Foundation

[Edmia]

Alright, here’s the situation: My husband and I have been looking for a repo house to by for a bit now and we found one that we both like, in a good neighborhood, good price, etc… We are going to bid on it in an auction so we don’t have the whole offer subject to inspection. If we get it, we get it and any problems it may have.

We have been to look at the house several times… but only from the outside (the auction is at the courthouse and you don’t get to see the inside).

Here’s what we know about the house:

1. It is around 12 years old.

2. It is a concrete slab but has cinder block around the outside base.

Here is what we perceive to be a problem:

1. The front porch is concrete and seems to be sloping forward slightly. Signs of this are cracks at base where porch meets house and base of windows have pulled away from calking around window.

2. In back of house there is a small hole (6 inches wide) where cinder block has broken.

3. If you look at slope of dirt etc, it seems that water is draining right into the house rather than away from it.

Now if we get the bid, we will probably be getting it at $30,000 under the price of what other houses on the street have been selling for, so we plan on putting some money into the house, but I am just nervous that we will end up with a money pit. My husband has been trying to get in touch with a foundation specialist, but they seem to be hard people to reach.

We assume we can get the porch fixed if we are told it is necessary for about $5000. I am not worried about the cracked cinder block, however, I am just wondering if water draining into a house for 12 years can cause significant damage or if it is just something we would want to correct ASAP.

If anyone can give me any advice on the issue I would very much appreciate it as the auction day is drawing near.

Thank you so much!

[Moderator, Steve]

I only see what you have told me. sure would be nice to 1 go inside, and 2 be with a specialists in foundations.

But, 1, every home needs to be on its own hill that sheds water away and off the grounds around the foundation. This can be done by you and takes very little work and some money. I see this as not a big problem. Gutters, downspouts, sheathing, rocks, sand, finish dirt, then packing and packing and watering and packing.

Now, the front porch. Most front and back porches in my region are poured individually so that they move on their own accord and do not drag down the home or the side of a home. Apparently your porches are attached. Now, some buiders, do a good job on foundation prep on the proper home, but skimp on the porches. You seem to need the porch jacked back up to level and that will take the stress off the foundation and the walls. So, in my region, a jack costs $600 and one is needed every 8 feet. This is for a home proper, so your porch may not need that many and may definately not need to go as deep as for the homes foundation. So, I think without seeing the situation, think that you can do this way under your thinking outloud budget.

You have other issues that foundation slipping can cause that you cannot see because of no access to interior and to the inside walls. If this slipping is too drastic, you could have busted water lines, broken electric lines, and other “inside” issues that you will not know until you charge the lines. No one will know this.

There is nothing worse than buying a home saving some money and fint out that its a living hell. But its your gamble. Then 12 years old is not old for a home. Its really young, but some people can tear a home up in 1/12 of that time, but most of that is cosmetic. severe internal damage is pretty remote.

Will not give my opinion or what I would do, because I do not. I do not have enough information and actually you do not either.

Good Luck is all that I can say.

[TMH]

Steve makes many good points.

Do you know anyone with construction experience

who could look at it with you? A porch should have

a slight slope to allow water to drain off. Typically

an 1/8″ drop per foot. Also a porch is poured seperate

from the slab, so there will be a crack, but is

it so wide it signifies a problem? The windows

pulling away may or may not signify a problem. Need

more specifics on it. Is it caulk from the Window

to the siding that’s seperated. If so, what type of

siding? Foundation repairs to a slab home can be

extremely expensive, be sure of what you’re getting.

[TMH]

When a home is repo’d it is auctioned at the court

house. If there are liens against the property you

could be liable for them on top of the purchase. You

can do a title search to check for liens,prior to

the auction, but you still may not find recent encumbrences.

This is not a good way to buy repo’s, in my opinion.

And I have bought and sold several.

Normally the bank that held the loan bids at the auction, the

amount they were owed and gets title to the property.

The bank will then either sell, or turn the property

over to HUD or VA and they get their money back.

If the bank sells, you get a clear title. Often though

the bank sells through a realtor, the realtor will

have investors they work with that will get the good

deals. It helps to find the right realtor, to get

in on a deal. Call around and ask questions and you can

usually find the right one.

On insured loans the bank turns the property over to

HUD or the VA. You can find these and several others

at http://www.hud.com , you will still need a realtor to

bid on HUD or VA, it works like an online auction.

Here again find a realtor that has done this before

or it can be tricky. Here you will get a clear title.

And beleive it or not, HUD often will sell a house

for less than it was auctioned for at the

court house.

[Robert jones]

Next year i plan to purchase a manufactured house and place it on land over a basement. what are the pro’s and con’s on a manufactured home on land? asking you for advise.

[Author]

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