Ah, summer at last! Blue skies, warm sunshine, and dreams of buying your own home with a yard to enjoy it all in. Deciding to purchase a home is always a hot topic. But there are ways to reduce the stress and put more control on your side.
There are benefits and drawbacks to buying a home in summer. Flowers are blooming and the trees are green, upping a home’s curb appeal to the max. And it’s certainly easier to get a good look at the home’s exterior, but there are also more buyers out there.
If you’re considering buying a home, here are some tips to help take some of the heat off of your decision.
First impressions count
When you first see a house you’re interested in, whether online or in person, take a moment to evaluate your impressions about it. How does it make you feel? Does it look like the dream home you envisioned, or could you turn it into that with a bit of work? Are you eager to go see it, or indifferent? If it looks shabby and dated on the outside, it’s quite possible that the interior will match that, but not always. If you really like the character of the home, and where it’s located, you may still want to see the interior. You might be pleasantly surprised.
Conversely, don’t be fooled by gorgeous landscaping, a fresh coat of paint and nice staging. You want to know how old the important parts of the house are, like the furnace, air conditioning unit, hot water tank and appliances. What improvements have been made to the home? For example, were any additions to the footprint of the home, or the removal of interior walls, done with city permits and then inspected? Has the plumbing and wiring been professionally upgraded or does it need replacing?
If it’s a brand new build, you want to find out about any new home warranties that are available. With an older home, you can potentially see what you’re getting yourself into, but with a new home, sometimes an issue won’t be obvious for years and that’s when a warranty comes in handy.
Start at the top
It’s easy to forget to look up, way up, but this is crucial. Depending on the type of home, you may be able to see the roof from the street. Make sure the shingles aren’t peeling and missing. If the shingles are in extremely poor shape, chances are that water has gotten into the attic space.
From there, have a good look at the condition of the soffits, fascia and eaves. Make sure they haven’t been clogged up for years and, if they haven’t been replaced with aluminum, that the wood isn’t rotting anywhere. If the current homeowner has kept up with regular maintenance and painting, wooden soffits and fascia can hold up well for many years.
Work your way down
From there, follow the downspouts. Are any missing? Have they been leaking and damaging the siding or stucco? Are they draining away from the house and foundation at the proper angle?
Take a walk around the entire perimeter of the home and inspect the condition of the stucco, brick, stone and vinyl or wood siding. Is anything cracked, damaged or missing? At the same time, note the age of the windows and doors. If it’s an older home, you want to know if they’ve been replaced, or at least well maintained if the original wooden ones are still in place.
Do your diligence around the foundation. Look for broken basement windows and screens. Check for any significant cracks or missing parging on the exposed parts of the foundation. If you see that the yard is sloping down toward the foundation, that’s an issue. No home should have water draining toward its foundation because it can potentially pool there and eventually find its way into the basement.
Don’t forget the extras
It’s easy to get bamboozled by the beauty of a summer landscape, but you want to include the extras in your inspection. If there’s a detached garage or large shed on the property, what’s their condition? Will they need a new roof or complete replacement in a few years? Is the concrete pad that the garage is built on in good condition, or does that need replacing, too?
Inspect the driveway, sidewalks, stairs at the front and back doors, porch, patio and deck. If the driveway and sidewalk are concrete, are they cracked, or in good shape and level? What about the concrete pad inside the attached garage. If it’s sinking toward the foundation it will need to be levelled to prevent water draining toward your foundation. The same applies to a patio; it shouldn’t be slanting toward your house. Is the deck solid and level, or are the footings sliding and wood rotting?
If there’s a pool or hot tub, you want to know what type it is and how old the systems are. Is it saltwater or chlorine? Does it have a new liner or does that need replacing? Is the surrounding perimeter in good shape? Request maintenance records if they’re available.
Trees add value and beauty to a home, but not if they’re in poor shape. You want to note the condition of all the trees on the property. If the canopy is dying, you can be sure the tree will likely have to be removed. Also make sure that trees aren’t growing up against the house since the pressure from the roots can potentially cause cracks and water seepage in your foundation, while overhanging branches can damage the roof.
Upper to lower levels
Now that you’ve finished with the exterior, have a good, close look at the interior. You’ll want to keep your eyes peeled for any summertime red flags.
If the front or back doors are jamming when you try to open and close them, it could be that the door is warped, or that the house has settled and isn’t level. A bit of settling in a home is normal, but if you feel like you’re walking through the funhouse at a summer festival, there’s a bigger issue.
Look for things like cobwebs or stains gathering in a corner of a room or window, indicating there’s a breech in a home’s envelope or the window’s seal.
Do a sniff test. If there’s mold in a home, you can often, but not always, smell it. Basements in particular will develop a musty smell if there’s been an ongoing moisture issue. Inspect any exposed foundation for cracks, and if the basement has been developed, look for obvious signs of staining on the drywall, panelling, vinyl flooring and carpet.
Excess moisture in a home, like dryness, can cause things to change shape by expanding or shrinking slightly, so ensure interior doors and cupboards can close properly.
Check for big changes in temperature between the rooms. Is the front of the house cool but the back bedrooms stuffy and hot? It’s possible the air conditioning system isn’t working properly, or possibly the vents need cleaning or maybe there aren’t enough of them.
Buying a home in summer, or at any time, can be stressful, but it doesn’t have to be. To ensure the process goes smoothly, assess your finances, get pre-approved for a mortgage, and most importantly, work with a professional REALTOR®.