Homebuyers should check these items before making an offer
House hunting can feel like an adventurous new chapter in your life. If you’re lucky enough to find the property that checks off all the “must have” boxes — appearance, size, price, location — it’s easy to fall in love.
Not so fast.
Before making an offer on any property, it’s smart to take a deeper look at the overall structure and its systems, just to make sure warning signs of major and costly problems are not hiding in plain sight. If the house holds more issues than your budget (and drive to renovate) can handle, it might be best to walk away.
Of course, once the offer is accepted, it’s always a smart idea to hire a third-party home inspector to take an in-depth look at the property. In the meantime, one last pass-through with this checklist in hand can give you peace of mind about taking the next step.
EXTERIOR
Walk around all four sides of the house, scanning it from ground to rooftop.
Note the condition of the doors and window frames, and look for cracked or peeling paint or signs of loose siding.
Higher up, eyeball the chimney, making sure it appears straight and is in good condition. In addition, the gutters and drainpipes should be in place and functional.
ROOF
Ideally, the roof of the home should be 10 years old or less, so scan the roof for classic warning signs of aging and neglect. Things such as curled and missing shingles, dark stains, moss growth and signs of sagging can signal serious issues. A home inspector can confirm whether full replacement is needed or if a few simple repairs would stabilize things for another decade or so.
YARD
Take note of the landscaping. Is there a slope angled away from the house, or is there a potential for a flooded basement after a major rainfall? Mature trees provide lots of shade, but watch for overhanging branches, as these can break off in a storm and do major damage to the roof. Finally, take note of the condition of the driveway and sidewalks.
FOUNDATION
The sight of a few hairline cracks in the cement is no cause for panic. However, you do need to look for telltale signs of serious issues, such as widening cracks, water stains and bulges. It doesn’t hurt to bring a level to make sure the walls are straight.
PLUMBING
In addition to checking basement and undersink pipes for signs of leaks, scan the ceilings for water stains. Open all the faucets to check the water pressure, as well as the time it takes for hot water to reach the tap.
HVAC SYSTEM
Know the age of the home’s heating and cooling systems, and check these for tags and other signs of routine maintenance. If the system is older than a decade, that can spell costly repairs and a replacement in a brief time frame.
When it comes to older systems, energy efficiency is another consideration, said Tom Tasker, product manager with
WASHINGTON — Existing-home sales slumped for the second consecutive month in January and experienced their largest decline on an annual basis in over three years, according to the National Association of Realtors. All major regions saw monthly and annual sales decline last month.
Total existing-home sales, which are completed transactions that include singlefamily homes, townhomes, condominiums and co-ops, sank 3.2 percent in January to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 5.38 million from a downwardly revised 5.56 million in December 2017. After last month’s decline, sales are 4.8 percent below a year ago (the largest annual decline since August 2014 at 5.5 percent) and at their slowest pace since last September (5.37 million).
Lawrence Yun, chief economist for the NAR, said January’s retreat in closings highlights the housing market’s glaring inventory shortage to start 2018.
“The utter lack of sufficient housing supply and its influence on higher home prices muted overall sales activity in much of the U.S. last month,” he said.
“While the good news is that Realtors in most areas are saying buyer traffic is even stronger than at the beginning of last year, sales failed to follow course and far lagged last January’s pace,” he said. “It’s very clear that too many markets right now are becoming less affordable and desperately need more new listings to calm the speedy price growth.”
The nation’s median existing-home price for all housing types in January was $240,500, up 5.8 percent from January 2017 ($227,300). January’s price increase marks the 71st straight month of year-overyear gains.
Total housing inventory at the end of January rose 4.1 percent to 1.52 million existing homes available for sale but is still 9.5 percent lower than a year ago (1.68 million) and has fallen year over year for 32 consecutive months. Unsold inventory is at a 3.4-month supply at the current sales pace (3.6 months a year ago).
