What brings this topic up is we are looking at a potential snowfall amount of 10" of snow tomorrow. My driveway is at 30 degree incline.
I did see this pitfall before buying the house, I like to think I’m not a complete moron… others on this message board may disagree.
I did overlook that my neighbors yard has a freaking huge oak tree and all of their leaves migrate to my yard, also my house seems to be a vortex of some kind, I get everyone else’s leaves in the subdivision.
We have a few - the only way into the back yard, for example, is through the front door (100 year old terraced houses). We have a “two way” street that is two way in the sense of one person pulling over to let another pass, so on garbage collection day, I have to time it so that I get out before the garbos turn up or I have to wait for them to pass. The house itself is old, and unrenovated at the time I bought it, so we did some reno and some reno is waiting for a few years, so I knew for example that the bathroom and kitchen would best be described as “functional” for quite some time. I know that I will have to replace the skylight in the next few years, too, and that the balcony will need some serious work in the next five years or so. These are all things that I knew and that I figured into my offer or decided I could live with.
Things I saw but didn’t know or didn’t figure would be a problem - the privet in the backyard - who the hell knew the roots were so deep and that they aren’t trees, they are weeds? That’s been a heap of work. Also didn’t figure on having to replace the bathroom floor immediately, but we did have to do that. Or replace the stove and the toilet, but we had to do that, too.
All in all, I still got a good deal and the value of my house won’t decline due to the area we live in, so I suck it up and sigh a lot. Still have no idea how we are going to redo the back yard, the last time it was done (so far as I can tell) would have been in the 70s and since we can’t get much in or out it’s going to be a years long adventure. Right now I have some pavers, lots of dirt where we pulled out years of growth and junk that had accumulated, and we’re doing little bits at a time.
Cheers,
G
The backyard is way too shaded. We can’t get grass to grow except in hideous-looking patches. Hopefully we can get this fixed before we try to sell.
The drain in the basement is not at the lowest point of the basement, which is just silly.
We knew our house was on a relatively busy street (two lanes of traffic, pretty constant), but it seemed relatively quiet on the inside so we figured it wouldn’t be a problem.
Turns out it is a problem… in the backyard. We’re hoping a higher fence with less gaps will help muffle some of the noise, but it’s hardly a relaxing oasis of peace back there at the moment.
Inspection also confirmed that the roof was in bad shape and would need to be replaced ASAP (I’ll probably still feel nauseous when I see the estimate from the roofer, but at least it won’t be a total surprise).
Then again, no one warned us that the drainpipe was clogged full of tree roots and would soon be spitting up raw sewage into the laundry room, or that the brand-new furnace would break down during a -17C cold spell and require a new part that would take five days to arrive because the manufacturer doesn’t ship on weekends.
Home ownership is a series of surprises. 
I knew the windows were original (1928) and that this would drive up the price of heating and air.
On the other hand, I thought the street noise would be an issue, and it isn’t. I think it’s because of the plaster walls - they’re quite soundproof.
I knew that there was a lot of deferred maintenance on the house that would need to be done and that I would need to replace the roof relatively soon. I also knew that I would need to install shoe trim everywhere.
I didn’t know that we would need to install a new roof the first week that we lived there, or that there were sections where they had put rubber over the original tin roof!
I didn’t know that the street we live on is so noisy in the mornings and that I’ll probably need new windows in the front to compensate.
We’ve tended to be one of the “pioneers” in a new area, buying one of the first homes in a development. So while there’s nothing about our specific house that was a drawback, there were some issues that do associate with this scenario. At first there’s usually a dearth of infrastructure. The roads are still being built so sometimes your point to point navigation can be a tad circuitous. Restaurants and grocery stores usually have yet to arrive and there’s the ubiquitous sound of new construction. The one really nice perk to all this, the lack of traffic and congestion, usually disappears pretty quickly as everything’s built out. That’s what we’re seeing now; trees (we’re in a forest) getting knocked down for roads and homes, long backups on two-lanes at stop signs, having to leave earlier for work and dinner reservations, etc. You know… progress.
I knew we were on a busy road.
I knew we were not in a development so my kids would not have neighborhood kids to hangout with like I did as a kid.
I knew the drive way was gravel, but it was large. (I paved it.)
I knew the windows were old but working. (I now have new, much more efficient windows.)
I knew the closets were small and they remain the main thing wrong with our house. My wife would love a large walk-in closet.
I knew the basement had seepage and too little power and lighting.
I have greatly reduced the leakage by inexpensive means and I ran lighting and outlets to where I needed them. I also changed out all the bulbs to much brighter fluorescents.
I did not know the wood stove’s pipe leaked, but that was an easy fix. About an hour on the roof.
I did not realize how much heat I was wasting into the basement. The basement was actually warm in the winter. I insulated every hot water pipe and especially the hot water baseboard pipes. Now the basement is actually cool like it should be.
The CTA train ran over the alley behind our house, about level with the top of our garage. I used to joke about trying to get the trains to stop there so I could get off. The master bedroom was in the front of the house on the second floor, and we were concerned about the noise level inside the house, particularly because my wife suffered from occasional migraines. So one time when we were checking out the house she stayed in the bedroom until a train came by and verified that with the windows closed it was quiet enough.
We bought a 200yr old fixer-upper. We were well aware of a list of “drawbacks” that is too long to bother with here, but paid a price in accordance with its condition.
What I hadn’t really thought about until the first snow was the driveway.
Our last one went down.
This one goes up. Way up. A couple of times this winter my car has failed to make it. (but our other 4WD vehicle did)
The upshot? The driveway made for great sledding last weekend!
