10 Questions You MUST Ask Before You Buy a Home!
Let’s take a step back from decorating and DIY projects for a second….and let’s talk the questions you must ask before buying a house. Be sure to download my FREE home buying workbook in my How to Buy a House in 12 Weeks post. Also, check out the entire 30 questions you must ask before buying a house
It’s been 8 years since we moved into this 4-BR single family house, and if I could have done it all over again, these questions below are the questions I wish someone would have told me to ask before jumping in with 2 feet. Here, I’m sharing these tips with you in hopes of helping other people make better decisions about home buying!
So, for any of you that are home-shopping, or know someone that is buying a home, make sure you ask these 10 questions before you buy a home:
AUDIO: 10 Questions to Ask Before Buying a Home
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1. Will the windows need to be replaced?
Did you know that new windows can set you back upwards of $10,000…..$15,000, or more? I know: GASP! How often do you walk into a house and inspect the windows? Windows are boring. If anything, we swoon over the shape of them, the position of them, the scenery outside of them, but rarely do we consider the condition of the windows. But, have you ever had to deal with poor windows? Windows that don’t stay shut? Windows that are so drafty you’ve got to apply ugly plastic over them to keep the cold out? Old windows that have peeling or chipped paint (which may even have lead in them if the house was built before 1973)? Windows are costly and they’re one of the most costly home repairs and upgrades that you’ll ever pay for.
When we moved into this house, the last thing I was paying attention to was the windows. I was thinking about how pretty the house would look with my favorite colors of paint…and how much space we’d have. The last thing I needed to know was if the windows were drafty. We soon found out. And they all needed to be replaced. All 22 of them. Yes, 22. This is not the kind of expense you want to pay when you move into a house. Spend $14,000 on something worthwhile, like–a car–perhaps?? lol. Get a house with solid windows that will keep you warm in the winter and cool in the summer.
2. What’s the position and quality of the trees around this house?
In a bad storm, can those trees fall on your new house? Do any of them look rotted? Do any of them need to be cut down? Do those trees block the sunrise? What about the sunset? When we bought this house, it was the winter of 2010. There were no leaves on the trees. Who even notices bare trees in the winter? We sure didn’t. But let me tell you–when those leaves came….they sucked out all the sunlight, making our home feel like a cave.
UPDATE:
We had one of these trees removed at a cost of $1,250! This is what looked like BEFORE. Notice how dark it was, even on the sunniest day?
BEFORE
AFTER
With one tree gone, we now have sunlight! I’m slowly learning to not be so unhappy about our home :).
Related Read: Stop Thinking You Have an Ugly House
TIP: Be cognizant of where trees are in relation to the house you want to buy. Consider the fact that if you want to remove a tree, the cost is usually anywhere from $400 – $1,500 or more to have the stump removed!
DOWNLOAD ALL 30 QUESTIONS
3. Do you see any signs of pests?
Could you imagine buying a house and finding–ICK!–roaches?? Thank God we didn’t have this problem! But you need to be vigilant about pests when you’re looking for a place. Look for mouse turds. Ask the sellers for more information about it. Look inside cabinets and moist places where pests like to hide. Heck–pull the refrigerator or stove out, and make sure there’s nothing there! Thankfully, we didn’t see roaches, but we did find centipedes after moving in. And OH MY GOSH, we were slammed with an infestation of ANTS. Yikes! We had them in nearly every room of the house, and I was having nightmares about them! Thankfully, as the season went on, I was able to get rid of them. But the following year, I had to spring for a pest control plan. We pay about $40 a month now and haven’t had any major problem with ants. But it was still an expense we hadn’t planned on.
4. Are there sidewalks in the neighborhood?
Maybe you were too excited about the awesome house, but somehow, you didn’t even realize that there are no sidewalks in the neighborhood. Oh–yeah, this happened to us! Because of this, our kids can’t just go outside and ride bikes or scooters; they might get hit by a car! If you’ve got kids, or nieces and nephews that come to visit, get a house with some sidewalks. Even if you have no children, for your own safety when walking or jogging, buy a home in a neighborhood where there are sidewalks. I find that older homes and neighborhoods tend to have no sidewalks.
Here’s a sample shot from another blog post to show you what our street looks like. No sidewalks mean danger for little ones, and even yourself!
(And while you’re here, you might want to check out these interesting things I learned about the home in carpentry class, including the fact that you don’t own 100% of your property. Bet you didn’t know that, huh?)
5. Is the house too out-dated?
No house is going to be perfectly upgraded, especially if it’s a steal in price. But maybe you’re mesmerized by the beauty of the bay window, or the lovely wood floors, or how nice the house could be after you’ve gotten your DIY hands on it. Sometimes a home’s potential is its selling feature, along with the price and the promise of its beauty. But you must take a hard look at how outdated the house really is. How much will it cost to upgrade your new home? How much time will be involved if you attempt some DIY projects yourself? Are you being realistic regarding what you can accomplish, in time and budget? If you have kids, consider if you’ll have enough time away from the kids to get these projects done. Otherwise, you may end up years later with rooms still donning the hideous wallpaper because there just isn’t enough time to get the house “done.”
