Helpful Basement Tips for Home Buyers on the House Hunt
May 19, 2015
According to Realtor.com, the busiest seasons for buying and selling a home are the Spring and the Summer. When you think about it, it makes sense; packing up and moving a house is much easier when the weather is warm and sunny. If you are on the hunt for a new home, don’t forget to take a good walk around the basement.
The basement will give up secrets and tell you a lot about the maintenance history and health of the whole home. Last Friday, we posted about clues and issues involving rust in the basement. Here are a few other items to look for that will let you know if a basement has ever flooded and/or has or had a water problem:
- Chalky Waterlines or Effloresence
- Rusty = A lally column is a telescopic, adjustable, steel column used as a structural support in homes. These columns are often used in crawlspaces or basements to support sagging floor joists and are really meant to be temporary.”
- Rusty Water Tank
- Stair Rot – rusting metal or rotting wood
- Fresh Paint
- Musty Odors
- Water Stain Lines on Walls, Floors
- High Humidity
- Presence of Mold and Mildew
If you are concerned about the possibility of water and the overall dry condition of the basement in a potential new home, tour the home when it is raining or right after it has been raining.
