Why Should You Fix Your Foundation?

Why Should You Fix Your Foundation?

You’re at the crossroads of making a decision as to whether to fix your foundation now or if you should wait a year in hopes it’ll just go away or not get any worse. There really isn’t any good news when dealing with a foundation problem but there are some things to consider when weighing the decision of now vs. later:

• The problem will get worse. A foundation problem never gets better on its own – only worse- and as it does, it’s going to cost more to fix.
• Resale value. Who wants to buy a house with a foundation problem? Nobody.
• Appearance. Foundation problems often cause ugly cracks not only in the foundation itself, but inside the home as well.
• Door and window operation. As your foundation fails to hold the house where it should be, your house bends and twists – this causes doors and windows to stick and jam, giving you fits.
• Use of space. Sometimes you can lose use of space because of foundation failure, and that’s nto what you paid for when you bought the home
• Safety. It’s unusual, but foundation collapsing, chunks of brick veneer falling off the house, and other serious safety hazards can and have happened.
• Critters like cracks. Insects and even rodents can get into your home through cracks in your foundation, becoming uninvited house guests.

You’re going to pay for it whether you fix it or not.

Consider this: We are all going to sell our homes one day. And when we do, the buyer will hire a home inspector, something few people did 40 years ago, but now everyone does. In addition, when we list our home for sale, there is a disclosure form that sellers must fill out, explaining any defects with the house. You swear and sign to it, and the buyer gets a copy.

So it’s simply unavoidable that the buyer is going to know about the foundation problem in your home. Will they say “Aww shucks, don’t worry about that. We’ll take the problem off your hands and deal with it ourselves!” Not likely. In fact, they will probably walk away, and go look at the hundreds of other homes for sale out there.

If they do still want your home, they will either make you fix the foundation before they buy it, or they will take the price of the repair off the price of the house. There is no escape.

So whether you get your foundation fixed now and enjoy the peace of mind for you and your family while you live there, or you don’t, you are still going to pay for it – and maybe more later as the problem gets worse.

I don’t know about you, but if I am going to pay for something whether I get it or not, I’m getting it now. Make sense?