Would you buy house with a cracked pad but roof truss is okay?

Question

Great 3 bedroom ranch, attached garage, backs up to woods, quiet neighborhood. House is $20 - $40,000 LESS than others in the neighborhood. Interior rooms in back portion of house have gone off plumb 1" - 2". I'm close to 50, not a do-it-yourselfer... can I just live in it and if I hit the lottery, build a basement under it?

Answer 1

I wouldn't take it. As a general rule...if the foundation is solid, everything else can be fixed. If the foundation is weak and the rest is in good shape...then you have everything you've worked for, sort of balancing on the edge of a cliff. If the foundation sinks...so does everything else.

Answer 2

Repairing a cracked/broken foundation can be very expensive - that's most likely why the price is so low. Also, a finance company may not loan money to purchase the house. Have a contractor look at the house, or a really good building inspector and get their opinion and cost estimates. The other big question is what caused the problem - is the house in an area with known 'sink holes' or other similar problems?
Don't forget, that it the problem becomes acute, the local government may condemn the house and make you repair it or move.
It is possible to lift a house and install a new or repair an old foundation, still big $$$.
Base on what you've said, I'd look elsewhere.

Answer 3

I'm assuming the house is on a slab? In that case, it would be a MAJOR undertaking to "build a basement under it" - you'd have to either jack up the existing house and remove the current slab or actually move the house onto a new foundation. Either option requires you to move out during the renovation.

I'd pass. There's a possibility that the cracked slab will continue to settle causing the house to go further out of kilter. That can crack walls, put doors and windows out of square, crack tiles, all kinds of mess.

And, as someone who lives in a house on a slab, I REALLY wish we had a basement or at least a crawl space.

Answer 4

I don't think I would invest in this property,unless you are willing to shell out several thousand dollars to repair the foundation.I think the footer is sinking if there is one there at all.this would have to be addressed to fix your problem.The home could settle more and more over time and damage the structural integrity of the house.Roof leaks ,interior wall damage ,even plumbing and heating problems.Think hard before buying this.Good Luck

Answer 5

there are two things here to think about first how old is the property 30 years ?then it is not going to get worse .but...the roof truss may be ok .but what u are looking for is small patches in the roofing deck.look for new wood smaller pieces of plywood .that is a indication of settling.another thing if it is a slab there is a thing as mud jacking

Answer 6

Cracked pad? I would not purchase a home with a slab type foundation (all concrete floors), and certainly not if foundation is not level. Foundation problems are very expensive and invasive to the home to repair

Answer 7

1-2" off plumb, no it will only get worse. Get an estimate on foundation repair, that's probably why the price has been reduced.

Answer 8

I would ask for an inspection to find out if there is a geological reason for it to be off. Is it in a slide area? And I would get an estimate for the repairs to see how much it would cost to fix it.

Answer 9

Cracked foundation is no small matter to fix, it can be very expensive, I would call a reliable home inspector and get his/her opinion on the need/cost/consequences of the problem.

Answer 10

Things like this get worse. I guess the question is will you feel any more like dealing with problems in 10 or 15 years. i suspect not, if you're at all like I am.

I'd say avoid.