How to Avoid Suprises when Buying a New Home

by Craig Axelrod
August 10, 2009

Buying a home may be a stressful process, and finding problems the week you move in can be a nightmare. If you're purchasing new construction, such as Manorwood Estates in Commack New York, you will have little to stress about. New construction usually will not have hidden surprises as everything is newly built. Most issues come up with existing homes, and great care must be taken when buying a home.

1. Use a Home Inspector with Existing Homes! We can't stress this enough. While a home inspector may cost several hundred dollars or more, he or she can save you tens or hundreds of thousands of dollars down the road. I also know people who looked at homes, were about to write the deposit check and stopped because the inspector discovered terribly damaged foundations that needed tens of thousands of dollars in repairs, drooping walls that needed structural rebuilding of the house, dilapidated wiring that present a fire hazard and other issues that are not apparent to the naked eye. Even those that are detectable may not show off a red flag to a homeowner, whereas an inspector they may quickly see the problems.

2. Drive by the home at Various Times. We're not telling you park in front of the house and scare the existing homeowners. Drive by several times on different days and look at the neighborhood. Don't even look at the house. Focus on what is going on around the home. Is this a community you want to live in? Are these the people you want to have? They will be there when you move-in, so be sure you think about this before purchasing a home. You may love the home, but hate the block. If that the case, you may want to look elsewhere.

3. Ask to See the Home Immediately after a Heavy Rain. Monitor the weather reports. If there is a report of heavy rains on a Tuesday, try to plan a visit on Tuesday evening. The house may look dry during the open home, but it may be leaky or damp after rain. You don't want to be surprised to find this out the week you move in.

4. Ask Some Apparent Questions. If all the other homes in the neighborhood have natural gas to power in the stove, does this one? If oil heat is common, is this how to use electric? These are big questions to ask that many people just take for granted. Be sure you know the answers.

5. Look at the Landscape. Does the land pitch away from the house? Why does the backyard have a hill that runs straight towards the house? Typically, you want property the grades away from the home so that rainwater away from the foundation. If the property is graded towards the house, that run-off water can drift towards your foundation, which can cause foundation damage, leaks and floods.

This is the biggest purchase many people will ever make. Be sure that you've asked all the questions, open all the doors, search behind the pictures and, yes, even behind posters on the walls, to make sure everything is what you expect. In one home we found, a movie poster covered in 16 inch hole in the wall!

With new construction - particularly new developments - you generally will not have these problems. Nonetheless, you should look at these things carefully to avoid surprises down the road.