You
have all seen a flower
box in a kitchen window that makes the kitchen come alive with color.
But, what
you may not know is that if the flower box wasn’t store bought, below
there
could be some serious hidden problems.
Recently a client of mine was looking at a home and it had one of these indoor flower boxes that looked custom built for this kitchen window. I have to say it made the kitchen look amazing and really brightened it up. My clients loved the home and wanted to write an offer and even made it subject to the flower box staying.
Now, comes time for the
inspection. The inspector sees the flower box and looks at me and gives
me that
worried look. So, he decided to move the flower box just
oh so slightly, just
enough to see what was going on underneath. Just as the inspector
thought,
there was so much dry rot underneath that maybe even keeping the flower
pot
their with that much weight in it could be a mistake.
You see, they had custom
built this flower box for the kitchen, but what they
forgot to do is put a liner underneath the soil to keep the water from
escaping
the flower box. Now, this clearly had been going on for a
long time. We
estimate the repairs that the seller will now have to pay in order for
it to
close on time could cost upwards of $8,000 because the dry rot ended up
going
the length of the wall under the house as well as the counter where the
flower box
sat.
So, if you are installing
a flower box, please make sure you have a way to stop
the water if something should happen. This could save you thousands in
repairs
and keep the going to the closing table on time.
Todd Clark - Broker / Sales Coach
Palazzo Realty Group
Phone: (503)524-9494
Fax: (503)622-8739
©2009
Todd Clark - That
window box looks beautiful and adds color to the kitchen, but buyers
beware!
Hi Todd~ I have never even thought about a window box being able to cause so much damage because of the moisture! Thanks for pointing out potential problems. Isn't it great that some inspectors are worth their weight in gold?
It's a good thing the inspector knew his job! I never would have thought to look! I hope it was resolved and you and your clients were able to move on quickly Todd.
8K? ouch! What an expensive lesson to learn!
Todd...
Wow, that's a lot of damage. Just how big was that flower box?
It is only after it's too late we find out we made a bad decision and the expense. Thanks for the heads up.
Todd, this is a very good tip to remember. I feel so sorry for the sellers...wow 8K.
Ouch exactly. Thank goodness for the keen inspector! It must have been there for a while for that much damage (or maybe it was over watered?) ~Rita
The law of unintended consequences strikes again. It's in action every where you don't think to look.
Any attachment that holds water and soil that connects to a home has to be prepared and monitored. It doesn't take much to cause major damage.
I was amazed at how much damage it caused, but it got behind the wall and behind the sink and they actually had to take the sink out and replace some frame work that had been damaged.
Good to know. Haven't seen any yet but will definately keep my eye out!