Who here has bought a house?
Moderator: ericjon262
Who here has bought a house?
and if so, have any lessons to pass on?
Make sure they escrow in the property taxes. They didn't on mine so this year I pay two years worth of taxes. About $300 more a month. We're hurting due to this now. If there's a warrantee Stay on the person's butt to get problems fixed. You personally look at the wiring if its in the attic. Just because they say "New wiring" and you look at the breaker box and it's new then look in it and see new wire.... Doesn't mean they didn't just splice new wire into old wire. Get an outlet tester and test EVERY outlet to make sure they are grounded and wired properly. OR get an outlet / GFI tester with the button and test all GFI's. Need a long list? I can make a check list for you.
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crzyone
- JDM Power FTW
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Get a property inspection, probibly the most important thing you can do. They will inspect the shingles, the insulation in the attic, things you would never think to check. They will write out a report and you can look it over before deciding to buy the house. You can have it in the buyer terms for a house inspection, its an out if you are not happy with it.
Other than that, buying a house is like buying a car, except it appreciates. My house cost me $140k 3 years ago, its probibly worth closer to $170K today, not bad for 3 years. Most of that I'm sure is inflation.
Shop around for your mortgage, get the best rate you can find. Not sure what incentives they have nowadays for mortages, but they were throwing money at me when I bought a house.
Other than that, buying a house is like buying a car, except it appreciates. My house cost me $140k 3 years ago, its probibly worth closer to $170K today, not bad for 3 years. Most of that I'm sure is inflation.
Shop around for your mortgage, get the best rate you can find. Not sure what incentives they have nowadays for mortages, but they were throwing money at me when I bought a house.
First thing to remember I'm an apartment service manager of 4 loooong years. Second, I'm posting from ablackberry phone with a limites field character limit so multiple posts expected.
Pet Urine never goes away no matter how much you clean it.
Electrical.
Check wires going into water heater, they should never be kinked, tied in knots or loose over 2 feet and should have a connector where they go into the water heater to stop abrasion. Gas water heaters need to make sure it has proper gas line and no leaks
Pet Urine never goes away no matter how much you clean it.
Electrical.
Check wires going into water heater, they should never be kinked, tied in knots or loose over 2 feet and should have a connector where they go into the water heater to stop abrasion. Gas water heaters need to make sure it has proper gas line and no leaks
Heat and A/C make sure electrical looks original. Repairs should not be obvious if doe right. Condensor (outside) should have a safety disconnect attached to the wall near the unit. Large Copper line should be insulated small should not and low voltage wire should be protected by being attached to large tubes insulation, not dangling. Coils should be free from debris and dents. There is no reason for MUD in bottom of condensor. Ducting should be insulated and leak free. T-stat should be secure and level.
If the house is pier and beam get under it! Look for plumbing leaks! These can be a nightmare. Sewage leaks can be detected by flushing toilets and running sinks before hand. The ground should be dry and look at the flooring for rot. Get in the attic look at the wiring. Should look professional, its ok if it's laying across beams. Look at the insulation. Should be as thick as the beams are tall. Look for soffit vents, air should enter under the edges of the roof and have at least one way out.
Look at thr rafters they should be straight nut warped. Look for roof leaks if you see a spot that may have leaked look the the ceiling below it for water damage. Outside look at the roof the roof can tell you if the house needs releveling, or roof damage. Look at all plumbing connections for leaks. Look behind the trim ring by the shower head if they didn't use sealant then it will leak. Look for floor damage around tubs and toilets. How old is the paint? Appliances? Cabnets, etc.
Look where the cable jacks are located, telephone jacks these affect layout. Gotta pool? Check for cracks, check for pitting or scaling on the walls, algae growth. How old is the water, pump, filter media, GFI protected lighting? Dual drains, If not vacuum protected? Does the water rotate, jets pointed in a counter clockwise direction. Skimmer baskets? Is there a chlorine tablet feeder or other sanatizer? Is there chlorine tabs in skimmers, if so feeder problem or poor turnover. Pool cover? How's the deck?
Forgot to add weatherstripping on house. How's the windows, doors should be sealed tight. Live in a hot climate? Window tint the West facing windows. Plus this looks cool as hell I did my parents house. Knocked 20% off their electric bill in the summer also reduces glare on tv's. Attic fans help too.
Garage. Is it insulated, have 220V how many 120 outlets need at least two per wall. How about cabnets, garage door opener, insulated door with Fiero emblem, ceiling speakers, home network connection, cable telephone. Tv shelf comp... Oh wait that's my garage I'm talking about... More on that later.
This should give you a good starting point. If you find minor problems make them sound major and use that for negotiating. Get the mineral rights. I get monthly checks for a gas pocket under my lot.
This should give you a good starting point. If you find minor problems make them sound major and use that for negotiating. Get the mineral rights. I get monthly checks for a gas pocket under my lot.
Before offer made:
Never use a buyer realtor unless you really dont have the time to look at homes yourself. You can get a 3% discount on the final negotiated price ( tell the realtor you wont complete the deal until they give up their double dip commission and give you half) You can get offer forms from Office Depot and do it all yourself.
