So CrazyCatLady and I just returned from our first house-buying excursion down in NC. We found four places we liked, and we’ve finally settled on one of them to pursue first.
This being our first foray into home ownership, we have several questions. I thought I’d post them here, since I guess some of you have done this before.
–Is there anything important that a standard home inspection is going to miss? For instance, we’d like to know if the basement leaks. Would we get that sort of information?
–On the same token, how important is it that we’re present for the home inspection? Our realtor will be there, and we have every reason to trust her.
–We looked the current owners up in the phone book while we were down there. (They were gone, of course, while we were being shown the house.) Is it kosher to just call them up and ask them some questions, or should we direct them all through the realtor?
–(Here’s a big one.) How much should we offer? The house lists for $130,000, and it’s been on the market for quite a while. I think it will go for somewhat less, but I don’t know where to start.
–Any other important bits of advice?
More questions as they arise, I assure you.
Dr. J