HEALTHY HOUSE

– Author Introduction

Teri Styers is a broker/owner of Rejuvenation Homes. Not only does she assist clients with the purchase and sale of various types of properties, but she has been a “flipper” for decades. In recent years she has also tackled new construction projects, lot splits, and even a subdivision. Her tips for a “healthy house” come from EXPERIENCE not theory.

– Table of Contents

• The Clean Undies Concept
• Poop Pipes and Septics
  – Septics
• Don’t Water Your Foundation – Your House Won’t Grow!
• Lot Splits
• Playing With Fire – FPE Panels

The Clean Undies Concept

When showing properties to clients, or investigating a possible flip option for myself, I try to direct attention to the “undies”. It is easy to get sidetracked by the pretty dresses and cute shoes (new flooring, granite counters, nice paint). Most people won’t put a pretty new dress on over dirty underwear. But people will put a new dress on a house without addressing its dirty underwear situation.

Here are things to look for. I won’t go super in depth; you can use Google for that.

Poop Pipes and Septics

Speaking of clean undies… there is no good time for your sewer pipe to fail. When purchasing a property, it is a good idea to have the pipe “scoped” (a camera fed through it to see what you’ve got – kind of like a colonoscopy for a house). This will determine what kind of pipe(s) is in use and whether there are any cracks or roots impeding the “flow”. This scope should be done during the inspection phase prior to purchasing.

PVC pipe became pretty standard in 1972. It is less likely to corrode; but can still have tree root issues where the sections are joined and can still sag (belly) if the ground underneath has shifted. Prior to 1972 pipes were made of cast iron, or clay, or Orangeburg. All of those are more likely to wear through or crack.

If a camera scope indicates an issue, get a bid for repair or replacement. Then you can negotiate with the property owner on what to do about it. If you are aware that tree roots (which are very opportunistic) are just intruding at the joint lines then maybe you just have the pipes cleaned out every 6 months and live with it. Sometimes a method called “bursting” can be used to replace a pipe without too much digging (Google it). But sometimes there’s nothing that can be done except dig a trench and lay new pipe. In no case is it a good idea to allow raw sewage to be leaking into the soil; and in most municipalities it is illegal.

Septics

Septic systems also have a poop pipe (see above) but instead of the pipe leading to a public sewer system it leads to a tank in the ground. So, in addition to having a camera run through the pipe, you should also have the tank inspected. This involves uncovering the lids.

Older homes may or may not have their septic location registered with the county. Usually, the property owner knows the general location. Also, a camera scope can tell what direction the pipe is running and how far from the house it goes.

Tank size is something you want to know. In new construction, tanks are sized according to the number of bedrooms a house has. The assumption is that more bedrooms equals more people which means you need a bigger tank. If you are considering building an addition or adding an ADU this becomes critical. You may be denied a permit if your tank isn’t suitably sized.

A well-managed septic system is very easy to maintain. The “stuff” that enters the tank naturally layers itself. Solids sink to the bottom and liquids rise to the top. Liquids are “leached” via pipes to nearby area where they are absorbed in the soil. Solids are consumed by bacteria. You may wish to have the solids pumped out every 4-5 years and the tank checked just to make sure everything is working as planned.

Where you run into trouble is when you flush or rinse other stuff into the system. Food from garbage disposals, bleaches from laundry, tampons and wipes, grease, etc. The bacteria can be killed by toxins or simply can’t eat the other items. That stuff just floats around in there clogging the system.

The other problem is too much water at once. You need to pace how much you flood in there on any given day. One or two loads of laundry – not six. A shower or two. One load through the dishwasher. You need to give the bacteria time to do their job and the leach field time to absorb the liquid overflow.

Don’t Water Your Foundation – Your House Won’t Grow

Water is the number one reason (by far) that foundations end up failing. I looked at this old beauty when the owner wanted my “flip” expertise on how to rehab. The house had great bones and he had some great ideas – but the first thing he had to do was get rid of the 2-inch slope in the living room. That’s expensive and spending that money doesn’t add value to the home. People expect their house to be reasonably level.

Many of these old houses had shallow eves and no gutters. Rain water from the roof got dumped on the soil right next to the house and that causes expansion and settling. Even newer homes frequently lack gutters and downspouts – and often downspouts look like the one in the photo – zero use if it just dumps the water next to the house.

What you want to do (or look for) is to make sure any sidewalks, porches or dirt slope away from the house. No planting beds built against the foundation. No sprinkler heads watering the foundation. Put extensions on the downspouts.

Even in dry Colorado water is not your friend!

Lot Splits

Sometimes the highest and best use of a chunk of land is to divide it into smaller chunks. Two or more small chunks are usually more valuable than one big chunk. I’m often suggesting “lot splits” to clients  for various properties. But what is involved with a lot split?

First of all, I recommend that if you are going to split a property that you do not use traditional, long-term financing. It is difficult to impossible to get the mortgage holder to sign off on the paperwork allowing this to happen. They are picky about their collateral. And the Planning Dept will require that you get that signature before they allow you to move forward. Instead, use a local bank or credit union (or private lender or cash). Get temporary financing of 6-12 months. If you are selling the parcels then you’ll pay back the money as they are sold. If you are keeping or building on the parcels then you can get a longer-term mortgage when the construction is over.

How much does it cost? For a simple split of one or two lots probably less than $10,000. Your survey will most likely be the most expensive item.

While you have the property under contract (or before you write the offer) do some due diligence. Visit the planning office and confirm the zoning and whether the property can be divided. Find out what paperwork is needed from them and what the fees will be.

Once you own the property you design the lot layout and hire a surveyor to mark it and create a site plan and survey documents. You need these to submit your application. If you are going to construct too then there is a whole list of other documents – but the planning department will tell you what they want. NOTE: the cities and county are picky about how many driveways (and how close together). Find out ahead of time what they want. You may need to write a “covenant” for each deed stating there is a shared driveway and who maintains it.

When your split is approved then the new plat is recorded. Each parcel is given its own address, and own parcel number. NOTE: when designing your split, you want to be mindful of logical boundaries and make the most of density.

Playing With Fire – FPE Panels

Federal Pacific Electrical panels (FPE) are installed on homes all over the country; especially those built in the 1970s & 1980s. I see them all the time and I have replaced them on a number of my flips. If possible, it is something to look for when previewing a house – before you negotiate a purchase price. Replacing a panel costs somewhere around $1600. In addition to inspectors always flagging them, I have seen insurance companies deny coverage and appraisers require replacement as a condition to lending. If you’d like to learn more, there are plenty of articles and photos online of why and how these “stab-lok” systems have failed. Failures have caused fires. Don’t risk it!