Get pre-approved to raise your bargaining power with the sellers. Most people want to get rid of their home quick and will flex a little on price to avoid a finance contingency and other BS later on in the process.
Get the owners to kick in the 1 year home warranty (worth around $500). I just bought another house and had over 1K of expense with A/C already (I know the A/C was a little shaky when we bought, but we got them to throw in the warranty so who cares..
)
There is an old realtor trick where they try to nab some cash with the prorated property tax. Read that offer very carefully!!
Buyer realtors are full of shit if they say they have you in their best interest. All realtors get paid by the seller and they both want to get paid sooner than later. Never listen to good comments about the house from the realtor, in fact tell them ahead of time to skip the "This living room I think would really fit in with your style" bullshit. You want to know the bad from them and make up the good for yourself. ( When selling one of my homes, I overheard the buyer realtor pointed out my furnace to the potential buyers saying that it was a really good model, yada, yada. It was a cheap peice of shit that I bought just to get heat back in the house)
If you can, "hack" into the local MLS system and get the behind the scenes comments from the database on the houses you want to see. Most of the MLS systems are setup on MS Access db's tied to older IIS websites and their security is shit. They leave notes in there about the house to the showing realtors about things to avoid " Try not to let them see the crack in the load bearing wall in the dining room", type of stuff.
After offer made:
Get a good reference on a home inspector. As txf said, if you find anything after purchase, then make a big deal out of it (ask for money off the purchase price).
Moisture damage and roof are the biggest items for repair. Look for mold on the joists in the attic / basement /crawlspace and get the age of the roof. (look at the roof carefully to see if how many layers of shingles) If there is more than one layer of shingles your roof repair costs next time around will be a lot more than if it hasnt been layered yet.
Someone mentioned before.. Termites! If it has a basement, check for RADON!
Check with the neighbors to see about home history. I found out a ton about a house that we almost bought from a neighbor (tree fell on the house a while ago and they laughed with the neighbors about a mold problem they covered up in the master bath)
Never use a buyer realtor unless you really dont have the time to look at homes yourself. You can get a 3% discount on the final negotiated price ( tell the realtor you wont complete the deal until they give up their double dip commission and give you half) You can get offer forms from Office Depot and do it all yourself.
Get pre-approved to raise your bargaining power with the sellers. Most people want to get rid of their home quick and will flex a little on price to avoid a finance contingency and other BS later on in the process.
Get the owners to kick in the 1 year home warranty (worth around $500). I just bought another house and had over 1K of expense with A/C already (I know the A/C was a little shaky when we bought, but we got them to throw in the warranty so who cares..
)There is an old realtor trick where they try to nab some cash with the prorated property tax. Read that offer very carefully!!
Buyer realtors are full of shit if they say they have you in their best interest. All realtors get paid by the seller and they both want to get paid sooner than later. Never listen to good comments about the house from the realtor, in fact tell them ahead of time to skip the "This living room I think would really fit in with your style" bullshit. You want to know the bad from them and make up the good for yourself. ( When selling one of my homes, I overheard the buyer realtor pointed out my furnace to the potential buyers saying that it was a really good model, yada, yada. It was a cheap peice of shit that I bought just to get heat back in the house)
If you can, "hack" into the local MLS system and get the behind the scenes comments from the database on the houses you want to see. Most of the MLS systems are setup on MS Access db's tied to older IIS websites and their security is shit. They leave notes in there about the house to the showing realtors about things to avoid " Try not to let them see the crack in the load bearing wall in the dining room", type of stuff.
After offer made:
Get a good reference on a home inspector. As txf said, if you find anything after purchase, then make a big deal out of it (ask for money off the purchase price).
Moisture damage and roof are the biggest items for repair. Look for mold on the joists in the attic / basement /crawlspace and get the age of the roof. (look at the roof carefully to see if how many layers of shingles) If there is more than one layer of shingles your roof repair costs next time around will be a lot more than if it hasnt been layered yet.
Someone mentioned before.. Termites! If it has a basement, check for RADON!
Check with the neighbors to see about home history. I found out a ton about a house that we almost bought from a neighbor (tree fell on the house a while ago and they laughed with the neighbors about a mold problem they covered up in the master bath)
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Doug Chase
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Sounds like a bargain. Was there a house on it, too? Where was it?eHoward wrote:Thanks TXF and Zonyl.
I have a good inspector. He coached me years ago and is excited to help me out.
The house I was going to buy did fall through. I guess 3 acres for 150k goes quick. Oh well.
You're a smart guy so you can figure it out pretty easily. Zonyl and TXF gave much more specific advice than I will.
I'll just point out that houses take more work and more money than you think they will. Leaky whatever? Gotta fix it now. Need paint? It ain't cheap when you need enough to cover an entire house (outside or inside). Backyard turning into a jungle? Guess it's time to buy a weedeater and lawn mower. Fertilizer? Not cheap. Etc, etc.
And it's worth every penny.
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The Dark Side of Will
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