Things I knew about:
[ul]
[li]Ugly ass carpet[/li][li]Dull white paint everywhere[/li][li]Old ass windows and assorted other ancient parts.[/li][li]Proximity to seriously ghetto apartment complexes & associated crime[/li][li]Need to do a little work on house once I moved in.[/li][li]Neighbors are old geezers.[/li][/ul]
Things I didn’t know about:
[ul]
[li]Prior owners were totally incompetent DIYers[/li][li]Pretty much everything they did was high quality parts installed shittily.[/li][li]Nor could they paint for shit either- on closer inspection, brush marks and runs were EVERYWHERE.[/li][li]The retards put texture OVER wood paneling instead of removing it.[/li][li]The neighbors all hire lawn-care services, so I’m usually the one with the overgrown lawn[/li][/ul]
I’m in an area on the edge of gentrification. If the economy totally tanks, there’s a possibility the neighborhood could revert to what it was ten years ago when crime was a much bigger problem. I don’t think that’s going to happen but it could. (I did save the bars that used to be on the windows, worst comes to worst, I could put them back up.)
I’m also just down the street from a parks department facility that has concerts and events weekend evening in the summer. So I get people parking along the street and Tejano music. But the events are almost always over by 11pm and I’m never asleep before then so it doesn’t bother me (I actually think it’s really cool).
I knew my house was shitty. It was the cheapest in the neighborhood and that’s why I bought it - I liked the neighborhood. So far (knock on wood) the furnace, windows, water heater and roof have all worked as promised. I can rest assured that all of the “mechanicals” will continue to work while I save up enough money to fix all the “stupids” of this place.
I also knew when I bought it that I would be living right next door to a high school, meaning that trying to leave at 3PM was not going to happen. Having grown up in the neighborhood, I didn’t mind.
One thing I fooled myself on was the idea that I could live without central air. I thought since I grew up without it, it’d be no problem here. I was quite wrong, though, because when I was a kid I spent half my time outside or at the community pool. When you work at home and don’t have central air, you’re just making yourself miserable.
We bought a home which shares a wall with another home - this is called “semi-detached”, I believe. It’s one of those twofer homes on corners in housing developments which have much nicer houses surrounding them. These are built on purpose to be sold as “below market rate” homes, which is to sell them very cheaply to needy people who would otherwise not be able to purchase housing, and it satisfies requirements for affordable and integrated housing within upscale communities.
There are six “BMR”-style homes in our HOA, but the area only required five. So ours, although attached to another home, is the sixth and it was sold at full price to us. We knew our neighbors would be BMR folks, but when we moved in, the neighbor was a nice lady with a little boy. She moved out after a couple of years and then our current neighbors from hell moved in. We live 14" away from five noisy adults and some hell-children, and the whole lot of them are actively disliked by the entire neighborhood. We knew this was a possibility when we bought our home, but the initial neighbor seemed like she would stay forever. We gambled and we lost.
We knew, after living in a rented house where the garage flooded (for an inch or two) every spring thaw, that buying a house with a drivway sloping down to a lower level basement was going to be a problem, and had sworn that we wouldn’t do it. We did anyway, as the rest of the house was what we wanted. In fact, the only problem we’ve ever had with the driveway is that the snowbank buildup combined with the chest high retaining walls mean that, by mid-winter, the snowblower can no longer loft the snow high enough to clear the top at the garage end (and it’s a tough job for shovelling by hand, too). I just aim the chute further up the drive and re-blow the snow where the banks are lower, so no big deal.
House passed inspection - then Heating/AC went out as it was pumping dangerous amoutns of Carbon Monoxide into the house. Then I find out the previous owners re-roofed it illegally without a permit and now I can’t get the city to sign off on the AC unit install as there is no access on the tile roof - I may have to partially reroof a newly roofed house
I am already threatening lawyers on teh realtor, previous owners, roof inspecter etc
We didn’t realize that our sewer lines (in the entire neighborhood) had problems with Poplar roots. However, the city comes in every year and clears the pipes for free. Minor hassle for us, but it’s working out.
The previous owners installed the downstairs shower WAY too high, so now that we’re renovating and putting in a new shower, unless we want to re-pipe and break through the concrete, the shower will be cramped for a tall person.
P.S. In almost all major cities (in Canada, but I would think also in the US) and larger towns you can go get sand and gravel for free from the neighborhood fire hall. Just give them a call and ask if they, or a nearby hall, have it.
1.3 acre lot, all flat, all grass. I’m managing so far though. I just wish I had some woods now. I have a couple dozen trees, but no woods. I could plant trees and wait 15 years or so. 
I knew the heat pump was 15 years old or so, a big old double unit. But it’s still chugging along.
I really like my house – a ranch set on end to the street. We have a full basement (a rarity here at the Jersey Shore) and half of it is finished with a family room and a computer room. I’ve replaced the roof (including 90% of the sheathing), rewired to code, and replaced furnace. We’ll upgrade the hotwater heater in a year or two.
If I had to bitch about one thing I knew about before buying the old girl, it’d be the single-car-width driveway.
Doin’ the “switch-the-cars-around-'cause-I-now-have-to-leave-first-in-the-morning” dance 2 or 3 times a week can really suck. Sucking too, is the fact that MrsChief considers this chore to be “man’s work.”
Do you have room to park one of the driveway?
My parents had the single driveway situation when we moved down here in 1970. Original, my father’s solution was to add a parking spot in the lawn with 4"x8" paving stones in two strips that were two wide. This worked very well until much later he had the driveway expanded.
He too was stuck with the switch the car was man’s work, at least until my brother or I were old enough to get stuck doing it. We had up to 4 cars at a time in the driveway. It was not easy.
Jim