box is important, even for your energy consumption. Make sure they don't have a bunch of wires jammed into one breaker and see if they're labeled.
You want all your power split between both sides as evenly as possible. If one side of the box is loaded with all of your high powered appliances, it's far less energy efficient than if they are split up evenly. Believe it or not.
My house is only around a thousand sq. ft. with a garage and a half and I'd say there were at least 7 pages of pictures of problems. And this house has new siding, all brand new windows, new central air furnace..etc.etc.. Other than replacing some major appliances, and doing some landscaping, it hasn't been bad.
Even with the report, it'll take you a couple years to get familiar and know every little issue the home has.
Good luck with it.0 -
Some states have full disclosure laws. Does your state have them? 0 -
"Hopefully, you're using a licensed Realtor and not considering a direct purchase from an owner (For Sale By Owner). The ramifications are just about unlimited."
And the worst ramification would be that a realtor would not get a commission.
Now Hobby Guy, you don't expect us to believe that stuff they taught you in realtor class do you?
You are going to have a lawyer doing all the paperwork at closing, whether there is a realtor involved or not.
You get a good inspector to do a thorough inspection of the house, and you are set.
I have bought two houses without using realtors, and there were no problems.0
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