“Another month of solid price gains underlines this ongoing trend of strong demand and weak supply. The underproduction of single-family homes over the past decade has played a predominant role in the current inventory crisis that is weighing on affordability,” Yun said.
“However, there’s hope that the tide is finally turning,” he said. “There was a nice jump in new-home construction in January, and homebuilder confidence is high. These two factors will hopefully lay the foundation for the building industry to meaningfully ramp up production as this year progresses.”
First-time buyers accounted for 29 percent of sales in January, which is down from 32 percent in December 2017 and 33 percent a year ago. The NAR’s 2017 Profile of Home Buyers and Sellers (released in late 2017) revealed that the annual share of first-time buyers was 34 percent.
According to Freddie Mac, the average commitment rate for a 30-year, conventional, fixed-rate mortgage moved higher for the fourth straight month to 4.03 percent in January from 3.95 percent in December. The average commitment rate for all of 2017 was 3.99 percent.
“The gradual uptick in wages over the past few months is a promising development for the housing market, but there’s a risk that these income gains could be offset by the recent jump in mortgage rates,” Yun said.
“That is why the pace of added new and existing supply in the months ahead is worth monitoring,” he said. “If inventory conditions can improve enough to cool the swift price growth in several markets, most prospective buyers should be able to absorb the higher borrowing costs.”
Properties typically stayed on the market for 42 days in January, which is up from 40 days in December 2017 but down from a year ago (50 days). Forty-three percent of homes sold in January were on the market for less than a month.
Realtor.com’s Market Hotness Index, which measures time-on-the-market data and listings views per property, revealed that the hottest metro areas in January were San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, California; San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, California; Vallejo-Fairfield, California; Midland, Texas; and Colorado Springs, Colorado.
NAR President Elizabeth Mendenhall, a sixth-generation Realtor from Columbia, Missouri, and CEO of RE/MAX Boone Realty, said Realtors in several markets are reporting that the spring buying season appears to be starting early this year.
“Those planning to buy a home this spring should look into getting preapproved for a mortgage now and start having those serious conversations with their real estate agent on what they’re looking for in a home and where they want to buy,” she said.
“With demand exceeding supply in most areas, competition will only heat up in the months ahead,” she said. “Beginning the home search now could lead to a successful and less stressful buying experience.”
All-cash sales were 22 percent of transactions in January, which is up from 20 percent in December 2017 but down from 23 percent a year ago.
Individual investors, who account for many cash sales, purchased 17 percent of homes in January, up from 16 percent both last month and a year ago.
Distressed sales (foreclosures and short sales) were 5 percent of sales in January, unchanged from December 2017 and down from 7 percent a year ago. Four percent of January sales were foreclosures, and 1 percent were short sales.
SINGLE-FAMILY AND CONDO/CO-OP SALES Single-family home sales declined 3.8 percent to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 4.76 million in January from 4.95 million in December and are now 4.8 percent below the 5.00 million pace a year ago.
The median existing single-family home price was $241,700 in January, up 5.7 percent from January 2017.
Existing condominium and co-op sales rose 1.6 percent to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 620,000 units in January but are still 4.6 percent below a year ago.
The median existing condo price was $231,600 in January, which is 7.1 percent above a year ago.
REGIONAL BREAKDOWN January existing-home sales in the Northeast declined 1.4 percent to an annual rate of 730,000 and are now 7.6 percent below a year ago. The median price in the Northeast was $269,100, which is 6.8 percent above January 2017.
In the Midwest, existing-home sales dipped 6.0 percent to an annual rate of 1.25 million in January and are now 3.8 percent below a year ago. The median price in the Midwest was $188,000, up 8.7 percent from a year ago.
Existing-home sales in the South decreased 1.3 percent to an annual rate of 2.26 million in January and are 1.7 percent lower than a year ago. The median price in the South was $208,200, up 4.3 percent from a year ago.
Existing-home sales in the West fell 5.0 percent to an annual rate of 1.14 million in January and are now 9.5 percent below a year ago. The median price in the West was $362,600, up 8.8 percent from January 2017.