14 Signs Your House is Failing

Is it time for an upgrade? Maybe a home renovation? Maybe you need to downsize or even move up and find a bigger place. Whatever the reason, if your house is starting to fail, it may be time to either sell as is, or put a little bit of work into it. Here are 20 signs your house is failing you.

Damaged flashings and roof vents. Plumbing vents, flashings, and boots can be either plastic or metal and they do start to crack and rest over time. Make sure you check these flashings to verify any potential week as arts.

Ceiling stains. If water is starting to leak through to another level, you may have some serious flooding or leak issues happening. Tracking down the leak can be very difficult but once you have found it, you can save yourself a lot of work and very expensive repairs.

Damage shingles. Composite roofs will start to deteriorate over time. Replacing those shingles will save yourself a lot of money over an entire roof repair and it will save the inside because you are protecting the home from leaks.

Mold or mildew where the roof and exterior walls meet. Roof runoff can run down the wall and could get in the wall causing mountains of leak, mold and mildew problems. Check that the seams in good working order will prevent any leaks and further damage.

Rusty gutters. Most leaks from gutters start at rusty spots or the seams that have opened up. Cover the damaged area with roof and gutter repair tape and it will solve a lot of these problems.

Mold on exterior walls. If mold is growing on an exterior wall it’s usually a sign of a leak. Check for ground sloping toward the house and narrow down the spot where the leak is before does any more damage.

A bulge in your washing machine hose. This is extremely dangerous because it means the hose is about ready to burst. This could be an extremely expensive maintenance problem should you let it go until it ruptures.

Faulty bathroom fans. Stains and condensation can form around the duct and cause major issues later on. Nip this in the bud early to prevent any future damage.

Efflorescence on the chimney brick. This means there’s too much moisture in the chimney. This white, powdery material that appears on the outside of the brick can be a sign that moisture is moving to the masonry. When that moisture freezes, it could severely damage the chimney.

Out-of-control water meter. If your water meter never stop spinning, you’ve got a leak. Find this issue now to save yourself a lot of money.

Clogged dryer vent. A clogged dryer vent full of lint is a fire trap waiting to happen. Clean this out frequently or replace the hose.

Cracked chimney liner. This can be difficult to find but if you look up in your chimney and you see it cracked, it needs to be repaired before it causes major issues to the structure of the house.

Deck joists hang into stucco. If your deck joists are barely holding on by a thread, this is an accident waiting to happen. It’s time to correctly attach a deck to the house.

Kinked refrigerant line. If you have a huge kink in your air conditioning refrigerant line, this will be a big problem eventually. The line will need to be sealed with putty and correctly aligned.

Any of these issues cause for alarm? It may be time to sell as-is or do some upgrades. Have questions? Give me a call! Want to know what your house would sell for in it’s current condition? I can give you some numbers.