Just thought I’d share something with you guys and gals, especially if you plan on buying a house soon.
My wife and I are in the middle of buying our first house together, my first house period. During the counter offer rally, the seller said their friend checked out the gas furnace and all was well. I didn’t feel comfortable, but also didn’t want to be over-bearing, but I didn’t have a peace about just letting that fly. We requested that the seller follow through with a checkup by a certified technician from the furnace company. This morning, I got an email that the furnace died, and now the seller has to replace with brand spanking new furnace. What a blessing. We are already at the top end of what we “think” we can afford, and had we moved in to find out we’d be spending another $3-5k to replace a furnace, I think that would have thrown me over the edge!
So I just want to encourage anyone who might be following in my footsteps, so you don’t make the mistake I almost made (wanting to be a “nice” guy).
When buying a house, “nice” means being civil and reliable. Nothing more.
Though the majority of sellers are also “nice”, they are motivated by their own self-interest - the more money that they can convince you to offer, and the less money they need to spend, the better.
And, sadly, there are a minority of sellers who’d swear that black was white and up down if they could get away with it. If you don’t notice that the furnace is shot, the water heater leaks, and the roof needs replacing, they’ll happily tell you the opposite and pocket your cash.
Save yourself much anxiety, and get the house inspected by a professional inspector. Cost is 300-500 but s/he will know exactly what to look for and where and give you a written report.
Matt…here’s a little warning… There WILL be unforseen expenses. Some of them may be large. Plan for them. If you don’t have a few thou leeway for something unexpected you may be hurting.
Put something aside, because houses keep asking for repairs. Furnace this year, roof the next, gee the water heater needs to be replaced…oh look, there is a leak. It is endless and unavoidable.
My spouse and I have purchased two homes. Each time we had a private inspector go through the house, making a checklist. My husband was able to walk through with the guy. I do think some folks will inspect a car more thoroughly than a house when buying.
We also hired a buyer’s broker agent who would represent us, and not the seller as most real estates do.
It was most helpful and in one instance we split the cost of some repair work with the sellers because we just wanted to get it over with and move in.
Fortunately, the seller is already putting a new roof on, which will be inspected at the end, we already planned on replacing all the kitchen appliances, so the only appliance left is the hot water heater, and since we think we might convert to gas on that in the next year or so, and our inspector said it’s only a few years old . . . thanks for all the words of encouragement, wisdom, and yes, even warning
My other passion-besides music - is bungalow and arts & craft type houses.
When I’m not playing/thinking music, I’m thinking/working on my house(a Sears custom Craftsman bungalow built by my husband’s grandparents. We will be starting major restoration work this spring and I can’t wait.
Did you get a waranty with your house? We asked the seller to purchase a waranty when
we bought our house in July, and it has come in handy already. If you do have one, make
sure to check for coverage when something breaks, so you don’t waste $$ fixing something
that the waranty would have covered.
What kind of warranty are you talking about? One the actual structure?
The new roof the seller is putting on is going to have a warranty in our name (condition of sale) and all the kitchen appliances are getting replaced, so we’ll have warranties on those. The only thing not covered is the hot water heater, which we are thinking we may relocate and replace with a gas hot water heater. Oh, and the furnace is getting replaced as well.
