If this isn't where this belongs, please delete!

I bought my first house at the age of 26, I'm now 31. My wife and I bought the house knowing that it was not our forever home, but the perfect starter house. We've owned the home for 5 years and have added two perfect daughters to our family and plan on having more. We've reached the time where we've outgrown the house and want to move on to something bigger and better.

Here's the only issue: A couple of months ago, I started noticing cracks up above the door frames. A few short weeks ago, we noticed that some doors weren't closing properly. I figured it would be a good idea to have an expert foundation company come out and take a look at what we had. It really wasn't the news I was wanting to hear and was like a gut punch. We have pretty significant foundation issues and also what he suspects to be a slab leak or a sewer leak underneath the house. He estimated the foundation repair to be about $13,500. I haven't had a plumber come out and inspect or give me an estimate yet, however.

My question is this, should I sell the house to a cash as-is type of company or pay for the repairs out of pocket and then list the house at full value?

We owe around 97k and the house is worth about 155k. What is the right move??

How old is the house?

Also I'd get more quotes if it truly is a foundation issue.

not sure but you may check with insurance on the slab leak/sewer leak. Part of the repairs may be covered.

Aggie71013 said:

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1) Don't panic. This is a common issue.
2) determine if the issues are caused by a slab or sewage leak.
3) Get an engineer to do an assessment. Foundation companies are in the business of selling you foundation repair. They will likely find issues. Every house has issues.
4) If the independent engineer report says there is substantial enough movement to justify repairs, get multiple quotes.

Vendors for items 3 and 3 can be found if you search this forum.

Also take this to the Home Improvement Forum and they will have even better advice than my own.

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Awesome! Thanks so much!

If the costs end up being manageable, I'd suggest making the repairs before selling. Homes with visible foundation "issues" will come with a stigma for buyers, or if it comes up on a buyer inspection report, you may start to scare away the market. Having a clean bill of health for buyers will psychologically work much better.

I agree with this but assuming it does need repair, your last option would be to sell to a cash type buyer. First option would be fix and list, then don't fix and list, then only if you were in a severe bind the cash buyer.

For the wild card, keep it as a rental. Starter houses are in high demand for both selling and renting. Tenants don't care about slab issues.

gigemtrev said:

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If this isn't where this belongs, please delete!

I bought my first house at the age of 26, I'm now 31. My wife and I bought the house knowing that it was not our forever home, but the perfect starter house. We've owned the home for 5 years and have added two perfect daughters to our family and plan on having more. We've reached the time where we've outgrown the house and want to move on to something bigger and better.

Here's the only issue: A couple of months ago, I started noticing cracks up above the door frames. A few short weeks ago, we noticed that some doors weren't closing properly. I figured it would be a good idea to have an expert foundation company come out and take a look at what we had. It really wasn't the news I was wanting to hear and was like a gut punch. We have pretty significant foundation issues and also what he suspects to be a slab leak or a sewer leak underneath the house. He estimated the foundation repair to be about $13,500. I haven't had a plumber come out and inspect or give me an estimate yet, however.

My question is this, should I sell the house to a cash as-is type of company or pay for the repairs out of pocket and then list the house at full value?

We owe around 97k and the house is worth about 155k. What is the right move??

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Wish y'all the best dealing with this problem. My shooting from the hip advice is that you're better off fixing it, and showing that the problem was a 'straightforward' fix. Bad pipe caused problems, fixed pipe, fixed problem, and future homeowner doesn't have to worry as much about foundation issues. Doesn't sound like y'all built on bad land and will forever deal with this issue.

Putting it on the market with a worsening foundation problem is an unknown liability. Any buyer is going to want to see a huge cut in the price of the home.

Quote:

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3) Get an engineer to do an assessment. Foundation companies are in the business of selling you foundation repair. They will likely find issues. Every house has issues.

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I would do this first. I could be that all you need to do is have a plumber fix the leak, and then have someone repair the sheet rock. Piers may not be needed at all.

I've had multiple foundation repairs and it's a PITA.