What are some overlooked risks of buying & living in an old house?

Question

Other than lead paint & wiring...?

Answer 1

Alot of the appliances could be old and either need work or cost you a fortune in utilities. Windows not sealed well will also cost alot in electric, Is there a septic tank? The roof, walls not insulated, plumbing, termites . . . .

Answer 2

You got a lot of good answers about structural issues and maintaining and replacing windows, etc. but nobody told you to watch out for asbestos covered pipes and asbestos floor tiles! That is a problem in old houses. One house I sold, had asbestos pipes lined right up through the air vents. When the asbestos is flaking ( they call that fryable asbestos) that is when it is a danger to be inhaled. A man in a hazmut (spelling?) siut came and took away the asbestos. It had to go into a special land fill, and it cost a small fortune to remediate. Also, another danger in old houses is lead paint. Sometimes, the paint flakes off, and it gets inhaled. Worse still, infants swallow the pieces- it is actually sweet tasting, and it tastes like candy. Still another problem often found in old houses is termites and carpenter ants. In the 1700s and 1800s, they had no pesticides, so often you have to reinforce the beams that support those real old houses. Another issue is septic design.And still another issue is electric wiring. Very often, you find wiring of all ages, and have to rewire the entire place. I once had an inspector come onto a property and identify the different wires by the wrapping on them. He said " This part was done in the 19020's, this part in the 1940's, etc." He could tell that the wiring was dangerous just by its age and how it was wrapped. I wouldn't live in a historic property if you paid me! Especially one that is on the historic register! Then, if you want to make changes, those historic review boards make you jump through hoops. They have too much to say about property that they don't own- you do. One board made a family take down the vinyl siding they had just put up, because it wasn't historically accurate.

Answer 3

(I'm taking that foundations, roof, damp... are all obvious)

Lead piping for the water supply, in a soft water area.
Insulation levels.
Strength issues, if you are in a tornado or earthquake zone
(you give no clue to location)

Ghosts have been mentioned... I was beaten to that!
In many respects an older house has had time to show its faults.

It's a timely question: I'm in the middle of buying a house that is at least 250 years old.

(edit: Ah, looking at the other answers, I may be thinking of a different sort of older house!)

Answer 4

Starting from the bottom. State of piles.Are walls straight? Are window-frames square? State of flooring. Is the plumbing ok? What's the roof like? Does it leak? Is there any insulation? Old houses get very cold and draughty.What's the outside like? Does the house get the sun in the right places?How damp is it? Hope this is enough for you to work on?

Answer 5

insulation! they have a lot of that old black 'blow in' crap. yuck, does nothing
check out how many outlets each room has, i think you will be surprised how few there are
plumbing, and water heater, of course
bathroom floors, you never know how much water damage there is until the toilet almost falls through *experience on this one*
inefficent windows, and make sure all the doors close, old houses tend to 'settle' and the stupid doors wont shut right.

not all old houses are like this, these are just some things we found out the hard way. good luck

Answer 6

lack of insulation in the walls, my house is 60yrs old and doesn't have insulation.
single pane windows- not energy effecient
they might have used cheaper matterials.
water damage/rot in bathrooms and walls near bath and kitchen,
drainage problems
basements might leak or not be properly water locked
floors might not be insulated either- 1st floor wood floors are very cold in winter bcse of no insulation from basement to floor.
burr cold piggies lol
piping
older outdated appliances that might break down
no central air system

Answer 7

a lot of people fail to do a title search.i recently took two houses from people who bought them from my uncle.they were left to me by my grandfather and money was taken from an account he had set up to pay the taxes.even though my uncle had the deeds to these houses,they were in fact owned by me.one guy had paid 25,000 for a fixer upper and the other guy paid almost 50,000.
i felt bad but,hey they were willed to me and,these people had the choice to either pay for the houses AGAIN or move.
insurance companies sell insurance to guard aganist this very thing but,most don't buy it.so.ask your agent about it cause,if you bought a house that rightfully belonged to me,,sorry if another person ripped you off,you'd be out in the street.

Answer 8

My house was built in 1958. My floors are sinking in places and most of my doors don't hang straight. Also, you may have to replace windows so they're energy efficient.

Answer 9

the foundation could be a problem. check for cracks in the ceiling,corner,and window sills. also Ghosts!!!