In article , Joseph Meehan says...

Tom wrote:
Hi Experts,

I need an your expert advise urgently. We are looking at purchasing a
house. We had house inspection done. There was water in the
crawlspace. The URL to the pictures is:

http://www.geocities.com/tttwilson/

The first picture shows the backyard
The second one shows previous repairs and dried mud on the plastic
The third picture shows standing water.

The house inspector says that due to the improper backyard slope/grade
of the house and lot of rains in the last couple of weeks, the water
has gotten into the crawlspace. He says that to rectify this problem,
a french drain needs to be put in to the backyard that runs all the
way to the street. He also suggested soding (puting grass) into the
backyard to prevent the water from going in. The estimate on repairs
is about $3500.

The owner of the house says that the house is still under builders
warranty because it is less than 1 year old. Owner said that he was
not aware of any previous repairs. He says that he and builder have
looked at this and think that it is mainly due to water condensating
from the airconditioning unit. He says that the builder will put a
sump pump in the crawlspace. But they (owner and builder) will not pay
for sodding and french drain. The owner says that he already has
someone who is willing to pay more than I am paying and that the new
prospective buyer has looked at this and does not think that this is a
problem.

The inspector says that he is pretty sure that most of the water is
due to rain water getting in and that sodding and french drain will
take care of it.

BUT what I need to know is clear and experienced opinions/suggestions:

Shall I just stay away from this house?

Or do you all think that if I get the house, $3500 will take care of
this problem once and for all? Would anyone buy a house if it has sump
pump in the crawlspace?

Thanks,

Tom

Remember that the seller and builder are not on your side, the inspector
is. If you think that the house is worth what is being asked plus $3,500
then go for it.

The story given to you by the seller sounds all wet to me (water
condensing from the A/C indeed!) . I would tend to go along with your
inspector. He may not be right, but at least he is on your side. Generally
when you have a drainage problem, you fix the problem. The drains to the
street sounds like a fix.


More than that, I would walk away because I would wonder what *other* problems
there are that the seller and builder aren't on the up and up about. Or just
clueless about.

Tom - is there something about this house that you really, really like so much?
Drainage problems are a pain.

Banty