Wiring, plumbing, wet basements are all insurance woes a house may have
By Mark Schadenberg
The
National Post newspaper recently published a story – a checklist
essentially – noting 14 items to be aware of when looking at a home
and how these items could effect your insurance rates.
I
have written on this subject before and it's interesting to note that
banks (Concerns revolve around coverage on high-ratio mortgages by
CMHC) and insurance companies continue to make their guidelines more
strict.
The
list in the link below is quite extensive and most certainly includes
electricity – both knob-and-tube wiring and aluminium. When showing
older homes, I still see a lot of 60-amp service fuse boxes too.
It
seems too obvious to mention, but a wood-burning fireplace makes the
list. As a Realtor, my concerns surround the condition of the flue
and whether of not the current owner has updated WETT certification.
I showed a 50-year-old house a few weeks ago, which had a brick frame
around the fireplace and its mantel, but there was absolutely no
hearth, so the floor, which was hardwood, was less than 3 feet away
from embers.
Oil
heating is a concern due mostly to the age of your oil tank and
whether or not it's outside or in the basement. Your oil supplier
should know the age of the tank. You could say it's like your bbq
propane tank on your back deck, when it's too old to be filled up,
the gas station will not fill it.
Insurance
folks will always worry about a wet basement, so you most certainly
should too. Old galvanized plumbing is always a red flag as it rusts
from the inside (where the water is) to the outside. Other concerns
include cracks in the foundation, type of foundation (stone, block,
poured concrete or wood), presence of a sump pump and a battery
backup for it, and any signs of mold. I have never believed that the
white salty look (efflorescence) on basement walls was anything more
than a sign of mustiness caused by very low amounts of moisture.
Leaky
basements can certainly be fixed from either the inside or the
outside.
Keep
in mind, some very low-lying areas will see water come up from the
basement drains if the storm sewers are over-loaded.
Not
on the National Post list, but likely the newest foe for possible
insurance claims is new technology – Pex (Cross-linked
polyethylene) plumbing. Although the Pex system was invented in the
1960's for mass-market use, it didn't really become popular for the
movement of potable (drinking) water until about a dozen years ago.
Before you call a plumber to replace all your plastic tubes in your
basement joists, it can be added that the Kitec brand seems to be the
trouble maker, and it's no longer manufactured, but could be in a
house constructed up to about 2005.
The
newer current Pex system is most definitely still in common use
today.
It's
interesting to note that many home offers are now conditional upon an
inspection and also conditional upon obtaining insurance on the
subject property. The insurance companies know which homes have had
claims previously.
As
is said in all industries, an educated consumer is the best consumer,
but you can also be overly cautious and that's not going to assist in
your home-buying process.
Have
any questions, call me today! Let's begin the process of finding your
home.
LINKS:
http://www.basementquestions.com/efflorescenc.php
Mark
Schadenberg, Sales
Representative
Senior
Real Estate Specialist (SRES designation)
Royal
LePage Triland Realty
757
Dundas St, Woodstock
www.wesellwoodstock.com
(519)
537-1553, cell or text
Email:
mschadenberg@rogers.com
Twitter:
markroyallepage
Facebook:
Mark Schadenberg, Royal LePage Triland
Discussion
. . . Direction . . . Determination . . . Destination
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ReplyDeleteJoshua Duncan @ Focus Insurance Atlanta