7 Houses You Should Never Buy in Washington DC and One You Should!

Описание: What are 7 DC Area houses you should never buy? And what should you buy instead? I currently own a lot of homes. Between my personal experience and what I see every day showing homes to clients and doing home inspections, I’ve got a list to share. I have tips for how to mitigate the problems. Finally, I’m going to let you in on a secret: One gem of a home that if you find it, you should absolutely buy it. It’s totally contradictory from a lot of advice you may hear.

Don't Buy a House with an Insurance Loss
Homeowner’s Insurance is a huge deal right now. Have you happened to notice this crazy weather we’ve had in the past decade? Well so has your insurer. Insurance companies have been paying out unbelievable claims for damage from all the various natural disasters we have experienced. Couple that with rampant insurance fraud and the problem is catastrophic. If a loss was ever paid on a home, most insurers won’t touch it. There are homes which may be in perfect condition, maybe even rebuilt after damage like a fire or flood, and still - they won’t be insurable.

Hot Tip: How do you know if a house had a claim paid? Much like a credit report, the insurance industry has the CLUE Report. This report can be pulled to find out what claims have been paid out on a home to any previous owner at any point in time.

Flips
There are good flippers. They are the ones who will take a house “down to the studs” and re-do everything to include all plumbing and electrical systems. I’ve been in so many flips in DC that when I find a house that’s flipped poorly, it screams it loudly. Flippers put lipstick on a pig, stage it elegantly and hope you don’t notice. I'll tell you how to spot a bad flip!

1980’s Construction
Most everything that was built in the 80's was thrown up quickly so they could keep moving and make money on the next project.

Remember Surfside – the Champlain Towers Collapse in Miami? 1981. That’s all you need to know. Your hot tip on this issue is this - There’s almost no way around it. Early to mid 1980’s construction should mostly be avoided.

A Rundown Rental House
If you find a great house that was a rental and you want to buy it – great! But get all the home inspections possible and be prepared to negotiate hard for the major systems and big ticket items.

Houses with Deferred Maintenance, Wet Basements and a Poorly Graded Yard are the remaining homes.

What’s the good news? And what should you not listen to other real estate advisors about? Old houses are amazing. The structure and the “bones” as they say have stood the test of time. Yes it can be very sexy to buy a new home, but the charm and solid construction, use of real hardwood floors and brick, radiator heat – I wouldn’t trade it for anything.

Finally, I promised to tell you the one home type you should buy as soon as you walk into it? It’s the home people always call the “grandma home.” The curtains, carpet, and furniture with plastic covers on it are usually the giveaway. There’s been no renovations since it was built in the 50’s or 60’s. This is the house you want. It’s solid, built well and hasn’t been destroyed by a parade of various owners with bad renovations over the years.

=====

I do these videos for you every week breaking down life in the DC area, covering everything from Living in Maryland, Living in Washington DC and Living in Northern Virginia. As someone who's spent over 20 years living in Washington DC, I share authentic insights about the best places to live in Washington DC and surrounding areas. Whether you're moving to Maryland or Virginia and exploring other parts of the DMV, I dive deep into what makes each area unique - no AI, just real local expertise!
=====
I work with clients from all over the world who are relocating here. Email, call or text anytime, I'm happy to help!

Watch more videos 👇👇👇
Virginia Neighborhoods
   • VIRGINIA | Neighborhood Tour  

Maryland Neighborhoods
   • MARYLAND | Neighborhood Tour  

DC Neighborhoods
   • WASHINGTON DC | Neighborhood Tour  

DMV Schools
   • SCHOOLS: DC, Maryland & Virginia  

Subscribe to my channel here:
✅    / @dcrealestatemama  

If you have any questions about this video, leave a comment! If you have questions about real estate in DC, Maryland or Virginia, my contact info is below.

=====
Melissa Terzis
📲 (202) 253-9105
📩 [email protected]
🌐 https://www.dcrealestatemama.com/
TTR | Sotheby's International Realty
1206 30th St NW
Washington, DC 20007
Office: (202) 234.3344

Melissa Terzis | DC Real Estate Mama