Little help. First time homebuyer

[poorboy87]

Welp, I got engaged a month ago and we have been looking at buying a house. We have found a house we are interested in and looked at it.
Its an older home built in the early 1900s. It has been sided with vinyl siding. It does need a roof. From what I can tell its got two layers on it. So it would have to be stripped and redone. Probably will get tin if we get it.

The inside of the house is all plaster that is lumpy in spots but seems to be in decent shape. The whole house has popcorn ceiling.
Im unsure of what I should be looking for as in whats bad and what needs addressed.

I looked at the water heater. Looked recent. Looked at the furnace. Also recent. Looked at the breaker box and at the wiring. Looked decent.

My question is what else should I be looking for?

Thanks
Tim

 

[macgyvr]

Sear R is licensed as a home inspector in IL. You should PM him, tho he will probably eventually see this. I would make sure that it has a nice BIG garage.

Depending on how your are going to finance some loans may not loan on a roof like that, depends on their rules, some stuff has to pass inspection.

Me personally, I'd crawl around in the attic. Visually inspect the foundation. Basement? look for water damage. I spent several hours with my house looking things over before I bought it.

Doesn't really matter tho, stuff is going to break, I had to replace my furnace, a/c, water heater and do electrical work all in the first three years of ownership.

mac 'big garages are good hideouts' gyvr

 

[scottmcneal]

That year home may have that old style elec.Tube and knob, something like that.I would check for that, cause if the home has that, I hear you need to REWIRE the home with a NEW PANEL.Always get the home INSPECTED by a PRO.PLUS stay with him at all times and watch what he is doing, ASK if your not sure about something.Don't let the HOME SELLER tell you who to call for the INSPECTOR, look around for one that has a good name.
Sorry for jumping in but i have been thru this a couple of times and it pays to do it right the first time.

 

[poorboy87]

Little info from the Fiance. It was built in 1856.
It does have breakers and not the glass screw in fuses. Has a 2 car detached garage and a rather large pole barn in the back lot. Which is why I was drawn towards it. We are definently getting it inspected and I did plan on looking at the house a couple more times.

 

[kmanxj5050]

Got q link to the real estate web listing? And what kind of loan ya trying to get? Not trying to get to personal.

 

[poorboy87]

http://www.realtor.com/realestateandhomes-detail/304-Franklin_Oaktown_IN_47561_M41083-68436

The loan we were looking into was a USDA loan. Im not sure of the details. My fiance works for a bank and has it all figured out.

 

[4wdParakeet]

I don't know I walked away from an awesome house due to still having plaster walls. I hate that stuff. Other than that make sure if the seller says he/she will fix it get it in writing. Ours did that and we thought he was stand up guy so we didn't. Sucks for us now.


Parakeet

 

[macgyvr]

The pics make it look really nice...

mac 'but they are supposed to i suppose' gyvr

 

[kmanxj5050]

That roofs gonna be pricy. Just bought my first home in march, got zero down loan, and house wad move in ready. Had to put a roof on two months later. I say if something happens or you wanna do something to your house start at a thousand bucks lol

 

[SAMSET]

yea something is always going to happen and it is always going to cost 1000 bux

 

[IllianaXJ]

Looks nice Tim, but don't be drawn in by fresh paint and nice landscaping. Spend the $ on a good inspection, but make sure it's the one you want before spending the dough on getting it checked out.

 

[Fore Wheeler]

Nice. Dig the barn. Nothin to add that hasn't been said.

What other Jeearethp site could you get this type of response about a house? Yep, no other. is the best, cuz the people are the best. :wipetear:

 

[seanR]

Hi, I know nothing about the real estate market where you are, or even where you are for that matter, but for $79K, that is a kick ass house! Unless the oil refinery, high rise "urban complex", or the drop forge plant is hidden from the picture....

What are similar houses in that neighborhood selling for? Don't use zillow.com, check with the county records, don't buy a house that is already the most expensive house in the area. Buy the cheapest house in the best area and improve that one.

Look at the foundation, not for cracks, because all cement cracks, look for movement, big cracks, that you can stick a pencil in.

Are there any water spots running down the walls, or across the floor, not from a a/c condenser, or a de-humidifier, but from a leaky pipe or water coming in from out side.

Does everything look level, or do you feel like you are in a fun house, put a ball on a suspect floor and see how fast, if at all it rolls to one side of the room.

Look at the ceiling in the basement, look under the bathrooms and kitchen, are the floors stained from water leaks?

Look at the electrical box, is it grounded properly, is there a single pencil sized wire connected to a water pipe? are there TWO ground rods six feet apart under the electric meter? If not, it is not up to current code. Which isn't a huge deal, unless they tell you it is 'up graded electric". Some times people put a new light switch in and call it that.

