​A home needs constant maintenance in order to avoid large costs later on.  One area a home can see damage is with wood.  Wood decay or wood rot as its also referred to is a form of fungus that destroys wood.  This shouldn’t be confused with termite or carpenter ant damage though.  Wood rot fungus thrives in warm, damp environments although its pretty hardy and can survive more extremes.
 
Wood rot needs three things in order to survive, oxygen, moisture and a food source.  There are numerous places throughout a home where circumstances could be ideal.  Let’s consider some of those areas which would be vulnerable to wood decay.
 
Any wood which comes directly in contact with masonry, soil or concrete
Cracks in foundations
Roof penetrations which have improper or damaged flashing
If there is inadequate grading on a property water cannot drain away from the foundation which will create pooling around a foundation
Decking at ground floor level or deck support posts.
Sub flooring which surrounds toilets and tubs
Areas surrounding corroded plumbing fixtures
Plumbing leaks
If incorrectly installed, you could see wood rot beneath sliding glass doors and windows.
 

​When it comes to homebuying we all want to make the right and sensible choice, after all, it is a huge investment.  If you are currently looking for a new home, especially if you are a first-time buyer, you will, no doubt, be looking at all your purchase options.  One option that many turn to is purchasing bank owned or foreclosure property.  While this might work out to be a sensible option, there are some things you need to do to ensure this is the case. 
 
Looking around a bank owned property will give you a sampling of its condition, but it would be very hard to find out everything that is wrong with the property simply by walking through it.  The best way to find this out is by having a thorough home inspection performed.  Your realtor may try to dissuade you from doing this by reasoning that because the property is acquired “as is” that there is no point spending the money on an inspection, but is this really the case? Isn’t it best to find out what your in for in the way of repair work before you buy the property?  In that way you can determine for yourself whether or not your budget would allow for whatever’s needed.
 
Its also good to think about the nature of bank owned properties.  The homeowner has been unable to pay the mortgage.  If there was no money for that, how much money do you think has been spent on the maintenance of the home?  You could also find that the property has been left full of junk and rubbish or has even been vandalized and stripped of anything valuable.
 
So, as we can see, although a bank owned property can prove to be a very good deal, every step should be taken to make sure it is a sensible and wise choice and that you go into the purchase with additional knowledge about the condition of the home.  For assistance with your home inspection, please feel free to contact us.