We bought what we thought would be a temporary home that would be cheaper than renting–a home we could live in while we built elsewhere. We were blinded by its hundred-year-old Southern charm, wrap-around porch, and proximity to the little downtown.
We neglected to see gaping holes and soft spots in the floors and were duped into believing what we were told about the house. We neglected to get an inspection, mistake one.
Note to self and to you always, always, always get a thorough inspection. Every. Time. Really. (Since writing this I have learned that there is a vast difference in inspections in the country towns of Mississippi versus any big city. In the city, the inspection of our home rendered a document with maybe 50 plus pages with detailed notes “the nail on the southern corner of the house is crooked.” I kid, but it really was detailed. I have beat myself up over the fact that we didn’t get an inspection on this home, but have run into many locals and transplants who say inspections here would not have been thorough enough to reveal the issues we uncovered.)
Problems to Look for When Buying an Old House
Unlevel floors
Sometimes a floor can be unlevel because of water damage, soil movement, or structural problems.
Tub separation
The tub was separated between 1 and 3 inches in some spots. Later it would be discovered that the beams under the tub were rotten.
If we used that tub we would’ve risked falling through the floor. Yes, it was that bad!
Broken tile at the base of toilets
Broken tile around the toilet is usually a sign of water damage and rot.
Two of our three toilets were unusable because of rotting floors underneath just like the tub in the above photo.
We ended up shutting the water off to both of these bathrooms the second we discovered these issues.
Electrical problems
When you turn the stove on and the breaker for the washing machine trips, you might have a problem!
A crawl space expert went under the house with a camera. He found termite damage, rot, condensation, mold, fungus, raw arcing electrical wires, broken plumbing, and rusted gas lines. We were living in a death trap and it needed to be fixed literally from the ground up.
We are learning, through real blood, sweat, and tears that good things often come out of the hard things. We’re in the middle of the hard.
In light of things going on in the world, we know this is not the worst scenario, but it is our scenario, so we press on.
Take a look here to see a hint of what was done to our foundation and here to see a few recommendations I have if you are planning a renovation.
Plant Life,
Andrea