Top 10 Things To Look For When Buying a House
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TOP 10 THINGS TO LOOK FOR WHEN BUYING A HOUSE
When you’re buying a home, it’s usually the largest purchase you’ve made in your life. It takes a lot of planning and work to make sure that you’re buying the home that you want at the right price. And when it comes to used houses especially, there can be a lot of steps overlooked! Thankfully, Hero Loan has a checklist of what you should look for when buying a house!
Table of Contents
1. Check Out The Roof
Make sure that the roof is up to snuff. The whole point of the house is to keep rain off of your head, right? Have the roof looked at by a pro, to make sure that you know what shape it’s in. You don’t want to move in and find out the first time it rains that there’s a leak! Besides leaks it is also important to have your expert check for things like asbestos and pooling water. Other problems may exist from bad installation or a previous “do it yourself” owner who may have made a bad repair.
2. Paint Doesn’t Determine Quality
Always pay attention to what is going to last. Paint chips, varnish fades, but those are easy fixes. Make sure that the important, structural stuff is solid. You’ll probably have to repaint something, anyway.
On the flip side, paint can also be used to disguise bad structure or other issues that are more pressing in a used home. Make sure to look extra carefully for rusty, crumbling, or rotting surfaces. Paint can also do a good job of hiding any musty smells, but just because the smell may be covered up does not mean it will be gone forever, nor that whatever caused the smell is fixed.
3. Don’t Run Hot or Cold
Heating and cooling systems are very expensive to replace. In addition to the system itself being expensive to replace, your energy bill could end up being very high if you have older HVAC units. Don’t start your new life with an old, inefficient heating and air conditioning system. If it’s an older house, DOUBLE check.
4. Know What You Need
Don’t get suckered in by cost or fancy countertops or whatever. Buy the house that you need. It’s really important to make sure that your home meets your requirements. An extra room is always a good idea, for guests or expanding the family. If you want a yard or need one for kids or dogs, get a house with a yard! Countertops, flooring, even entire rooms can be renovated down the road if you want!
5. Everything UNDER The Kitchen Sink
It will feel weird, climbing under a sink in someone else’s house. But it could save you thousands of dollars in repairs if there’s mold under there. Make sure that the faucets run and don’t drip down there, because mold spreads quickly there and infects every corner of the house, causing you to shell out big bucks to fix it. Every sink in the house needs to be on your checklist!
6. Get The Lay Of The Land
Get to know the idiosyncrasies of the lot, and the surrounding areas. Does it flood? Is it prone to icing over? Is there a dreaded gumball tree that will make you rake up gumballs for the rest of your life? Know the deal before you buy, or regret not knowing that you back up to a meat rendering plant, because the wind blew the other way that day. Having a chat with some of the neighbors might help you find out some of the things the agent might not know about. It is also helpful to check out the area at different times of the day!
7. Take A Good Whiff
Sniff for sewage, gas, pet odors, ammonia, or mildew, as these are signs that there needs to be some repairs made that you don’t want to end up paying for! If the house you are looking at has a basement be particularly thorough down there! Also pay close attention to any outdoor patio areas and garages! Each of these areas tend to collect water which can lead to some lingering stench and further problems down the road!
8. Insulate Yourself
Insulation can be very easy to forget about especially if you’re buying during milder weather. Don’t just ask about insulation. Check the attics, crawlspaces and anywhere you can to make sure that the home has quality insulation. If it doesn’t, get ready to freeze, sweat, and pay hundreds of extra dollars on your heating and electric bills.
9. Get Touchy
Try all of the faucets and light switches, every window and door, flush the toilets, and definitely taste the water. This is a huge deal. Make sure everything works before you make an enormous purchase. Some homebuyers have felt apprehensive about being hands on in their inspections, but you wouldn’t buy a car if the windows didn’t work or it had a hole in the floor, right?
10. Call The Inspector
You’re not going to be an expert at all of the things on this list. The good news is, you don’t have to be. You just need to call a qualified inspection service to help you out, letting you know about things that you may miss while looking the house over yourself. They can help you save thousands by pointing out flaws that you can use to help get the price down or have the previous owner fix.
Once you’ve done all of this and have your home in mind, the right mortgage pulls it all together! Hero Loan, will make sure that you get the best loan at the lowest rate. Visit hero.loan to learn more or apply online today. Nobody makes it easier to buy a used home than Hero Loan!
