On Thursday, we had two inspections - septic tank and general. Septic could not be completed because some idiot put a black top over the septic tank. I am at a loss for words over this one, so this is where I will leave it. It's the general inspection that shattered our dreams of owning this house.
Everything that could be wrong, is wrong with this house:
1. Mold - there is so much mold there the inspector said he was surprised there was no warning sign on the door. You could not see any of it, but he showed us where it was and oh man was it black and nasty. All of the lower level rooms would have to have walls pulled down 4' from the floor up - all of them. And that's not even it. The roof was never ventilated correctly, so there is mold everywhere there too.
2. Bugs - there are termites and carpenter ants everywhere. The inspector told us we should ask for a permit to pull down the part of the siding to see the damage to the structure - he expects it would be severly damaged, based on the anount of ants. Worst is - since the house is running on well water, and the well is only 5 feet away from the house, we would not be able to use the conventional methods to get rid of the bugs. Hubby is laughing we would just have to wish them away.
3. Roof - the shingles are so old they need replacement - The inspector said the shingles themselves could wait, but considering the amount of mold in the roof, he said it would be cheaper to just replace the whole roof and get rid of two problems at once.
4. Illegal and dangerous deck - the inspector is a construction engineer and he said that everything you can imagine is wrong with the deck they have built there.
Other than the above, none of the floors are real wood - they got us fulled with the well maintained imitiation, and there are mice everywhere. Also, the heating is dangerous - the fire is all yellow so the inspector believes there is some leak somewhere.
The estimated cost of the renovations would be around $150,000 and there is no way the investment company would sell us this house for 50% of what we initially offered, so it's a NO on this one for us.
Off to more searches... hope they are more fruitful :)
Saturday, September 3, 2011
Saturday, August 27, 2011
Inspection scheduled
On Thursday at 4pm we are having an inspection. Since our house is a foreclosure and is sold as is, we will not be able to use anything we find out at the inspection to bargain for a lower price, but it will help us find out if there are any deal breakers.
The poor inspector will be surprised when he sees 4 people come to his inspection, but our family is just that - everyone gets involved - my hubby and I and my dad and mom will be there. My dad's a contractor, so that's why he is coming. I am curious, and it's an occasion to get into the house again.
I really hope the inspection will not turn up with something messy. The house uses well water and a septic tank, so we definitely need to have the pumps inspected. I also want him to check for mold and radon. I read that radon comes up naturally from the ground in many areas in the US, but in some places the amount is larger and some smaller. I hope there is just no radon in our basement and that's it.
Hubby and I agreed that if the inspection comes back with issues that will cost no more than $10,000 to fix, we will still get the house. That excludes foundation or septic tank issues - those cannot really be estimated till a considerable amount of digging has been done.
The poor inspector will be surprised when he sees 4 people come to his inspection, but our family is just that - everyone gets involved - my hubby and I and my dad and mom will be there. My dad's a contractor, so that's why he is coming. I am curious, and it's an occasion to get into the house again.
I really hope the inspection will not turn up with something messy. The house uses well water and a septic tank, so we definitely need to have the pumps inspected. I also want him to check for mold and radon. I read that radon comes up naturally from the ground in many areas in the US, but in some places the amount is larger and some smaller. I hope there is just no radon in our basement and that's it.
Hubby and I agreed that if the inspection comes back with issues that will cost no more than $10,000 to fix, we will still get the house. That excludes foundation or septic tank issues - those cannot really be estimated till a considerable amount of digging has been done.
Thursday, August 25, 2011
First Post - First "real" Step
Today, August 25, 2011, we received a word from our Realtor that our offer was accepted by the seller. I decided to start a blog to keep up with this process, share ideas, happiness, frustrations, etc.
My hubby and I love remodeling projects and are not scared of hard work on a house, so we are really looking forward to all the renovations that our new house will require.
A little bit about the house. It's a foreclosure, and the last owner left it with a pretty bad kitchen and bathrooms. I will post pictures as soon as we have a contract in. Till then, I don't want to jinx it.
We are planning to have an inspection next week - crossing fingers that it goes well, because I really love this house already. I know I should treat it as an investment, a business transaction, but I just can't stop imagining it all cleaned up and prettied up.
My hubby and I love remodeling projects and are not scared of hard work on a house, so we are really looking forward to all the renovations that our new house will require.
A little bit about the house. It's a foreclosure, and the last owner left it with a pretty bad kitchen and bathrooms. I will post pictures as soon as we have a contract in. Till then, I don't want to jinx it.
We are planning to have an inspection next week - crossing fingers that it goes well, because I really love this house already. I know I should treat it as an investment, a business transaction, but I just can't stop imagining it all cleaned up and prettied up.
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