Anything extra that you should do when buying a home
 

We last bought a home in 1996-7, I think, when we were poor and dumb. We're no longer poor. ;)

~5 years ago, we sold that home and moved into an apt in town. ~2 weeks ago we decided, "maybe we should get back into home ownership." Tonight we are making an offer on a home.

Other than the standard inspections, surveys, etc... are there any other things that the brain trust (peanut gallery) recommend that many folks may not think of when buying a home, things to do before moving in or buying, other/extra inspections to have done, things that you may want to do before the home is full of your stuff, etc....

A big part of what we are looking for out of the home is appreciation of the value of the home.

We downsized when we moved to the apt, and this is bigger than our current apt, but not huge so still downsized from our old home.. It's very near downtown and in an area that I think will be appreciating due to gentrification. The area has already started the gentrification process, but it's not done yet. I think we're getting in early enough to reap some reward without getting in so early that we need to buy body armor to live there. We also have some changes that we can make inside the home to improve the value via DIY projects.

I don't know. I just try to get a vibe for the homeowners. Did they slap on some paint and make some cheap upgrades to make a quick sale? Was the house taken care of? Are there inexplicable minor issues?

The house I bought last (2015) I could tell the homeowners were meticulous and spent money on top-of-the-line upgrades, took care of issue promptly, and generally took care of the place.

A red flag to me is if many appliances and/or major things were upgraded right before sale. That speaks to trying to quickly make a neglected property saleable. If there is a consistent history of upgrades, you are less likely to encounter major issues IMO.

One house I looked at had 4 dehumidifiers (running) in the basement and a half-dozen air electric fresheners. Clearly it had water/seepage issues. Next!

One house I looked at had a freshly remodeled finished basement and a sump pump in the middle of the backyard. I could see the water line 3' up the wall on an unpainted wall behind the furnace. Next!

Several houses I looked a in Georgia weren't staged at all. They had stained carpet, dirty walls, etc. It made me wonder about the major systems. Next!

One house I looked at was at the top of my price range and sat on four, lovely acres. The roof was original to 1974, as was the furnace, the hot water heater, the septic system, and the well equipment. Something major was due to break soon and I wouldn't be able to afford to fix it. Next!

Sanitize the neighbors - good ones are great; and you cn read the many threads on here about bad ones

1) Never rely on home inspectors that are recommended by the buying or selling agent. They are under pressure to give a good report or the agent won't give them more business in the future.
You'll still have to have a licensed inspector for the bank but in addition to that, find someone you can trust who flips houses and ask them to do an inspection. You'll get a more honest report.

2) Pay for the title search insurance.

One thing I learned way back in '92 when I got laid off and thought we were going to have to sell and move is paint it a color you like. We changed the color of our trim outside and I can not tell you how much difference it made the couple of weeks I was still coming home from work to it. We went from a picnic bench red to a blue/grey and the calming effect it had on me was tremendous.

So, what’re we talking about here, hit m...I mean cleaners?

Double check regarding property taxes. When we bought our first home (f'n newbies) a decade ago, the property tax statement got sent to the previous owners…in Nebraska. We never got the bill, and when we missed sending in payment, we were penalized several hundred dollars.

+ 100 on getting an independent inspector. As for Title Insurance, the state mandates it, so nothing you can do there.

What we were really looking for (and our first pick) was actually an old run-down home. We found one out in the 'burbs close to the kids/grandkids that was built in 1968 (our previous home was 1967 in the same 'burb). It looked all original, and was being sold by children after the parents passed. We tried to make an offer, but they wanted too much considering the amount of work that would have been required. The place was like a time capsule. I should have taken pictures. It definitely looked 99% original. There were clothes in closets. There was a closet that was almost completely full, floor to ceiling, of photo albums. The garage was full of stuff including a workbench with tools. It was everything I could do to NOT start rummaging just to get a feel for the people and their history and lives.

This one is only 15 years old. The current owners are still living there. It was decently decorated and looked/seemed very well kept. I don't think they did much if anything just to sell it. Maybe a little staging, but I don't even think a lot of that.

It's got an alarm. I'm going to make sure that it's up to snuff and monitored. I'm also going to add security cameras. I'm going to make sure that the garage is covered by the alarm and a camera or two as well.

Thanks, yes, our previous home (lived in about 18 years) was Al wiring. Tons of fun. I may not be an expert on it, but I've been around the block. This one isn't old enough for that to be an issue.

Good stuff, thanks tons for responding, Milt/Zeke. I'll start a search for a good inspector.

The surrounding homes look pretty good. Fingers crossed.
Thanks, will do.
Yes, the missus is not shy about painting. I'm sure that will be in our future. She's already planning to change the interior color.
Good call!

If you're concerned in any way you could hire a PI to check out the neighbours.
It's not as expensive as you may think.

There's nothing worse than bad neighbours.

Thanks.

That's something that I'd never have considered. Thanks

Drive by on trash day and make sure they put their cans on their side and not on your lawn:D

They have gotten better. Its now on in front of their house for about a month:rolleyes: instead of behind their gate.

