While shopping for a home, most buyers can easily point out peeling paint, outdated appliances or a dirty carpet. What most buyers won’t notice are plumbing issues. Though a standard home inspection will cover the basics, like water damage and water heater safety, other common issues often go unreported. Buying a home with a history, in particular, can present sewer-related challenges for potential new owners.
If you’re in the market for a pre-owned home, keep in mind these four factors when evaluating the home’s plumbing.
- If it happened once, it will happen again.
Homes with past plumbing issues have a high probability of failure in the future. “The roots from the same problem tree will continue to grow back,” says Larry Rothman, director of Plumbing Services for Roto-Rooter, citing a common example. Re-occurring problems should be resolved before completing the sale of the home.
- Sump pump problems can go unnoticed.
Despite being a standard requirement for new construction, not all pre-owned basement homes have sump pumps to prevent flooding. If it hasn’t rained recently, any sump pump issues may remain hidden. A thorough inspection of the sump system, water heater and sewer line can save a prospective buyer thousands of dollars in repairs or replacement.
- Sewer line inspections are not generally included in standard home inspections.
Homebuyers regularly waive this extra inspection in the purchasing process because it requires an additional cost of anywhere from $250 to $550. Additionally, many buyers do not know that responsibility for the condition of the lateral sewer line leading from the street to the home lies with the homeowner, not a municipality. Whatever the reason for skipping a sewer line inspection, buyers should reevaluate foregoing this important step when making a deal.
- Sellers do not have to disclose information about plumbing problems.
Ask questions! Learn when the home was built; if it is 25 years or older, it is more likely to have non-plastic pipes that may be deteriorated. Take note of mature trees, visible root growth and cracked concrete and ask if they are related to any persistent pipe problems.
Reprinted with permission from RISMedia. ©2014. All rights reserved.
Debbie Woolard Group
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Our focus is helping people find and exchange dream homes. We are seeking buyers and sellers that desire concierge level service including great communication, extraordinary representation and a continuing relationship for years to come.
You and your referrals will be provided with a great team of professionals to help with each step of the process. We are committed and passionate about negotiating the best possible terms and serving our clients at the highest level. Our goal is to create memorable real estate experiences where our clients become raving fans.
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Whether a person is looking to buy or sell a starter home or a multi-million dollar estate, Debbie Woolard produces great results for her clients. She gives clients what they expect and deserve, an experienced realtor skilled in marketing and negotiations.
With Debbie Woolard, you will receive personal service as well as exceptional professionalism. She is well qualified for her work with her strong background of sales and marketing. Having been born here and continuously living in the area, she is familiar with the entire Hampton Roads region.
She has earned the professional designations of Certified Negotiation Expert, Certified Residential Specialist, and e-Pro. In addition she is also a Short Sale and Foreclosure Resource with extensive training in short sales and foreclosures. This uniquely positions her to help those in danger of losing their home to foreclosure. It has also proven to be beneficial to the buyers that are seeking to purchase a short sale or foreclosure.
She is well qualified to help professionals, business owners, military personnel and other clients with their real estate needs. She has been selected to work with both the Military Team and Relocation Team. She is consistently producing outstanding results in real estate.
Her first year in real estate she was awarded Listing Rookie of the Year as well as Sales Rookie of the Year. Her sales and loyal following of satisfied clients have grown each year she has been in business. She is in the top 1% of the agents in the area based on sales volume. Her practice continues to flourish thanks to clients recommending her to friends, family members and business associates.
Her clients state that her actions and attitude are best described with the word “integrity”.
Realtors with the Debbie Woolard Group service Virginia Beach, Chesapeake, Norfolk, Suffolk, Hampton, Newport News & Portsmouth with specialist in seller representation, buyer representation, military relocation, first time home buyers, short sales and real estate investment.