Buying a Character House

[Grendel]

My wife and I are first-time home buyers.. we're looking at a 100 year old character house, and we're trying to find a home inspector to check it out. Most of the home inspectors I'm seeing online seem to be gearing their pitches towards newer houses. Does anybody have any tips about buying old houses, or better, does anyone know of a home inspector who specializes in older houses?

[bakersdozen]

Try the bigger firms like Carson and Dunlop or Pillar to Post. Be aware they are only visual inspections and unless you want structural stuff done you'll need to pay for that likely on a case by case basis... but for an old house like you state things are going to be wrong, building codes back then were much different if they existed at all.

One thing that really pisses me off (not you likely) is the Home and Garden TV shows where young entitled kids are buying old houses because they like the character... and then they are suprised when things fall apart, or leak. It comes with the territory of old houses. Basements back then were not ment to keep water out.

[DizzyEdge]

Make sure the floors are straight. I know some people claim that is part of the character, but its always bugged me in my house.

[hulkrogan]

Originally Posted by bakersdozen

Try the bigger firms like Carson and Dunlop or Pillar to Post.

Pillar to post is complete shyte. Don't bother.

There are a few guys out there with IR cameras and moisture detectors. That is what you want.

If possible go after a bunch of moisture (like now) and on a cold day, get them to check it out. The IR camera will show insulation deficiencies, the moisture detector will show leaks. Pillar to post said I had 5 years left on my roof. AirVironment Canada (air quality inspectors) told me it was already leaking, and were good for advising on if there were past moisture issues in the basement or not.

I had a roofer come out and take a look, there was water staining all through the attic. Had I listened to the home inspector I would have been in for a world of hurt. Absolutely useless.

One other thing for an old house, pay attention to the ducting if buying it in warmer months. It probably was ducted for a gravity furnace at some point and may be missing cold air returns and be light on the ducts especially if it's a 2 story.

Good luck! I'm really, really happy I went with my old house (1911) and I've never had a single person over that hasn't gone on and on about how much they love it. You can modernize them quite a bit and still keep most of what makes them awesome.

Oh, my floors are a bit crooked for sure. I've never cared, but that is personal preference.

[suburbia]

Originally Posted by hulkrogan

I had a roofer come out and take a look, there was water staining all through the attic. Had I listened to the home inspector I would have been in for a world of hurt. Absolutely useless.

Any home inspector worth a hill of beans would have checked out the attic themselves and seen the water staining!

[jsbertram]

Originally Posted by DizzyEdge

Make sure the floors are straight. I know some people claim that is part of the character, but its always bugged me in my house.

When we were looking for an older home to reno & update, my dad would bring his marble -the size of a golf ball- to let it roll on the 'level floors'.

More than a few realtors were p!ssed when this simple demonstration showed that the 'good solid constructed house' wasn't.

A few of my rules of buying a century-old house.

- be prepared to walk away for another deal.
- Don't get caught up in a bidding war
- is this a 'flip'? has a cheap & quick fixup been done to hide the flaws & 'modernize' the place?
- expect to replace every wall & floor & roof at some time while living there
- the older the place, the more that needs replacing.
- expect to replace plumbing, wiring, sewers, and heating.
- plan to roto-rooter the sewer line, and don't be surprised if the city water line has to be changed to copper or plastic
- expect asbestos, mould and rot.
- get several inspections (the extra few hundred dollars could save you thousands - even tens of thousands). Whatever is revealed can be used to knock down the price.
- any reno in the past has probably been done by the previous home-owners or an el-cheapo handy-guy. Pull any and all permits that the City has. If renos were done without permits, knock down the price.
- Don't Fall Madly In Love At First Sight.
- be prepared to walk away for another deal.


I saw a century-old house a few months ago that the owners bought 15 years ago and have been living though constant renos ever since. The first Major Reno was to strip the outside walls back to bare studs and re-sheath the entire house, new insulation and all new windows. All the early-century plumbing & wiring and decades of alterations in the outside walls were revealed, so the plumbing was moved to interior walls.

Fortunately they could afford to keep renting for while this first reno was being done.

[hulkrogan]

Originally Posted by suburbia

Any home inspector worth a hill of beans would have checked out the attic themselves and seen the water staining!

I watched him go in the attic. That is the worst part. This guy just didn't care.

[drew]

^ I would bet every 100 year old house has water staining of some kind in the attic. At some point there would have been a leak in the roof, especially since this house is likely on its 3rd or 4th roof.

The better question would be what condition the roof shingles are, the last time they were replaced, and beyond water stains, is there any rot? Water stains on their own indicate that yes, there was water at some point, but unless they point you to a larger problem that hasn't been fixed already...big deal.

I have a 105 year old house in Winnipeg, and do structural inspections of houses as part of my job.

A sloped floor is virtually guaranteed in 100 year old house. It doesn't mean the house isn't "solid" or otherwise straight.

The wood shrinks more perpendicular to the grain compared to parallel, so all of the wood joists in 100 year old house will have shrunk, while the wood columns, studs, etc. have not. You will always see humps in the floors around wood columns, door openings, etc. Again, generally not a big deal unless cosmetically it doesn't work for you.

Look for cracks in the wall finishes, cracks in the basement walls. Big diagonal cracks in plaster, brick, drywall or racked door frames and crooked window openings are signs something is moving in the foundation. Also obvious signs of recent paint, drywall, etc. might be hiding something.

Also, beware the finished basement. Those walls are almost certainly hiding something of concern.

The ideal older home is relatively untouched reno-wise, no structural additions, and a bare, unfinished basement (good luck finding a house like that though!)

[hulkrogan]

Originally Posted by drew

^ I would bet every 100 year old house has water staining of some kind in the attic. At some point there would have been a leak in the roof, especially since this house is likely on its 3rd or 4th roof.

That day there would have been water in the attic as it was raining. I discovered there was an active leak around the brick chimney because the last roof (asphalt over cedar) was done very poorly. A roofer came and actually went IN the attic instead of poking his head in the door, and took pictures of moister on the trusses. He went on the roof instead of looking from the ground, and took pictures of the shingles with almost no grit left.

This guy was a hack.

[Grendel]

Thanks for all these very useful tips!