15 year old house will need a new roof in another 10 -15 years. Rubber in faucet will start to go wear in the next 5-10 years. I change the supply lines under the kitchen, bath sink as well as toilet. Hand tight and 1/4 turn with a wrench. No more then that. Like Milt said, run a camera, but I really think it should fine unless they dump a lot of junk clogging it up. ABS pipes are pretty clean for the most part. lots of trees in the lawn that might cause roots to go into the drain lines? Paint and check windows. 15 year old house may be built with just builder grade windows. Check if they are functioning well. Check all doors and window operate well. Sticking door don't always mean sagging foundation issues but its something worth looking into. It might be just a poor hanging job. Slab on grade home? We have had some slab leak issues with both PEX and copper running under homes that leaked. That can cost you a few bucks to repair. Paint change out carpet if there are any. Hate carpet, because you are walking on someone's dead skin.

Title report should be part of escrow. Is it sitting on a floodplain?

Absolutely.

Check out the house / neighborhood in the evening. This is when you will be there. Think sirens, trains, punk bands, Home mechanics and other undesirables.

Also, introduce yourself to the neighbors. Ask about barking dogs, crazy people, rock bands, drug dealers. Why? You may find something that is a deal killer. If not, you have alerted you prospective neighbors that you care.

I do this and I really believe in it.

Good luck!!!

The most important things are to get a good inspection and proper insurance, title and otherwise. Call your current agent and get a quote on the potential new place and make sure there's nothing that would make insurance difficult or expensive. Get buyer's title insurance. When you do your inspection use someone who is a licensed general contractor, not just a guy who passed a housing inspector course.

The following could be considered overkill, but since you asked, here are things you can do.

Make contact with the local zoning official and check into the comprehensive plan for the neighborhood. Make sure there are no plans for new roads, highrises, etc. Make sure the permissive uses are all in line with your expectations. Just because there isn't a chemical plant across the street today doesn't mean one can't go in there tomorrow. Ask about any current applications for development or developments that are in the planning stages.

Contact the local building official and ask about current building codes and what are the common issues to be addressed for houses of that vintage in the neighborhood. See if he is willing to do a code inspection when your inspector makes his inspection. Ask if there are any violations on record for this property. They will actually have a file on the house from when it was originally constructed. You might want to pull it just for fun. It should tell you whether there was any unpermitted work done on the house.

You can check the property tax history on line. You can see what assessments are currently in place and the history of rates. Title insurance will make sure no unpaid taxes are outstanding before closing, but you can see what is driving your rates if you look it up online at the county's property tax website.

Contact the school district and ask if there are any school levies being discussed or coming up for a vote any time soon.

The police department will have a record of calls in the neighborhood. It is public record. Often they publish crime maps that show the location and frequency of 911 calls or police responses. If you do an online search or call the non-emergency number they'll tell you how to access the crime data.

Also ask the police or the zoning department for their list of unused or abandoned buildings. All cities maintain a list of properties that are not in use, even if they aren't technically abandoned. You'll want to know where they are and how many are close to you.

Google the local school district's demographics. You'll find a web site that tells how many kids are on free or reduced lunch and basic demographic information as well as test scores and school rankings. There's a strong correlation between good/improving schools and appreciating property values.

Google the area's demographics. I believe it's the department of commerce that publishes income and demographic statistics for local municipalities. A quick online search will tell you a lot about the area and you can judge trends from there.

Go on Zillow to get estimated property values of your neighbors. Use the addresses from Zillow to search the county's property tax web site to verify whether the property is owner occupied, its assessed value and whether any liens are on the property. You don't want to live in an area where a lot of properties have tax liens. It's also helpful to compare assessed values to Zillow's estimated market values.

That's about it off the top of my head. I'll add anything else I come up with.

1) Where? Just West of Downtown or just North of downtown? East and South are already gentrified within a few blocks of the Central Business District
2) We closed 2 weeks ago, I can give you a good inspector who we trust
3) If you close now, you'll get the PO to pay all of 2019 property tax, basically. You won't owe until Jan 2021
4) PI to examine your neighbors? You can do that for free, the owner on record for property is public knowledge in Harris county... https://www.city-data.com/harris-county/

Also, HCAD has all of the tax history for...well, for everyone, out there in the open. You can see who pays what, when, and why. Quick Search You can see when a property took a hit from a hurricane, or when someone tossed $150k into a renovation, etc.

Do all your inspections (due diligence) early and decide on a price that suits you. then make an unconditional offer. Sellers DO NOT want conditions. They are not going to wait hoping you will get finance or your builder says it's OK because the transaction may fall over and they have to start all over again.

Make sure you buy well. Or as well as possible. They say you make the money when you buy a house other than when you sell it.

And don't get played by the real estate agent. Decide on a price and stick to it. they are working for the seller and they tell fibs/little white lies for a living.

If you don't get that one do the same with the next. It's a business choice not a personal one so be business like with you expenditure.

Good luck, it sounds fun.

napalm is too destructive, but there some aerial sprays that will do a good job

1.If it has a septic tank know where it is and does it have an access cover.
2.Does it have a well , if yes where is it and how deep is it.
3.Know exactly where the property lines are , no guessing allowed.
4.How old is the roof , HVAC and water heater .
5.Independent inspection is a must to include termite and radon.

Drive through the area at different times during the week and weekend , what do you notice ? Trust your gut it is a powerful tool . Good luck