It took a while for me to turn this old house around, but slowly I’ve been tackling each room. Here are some of the outdated rooms I have been able to complete, but there is still so much more to work on:
My Laundry – BEFORE
It took 30 days, but I was able to turn it around! (Read more about my laundry room makeover).
AFTER!
The same was true of my kids’ bathroom. It took nearly 4 years to finally get around to transforming this room, too! Removing wallpaper was the worse part, along with the totally outdated green toilet. I did the whole room myself!
My Kids’ Bathroom – BEFORE
AFTER!
Completing makeovers like these, though, take time, especially if the whole house is outdated. Just remember this rule of thumb: each room will take about 30 days to transform if you focus on one room at a time. How many months will it take for you to totally transform your new home, in that case? Factor in more time depending on budget, children, etc. How much time are you willing to do it?
Here are some DIY tutorials and posts that will help you to improve your home without having to pay professionals to help you do it:
- How to Remove a Toilet
- How to Install a Toilet Yourself – No Plumber Needed!
- How to Build a DIY Bathroom Vanity From Scratch
- What’s the Best Paint for Furniture?
- How to Paint Garage Floors With 1-Part Epoxy Paint
- How to Put Up Crown Molding Like a Novice
Check out my Project Gallery for more help with doing DIY projects around the home.
6. Does the house have any weird odors?
What do you smell when you walk into the house? If you smell funk, RUN! Run far away. Because, seriously, if the house is funky, it’s either a) mold/mildew (read: water problems), b) dirty people, or c) cooking smells that may take a long time to go away. Don’t just think that you can “air a home out” after settlement. When you walk into a house you’d like to buy, it should smell….well….like NOTHING. There shouldn’t be any odors that try to make the house smell “good.” You should smell very little. Homes that leave an odor means that you will be dealing with the odor when you move in, or it may be covering up other smells you don’t even realize are there until you move in. Sometimes this can be a costly problem to clear up, depending on its cause. This is from experience! When we came to look at our house, it had a rank odor. It was horrible. I thought we would just air the home out. And although the smell dissipated after moving in, our house still has a slightly “old” smell, probably emanating from the basement. It’s slightly stronger in the spring and summer.
Related Read: 10 Best “Must-Have” Home Necessities When You Move Into a House
7. Does the ground slope AWAY from the house?
Does the house sit at the top or bottom of a hill? Where does the water flow around the house? Grading is probably one of the few things people check when they go house-hunting. Don’t make this mistake! Grading that is poor and allows rain and water to sit at the home’s foundation is a recipe for flooding and water damage. Grading isn’t cheap to fix. Expect to pay upwards of $2,500 to have a professional landscaper or grading professional to regrade the entire perimeter of your home. We re-graded our entire perimeter because of water seeping into the basement, and yep–that’s what we paid–$2,290. OUCH. But we couldn’t take the threat of flooding anymore, and it needed to be fixed immediately!
Related Read: Water Leak Detector: How to Ease Your Biggest Fear of Water Leaks
8. What do the cars in the neighborhood look like?
Okay, we’re boarding on something probably unethical, but it’s true. Take a look around you. If you see broken-down cars, expect to find a broken-down neighborhood.The cars don’t have to be BMWs and Audis. But look for late model cars that look well-cared for. The quality of the cars, more so than the brand, that people drive in the neighborhood, really can tell you about the quality of a neighborhood.
9. What are the neighbors like?
Imagine the horror of moving into a house and you end up hating your neighbors. YIKES! Go up and knock on the doors of the nearby neighbors and tell them you’re planning to make an offer on the house next door or across the street. See what they say. Are they nice? Are they gossiping about the other neighbors that are moving out? Do they seem SANE?? What does their yard look like? Be sure to talk to all the neighbors. Do they have something negative to say about certain neighbors? Choose your neighbors wisely!
10. How much are the utilities for that house?
Granted, your usage will be different, depending on your family size and usage. But calling ahead to the utility companies (and even identifying WHICH utilities you will need to pay–gas or electric? both?) will give you a great starting point to use when creating your budget, to make sure you can afford the property and all the things that go into moving into a new or larger home. There are tons of expenses you don’t even realize up front that you’ll need to pay when you move into a new house, but if you can nail down the utilities, you’re one step closer to making a wise decision. NOTE: Some of these things your inspector will look for and note, but that’s AFTER you’ve already put an offer on a house. Why get to that point? Why not note these things beforehand so you’re not wasting money on an inspection for a house that you may end up not buying anyhow? Be wise. Look for the right things, from the beginning :).
