Get the seller to pay for a home warranty. I've bought three houses and every time I've had something major go wrong within the first year that was within the scope of the warranty. Saved me thousands. Now, it may be that you never use the warranty put the peace of mind is also nice.
HuskerBoard
Huskerzoo
@JJ Husker I'm sure I could google it, but what's drainage and foundation compaction? If you don't want to explain I can hammer it out on my own.
@darkhorse85 didn't know that was a thing. Thanks!
@darkhorse85 didn't know that was a thing. Thanks!
teachercd
Yeah, get a time machine and go back about 8 years when houses were cheap as balls. If you can't do that...my advice is this...do not be afraid to lowball...if your agent won't...find a new agent. Also, if you can find a house you like that is not currently being lived in there is a good chance you can get a better deal.
JJ Husker
@Huskerzoo Drainage would be making sure all the land of the lot slopes away from the house, so water won’t run back to the house or pool in the middle of the yard. Foundation compaction would be making sure the builder compacted the soil he had to backfill around the house and also any utility trenches.
I had problems with both at my current home and also compaction issues at our previous home. Lots of times, especially when they are building like crazy, they won’t take the time to do it properly and it will cause you problems later on. If the soil immediately surrounding the house settles, it provides a low point for water to collect and get into your house/basement. I’m not exactly sure how to check it other than to look for signs of settling and ask them how it was compacted. Often instead of controlled lifts (backfilling and compacting about 12” at a time) they will just fill up the excavation and do some water settling. That doesn’t work too well and can leave large voids, depending on the soil type
I had problems with both at my current home and also compaction issues at our previous home. Lots of times, especially when they are building like crazy, they won’t take the time to do it properly and it will cause you problems later on. If the soil immediately surrounding the house settles, it provides a low point for water to collect and get into your house/basement. I’m not exactly sure how to check it other than to look for signs of settling and ask them how it was compacted. Often instead of controlled lifts (backfilling and compacting about 12” at a time) they will just fill up the excavation and do some water settling. That doesn’t work too well and can leave large voids, depending on the soil type
JJ Husker
Also, with a newly constructed home, make sure the builder completes everything before you close. If there are 3 or 4 punch list items they need to fix/change, don’t close until they have done what they have promised to do. The tendency is to trust that they will do a few easy things in a timely manner but once you’ve signed they don’t have near the compulsion to do them.
If you buy a newly constructed home, check the lot drainage and foundation compaction before signing on the line.