The Home Inspection

The housing inspection definitely caused both Jonathan and I some major anxiety. Not having much experience or knowledge of all the features/construction of a house or building structure I was shocked at how many things the inspector wrote up as having problems in the house. Although it is their job to find everything that has issues, it was quite overwhelming to read and then attempt to make a decision upon whether to move forward with the house or not. Keeping in mind that the house is 90 years old, built in 1920, there was a long list of problems.

The old heating system and asbestos in the basement were a major concern as well as some water damage found upstairs along the sides of the roof, suggesting a new roof would be needed within a few years. The fireplace had never been used by the previous owners and the inspector did aware us that there was no lining. The front room appeared to be on a slight slant which suggested that there was some “sinking” as the house settled. Additionally, cracks on some of the walls and ceilings were also the result of the house settling. There were a few minor electrical and plumbing issues as well. Externally, the back deck was very unstable and would need to be ripped down and rebuilt. Cosmetically, the house needed a major paint job as the white trim was peeling in several spots. The in ground pool in the back was covered for the winter and we were unable open and inspect due to the weather conditions so that feature was a complete gamble on our part (will update you on the status come spring)! What a nightmare to see this list and then try to make a decision whether to move forward with the major purchase or not. We had to seriously question if we could afford some of the more immediate repairs (heating system and roof) as well as some of the cosmetic fixes that we also found important (painting of the exterior and rebuilding of the deck). Thanks to the house tax credit we came to the conclusion that we should be able to afford some of the more major repairs this year as we continue to save our money for the other repairs. The hardest thing in the process is overcoming the immediate desire to fix everything immediately when realistically it just cant be done. It will take us years to fix and renovate everything to how we want it but at the end of the day, that’s really the fun of it all!