What is the name of your state?What is the name of your state? Virginia
I recently closed on a home that I bought to rehab and resell. I knowingly bought it as-is. I had the most thorough inspector in my area inspect the place and I accompanied him throughout the process. What I've discovered since closing are things that he couldn't possibly have found without pulling off paneling or pulling up carpeting. The home has a lot of potential but I keep finding things that no amount of non-destructive inspection could have uncovered. Below are a few examples.
1: The previous owner beat a trench into the plaster and lath in the kitchen and ran wiring over the studs to add more outlets. He then covered the trenches and wires with cheap paneling.
He also had every circuit in the kitchen on one breaker. The end result was that I had to have an electrician come in and remove all of his hokey wiring and re-do it to code. The previous owner did verbally warn me not to run the dishwasher and a microwave at the same time because it would trip the breaker. When he told me that, I planned to have an electrician scope out the problem and repair it.
2: The previous owner verbally told me that he had ripped both bathrooms back to the studs and joists/rafters and re-done them. Everything is on a ground fault circuit. I pulled up the carpet in the downstairs bedroom that adjoins the downstairs bathroom so that I could have the hardwood floors sanded and refinished. I noticed that the walls behind the baseboards are all new drywall rather than plaster and lath. I suspect that at one time they had a catastrophic water leak from either the upstairs or downstairs bathroom. The hardwood floor was obviously installed by an amateur but it isn't cupped or anything so I think the owner replaced it himself. I looked under the house and there isn't any evidence that the subfloor was replaced under the bedroom but, of course the bathroom subfloor was replaced.
What I'm getting at is, even with an as-is sale, shouldn't things like a past major water leak have been disclosed in writing? I don't intend to take any legal action against the former owner, his agent nor mine, I'd just like to know for future reference.
One other question... I cannot remember the name of the website but I know there is one where a homeowner can go to check out past homeowner's insurance claims by address. If any of you know the name of that program or the URL of the site, would you please post it? Thanks!
I recently closed on a home that I bought to rehab and resell. I knowingly bought it as-is. I had the most thorough inspector in my area inspect the place and I accompanied him throughout the process. What I've discovered since closing are things that he couldn't possibly have found without pulling off paneling or pulling up carpeting. The home has a lot of potential but I keep finding things that no amount of non-destructive inspection could have uncovered. Below are a few examples.
1: The previous owner beat a trench into the plaster and lath in the kitchen and ran wiring over the studs to add more outlets. He then covered the trenches and wires with cheap paneling.
He also had every circuit in the kitchen on one breaker. The end result was that I had to have an electrician come in and remove all of his hokey wiring and re-do it to code. The previous owner did verbally warn me not to run the dishwasher and a microwave at the same time because it would trip the breaker. When he told me that, I planned to have an electrician scope out the problem and repair it.2: The previous owner verbally told me that he had ripped both bathrooms back to the studs and joists/rafters and re-done them. Everything is on a ground fault circuit. I pulled up the carpet in the downstairs bedroom that adjoins the downstairs bathroom so that I could have the hardwood floors sanded and refinished. I noticed that the walls behind the baseboards are all new drywall rather than plaster and lath. I suspect that at one time they had a catastrophic water leak from either the upstairs or downstairs bathroom. The hardwood floor was obviously installed by an amateur but it isn't cupped or anything so I think the owner replaced it himself. I looked under the house and there isn't any evidence that the subfloor was replaced under the bedroom but, of course the bathroom subfloor was replaced.
What I'm getting at is, even with an as-is sale, shouldn't things like a past major water leak have been disclosed in writing? I don't intend to take any legal action against the former owner, his agent nor mine, I'd just like to know for future reference.
One other question... I cannot remember the name of the website but I know there is one where a homeowner can go to check out past homeowner's insurance claims by address. If any of you know the name of that program or the URL of the site, would you please post it? Thanks!