BONUS TIP
Did you know that if a waste pipe or water supply pipe breaks on your property, you are fully responsible for it? That’s right. Your homeowner’s insurance and your water company will not pay for the repairs. And these repairs can cost you upwards of $10,000. There is insurance that can cover these repairs if they are needed, but that’s something you have to purchase out of pocket. It’s only $60-$100 per year, but most people have never heard of it. I am enrolled in carpentry classes at my local community college and this is just one of several surprising facts I learned. Read the other 20 surprising things I learned in carpentry class that will help you save money and be safer when doing projects in your new house.
Click here to read PART 2 of this series.
Next time you’re going to check out a house, take along this FREE download that has all 30 questions!
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So do you have any other questions that you think are most important to ask before buying a home? Please leave a comment to let everyone know what else they need to know before buying a house! 🙂
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Ask if there is ever water in the basement. Look for signs of mold, water damage, fresh paint. We bought a home about 12 years ago – asked if it got water (finished basement). Home owner said no. We did a final walk thru with realtor 24 hours before closing. Water puddles everywhere in basement!! Mold growing up the walls. Discovered that when they painted the storage room – they painted around the stuff on the shelves. Wasn’t even the same color paint. So the walls that didn’t get painted, and had been previously hidden by their stuff also had mold. Fortunately THEIR realtor stepped up and got things done. Our own realtor dropped the ball – just wanted to make the sale and get her commission. Their realtor had them move $11,000 into an escrow fund to be used for waterproofing and repairs within 6 months if the basement did get water. The owners tried saying the basement shower must’ve had a leak. Their realtor ripped the shower apart and had plumbers come and replace things – all the same day. Next day was closing and it was pouring buckets. Their realtor said he’d meet us at the house. There was a river flowing thru the basement!! But since they lied they had to pay the $11,00 to get things fixed and waterproofed. Was a horrible experience, that shouldn’t have happened in the first place.
After our experience, all the realtors in our town made their clients sign some kind of disclosure form. If they had been honest upfront and we were dumb enough to buy anyway, we’d be liable. Since they lied – they paid.
Kathy, the water in the basement is critical! We knew there was water that came through our basement door in the house we bought, but we had no clue that he came into the actual living area. We thought it was just the basement door stairwell area (we have one of those “Wizard of Oz” type doors). We soon found out that the water was coming into much more than we realized, and to get the basement door fixed, it as a good $2,000 to have it replaced. UGH! So yes, ask tons of questions!!!! Thanks for your tip!
Serena thanks again for all of the tips! I sure wouldn’t have looked for a lot of these things but I will now! You always have great advice!
These are really good tips. I will pass them on.. Thank you
These are great tips! Most of them I probably would not have thought of on my own.
Great tips! I have one to add if you’re moving into a different city/area… before you put in your contract do a ‘dry run’ of your morning and evening commute. I knew moving out into the country that my commute was going to be bad, but I guessed it at about an hour and 15 minutes. It’s actually closer to 2 hours most days (each way). We LOVE our house and I wouldn’t change it, but I will NOT be doing this commute for years on end!
That is such a great tip, Joules! I know you’re in Maryland, too, and traffic here is awful. I work at Walter Reed in Bethesda, and from my house it’s only 11 miles, I believe. But it takes upwards of 1 hour to get to work some days! I totally agree–TRIAL RUN before you even get so deep into a contract!!!!
I know when I bought my home, one of my major questions was what is the neighborhood like at night. There were times when I knew I had to walk the dogs by myself at night. A neighborhood can look nice during the day, but it is always important to check it out at night too.
Wonderful tips! I think most people just see a house, and do not take other things into consideration! Right now, we have 3 empty houses ours. It always makes me nervous when I see people coming to look at the houses! I worry what kind of neighbors we will be getting….
I can tell you, that was ME, Liberty! We were also hard-pressed to find a house because our condo had just sold and we were living with my mother-in-law. When you’re rushed, that also creates more room for error!
Thanks for sharing!
Good tips! I agree with driving buy at night. If at all possible, talk to the neighbours. That will offer insite from someone who won’t profit from the sale.
In fact, let’s make it a rule: talk to at LEAST 3 neighbors before you buy a house in the neighborhood! LOL. Two of them must live on either side of you, and one much be across the street. 🙂
Oh my! I can tell you about teens hanging out! Where my mother-in-law lives, at one time, there would be at least 10 teenagers just hanging out in the townhouse complex, until all hours of the night! It was crazy!! Thankfully, those teens have all grown up, but that is a perfect example of how you just can’t tell a neighborhood from one part of the day. You MUST go at night, AND on the weekends! Great point, Anna!
Drive through the neighborhood after dark. Some neighborhoods change … loud music, teenagers hanging out, etc. Also remember that those pretty trees and bushes in the yard will get BIGGER.