During the spring and summer months you have a 55 to 56% likelihood that your home will sale within 6 months and the average number of days that your house will be on the market is 32 days. Those are excellent statistics if you are putting your home on the market during those months, but remember that having a home that is well kept and with minimal issues is an advantage you have over your competitor down the street.
For more on maintaining your home and basement waterproofing follow the links below for more information.
How to Waterproof Your Basement
Most homes are sitting on a treasure trove of useful space: the basement. However, many basements in older homes are damp or leaky, and make unsuitable choices for a new rec room or bedroom. Before you can start any basement remodeling project, you have to keep the water out.
1. Evaluate the perimeter of your house. You must ensure that the ground next to your foundation slopes away from the foundation, not towards it. Backfilled dirt around the foundation will typically settle lower than the surrounding dirt causing the ground to sink in and slope towards your house. If necessary, add dirt up against the foundation to create at least a 2″ per foot (that is, a drop of 2″ for each foot you move away) slope against the foundation. Make sure that the top of the dirt is at least six inches below the sill plate so that there is no ground contact which may cause certain building materials to rot in the future.
2. on the ground right next to your foundation, you’ll have problems. Make sure your gutters are clean, and make sure your downspouts are discharging their water at least 5 feet away from your foundation.
In this video, This Old House general contractor Tom Silva explains how to seal cracks in your foundation and other basement flooding problems.
Steps:
1. Fill cracks and holes in concrete walls and floors with hydraulic cement.
2. Apply a coat of waterproof masonry cement to inside surface of basement walls.
3. Attach flexible extensions to ends of downspouts to carry water away from foundation.
4. Dig trench directly below downspout for 4-inch-diameter PVC pipe.
5. Connect downspout to PVC pipe.
6. Install a drywell at opposite end of pipe to catch and disperse rainwater.
The Realities of Real Estate: The importance of maintaining your home
There are many benefits associated with home ownership. But along with those benefits, we also assume a whole host of responsibilities. In addition to making sure the mortgage and real estate taxes are paid, it’s necessary to keep everything ship-shape, or sooner than you think, the maintenance associated with a home can begin to spiral out of control.
When the real estate bubble burst, a lot of property fell into foreclosure, and as the banks processed an avalanche of foreclosures, many homes were left vacant for extended periods. Consequently, there are many examples out there of what happens to a house if no one is around to care for it. One need only visit certain parts of Detroit to see how quickly the ravages of Mother Nature can invade and overwhelm even the best-built structure. A nice property can be turned into a pile of junk in less than a year when left unattended.
Beyond the problems associated with a vacant house, owner occupied homes can also suffer from the consequences of deferred maintenance. We see it all the time when buying or selling property. What was once a little problem can evolve into a big issue and ultimately have a significant impact on what a home is worth.
