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Our current focus is on houses without foundation problems simply because we don't have a comfort level in dealing with foundation issues - *yet*. We will freely admit that our trepidation toward buying houses with existing foundation issues is grounded more in irrational fear than in rationality. Having said that, we want to ease into investing in houses with foundation issues because they present an opportunity to buy the house very cheaply, thus giving us an edge over most owner occupant buyers and probably even most investors.
Over at Equity Scout they have a good discourse on foundation issues and investing.
Not all foundation problems are created equal
I agree with him that foundation issues can present opportunities to buy low if you have experience and a comfort level to deal with them. In our area, the vast majority of homes built from the mid to late 1960's on are concrete slabs. In the late 1980's the building code was changed so that when the slabs were poured they had post-tension cables embedded within them. These cables help hold the foundation together a little better, but it does not prevent all problems.
Right now, our parameters for what we look for do not include houses with foundation issues. In the future though we would like to start, but as Chris illustrates, a structural engineer would need to take a look at it. Our first foundation issue to deal with will ideally be a house with one corner of a bedroom settling a little... an area of the slab where there are no pipes running to have to deal with slab leaks. Once the issue is solved our comfort level will hopefully go up. Key to all of this will be a good foundation contractor on our team that works with investors and is recommended by investors. These foundation companies that advertise on the radio don't interest me - way too much markup.
It may work out that we never buy a house with foundation issues, and that's OK with me as there are plenty of deals out there with no issues. But how nice would it be to gain that extra edge?
Of course, once you have a house you want to maintain the foundation. The primary means of keeping a foundation sound is to keep a steady supply of water applied especially during the hot/dry months of July/August/September in our area. The preferred method to do so is with soaker hoses strung around the perimeter of the house at about 18 inches away from the slab and buried a few inches below the ground. Here is a good diagram on how to build an automated soaker hose system:
Do-It-Yourself Foundation Watering SystemThe next preferred method is to have an automatic sprinkler system installed, so you can set it and forget it. A rain/freeze sensor will help so you don't have to remember to turn the system off during nights when it gets below freezing.
This article is open for comments, we would like to hear from you landlords on how you handle maintaining your foundations on your long-term rentals and how your tenants respond to it.
1 comments:
I like the sprinkler timer idea. Having a supply of water helps maintain the foundation and a sprinkler system is a great way to do that. I have seen many sprinklers on an automatic timer so that seems like the way to go.
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