Friday, September 01, 2006
Looking at homes
I'm watching Home and Garden TV right now. I've watched before a few times. They dwell on the space and layout and sometimes note obvious (usually cosmetic) defects. I'd like to know what condition the roof is in, and the furnace, and electric service. And the concrete, did you see that slab they were standing on looking at the pool. (The pool WAS cool) But PLEASE - use a check list to note the pros and cons. What about the grading around the house that could be the cause of water in a basement. Don't you think you would want to know about those things BEFORE you get into a contract....sure you will have a home inspection but it is better if there are as few surprises at that point as possible. Besides, conditions will play a part in creating your offer.
Space is important sure. But don't you want your agent to tell you basic things like - is the furnace 'high efficiency'. How about the hot water heater. Are there signs of a current or prior underground oil tank. Another thing, those houses are the most brightly lit homes I've ever seen. In reality most homes have dark corners. You DO want to be able to see into the crawl space to check for water don't you. Or look around the basement, if there is one, to see obvious signs of termite activity or damage. Its ok (sometimes a very good thing) to buy a home "AS IS". The trick is to know what "AS IS" is, before you can't turn back.
I know... there are Realtors (a lot of them) out there that either don't know these things or think they will get you into a contract and hope it doesn't blow up at the time of home inspection.
I'm not one of them!
---Paul----
Space is important sure. But don't you want your agent to tell you basic things like - is the furnace 'high efficiency'. How about the hot water heater. Are there signs of a current or prior underground oil tank. Another thing, those houses are the most brightly lit homes I've ever seen. In reality most homes have dark corners. You DO want to be able to see into the crawl space to check for water don't you. Or look around the basement, if there is one, to see obvious signs of termite activity or damage. Its ok (sometimes a very good thing) to buy a home "AS IS". The trick is to know what "AS IS" is, before you can't turn back.
I know... there are Realtors (a lot of them) out there that either don't know these things or think they will get you into a contract and hope it doesn't blow up at the time of home inspection.
I'm not one of them!
---Paul----