Are there lead pipes in the house? What kind of pipe comes in from the street? in older urban areas, there are still lead pipes under the street.

Look at the walls, are they bowed or cracked? is the paint chipped up, THIS HOUSE WILL HAVE LEAD PAINT! which is fine, don't sand it or eat it. I grew up in a house full of lead paint, and look at me....

Look in the attic, are there water spots on the underside of the roof? Are there signs of sheathing replacement? Is there evidence of a house fire? Is there adequate insulation? Should be 10" to 12" in the attic. Is there enough ventilation, are there roof vents and sofit vents? Proper air flow in an attic is just as important as insulation!

Look at the outside, does the lot slope away from the house? Do the downspouts lead away from the foundation? Dose the sump pump drain far enough out in to the yard?

Any more and I will have to send you a bill.

Hire a home inspector, we all must be licensed by the State in which we work, This is a link to the American Society of Home Inspectors, which most are a member of. It should only cost $200-$300.

 

[IllianaXJ]

Unless the oil refinery, high rise "urban complex", or the drop forge plant is hidden from the picture....

Oaktown -> meth labs



























Nah, it's a nice area overall.

 

[poorboy87]

Meth labs and Migrant workers from the melon fields.
I had no clue what I should be looking for and just needed some ideas to be looking for.

I was kinda worried about the pop corn cealings. I thought I had heard somewhere that the early pop corn cealings had asbestos in them but I wasnt sure.
Would a home inspector be able to tell me that?
I know that there is new popcorn cealings now
We are definently getting it inspected if we follow through with it.


Thanks for all the info guys.

 

[terrehautian]

This guy seems like a good home inspector.

Of course he is probably not licensed in Indiana or the USA.

I knew when I got to Oaktown on my way to college, I was minutes away since Oaktown was the first town I encountered after driving past Carlisle.

 

[seanR]

He gives us a bad name, tearing out walls, and taking things apart. Remember, when you are buying a house and getting an inspection, you are paying the inspector to look at someone else's house. You don't go into a stranger's house and start removing drywall and ceiling tiles....

 

[Chris89]

I have been doing home rehab/remodeling just over 10years. What everyone has said is very good info but after reading through them i have not seen anything about termites and other pest. Make sure that you do have the home inspector check for termites. I live in cincinnati ohio and the house we just bought had a bit of termite,water damage and who ever done the work done it very halfway....
The next time you go to check out the house do it on a rainy day. I mean when it is hard to see your hand 3 foot in front of your face. That way you know first hand if and where it leaks. From the pictures it looks like a decnet house for the money.

 

[Jeepm@n]

Good Luck.

I bought my 1st home 3 years ago. I had also used the rural USDA loan. It had easier loan requirements than the VA loan. I've since refinanced to a VA with a 4.05% fixed rate.


Get an outlet tester with the lights that tell you that there is a good circuit. My inspector missed that and I brought it up on my final offer that saved me 5k. That and allowed me a refund from my so called inspector so I hired another. I bought mine knowing what it needed. Electrical grounds not attached but clipped. Mine was built in 1992 and all the grounds were clipped off. I've been fixing them as I remodel them.

 

[87manche]

plumbing.

if it's been cobbled together like my house it's a friggin disaster.

yeah, we'll just run this copper straight to the old iron pipe with no dielectric unions or anything..... Pex replacement of all the piping in my walls is in my future. I ponied up for the tool when I built the toter.

Insulation. If it's not had the walls insulated it will cost a fortune to heat and cool. Make sure you can get some past bills or something for the heating and cooling, or you might be shocked the first winter. Old houses were built when gas was super cheap, no one cared how much gas it took.

Corner lots suck, everyone that stops to cross the street will discard their trash on your property. It's also twice as much concrete if your city passes an ordinance that requires you to replace them. Pisses me off.

actually open the breaker box and look inside. Some of them look just fine on the outside, and when you open them up you find scary things inside. Things like two or three circuits run to the same breaker lug. Grounds and neutrals not hooked up, etc.

measure the doors and see if they've been reframed to a standard size. Otherwise be prepared to drop $$$$ if you ever want to replace an exterior door. We just sunk 2 grand into a back door because it's 29x86.

Bugs. Look for any signs of wood shavings/chps, paper pulp looking stuff. You're going to get the big ugly house centipedes from the trees that overhang it.

and speaking of trees. They're really expensive to have cut down in the city. So make sure that the trees on the property are healthy or negotiate the removal cost out of the price.

and you will hate cleaning gutters constantly from the leaf litter. I have to do mine 3 or 4 times a year. F'ing maple trees.

Find a home inspector you can trust. Personal friend are best, family friend is cool. At the minimum someone that has happy customers referring them.
the joys of owning an older home. The "unique charm" costs money.