A flooded house is enough to make a homeowner long for simpler times-like when he didn’t own a home.
So, if you’re shopping, you’ll want to make sure the house you’re considering hasn’t flooded in the past and isn’t susceptible to a deluge in the future.
Fortunately, there are a great many telltale signs, both inside and outside the home, that can tip you off to a flood-prone house. Additional warning signals can be uncovered at the appropriate municipal or county offices, most of which make maps of floodplains available to prospective buyers.
Begin your inspection with the home itself, starting in the basement. While the causes of flooding problems generally exist outside the home, say home inspectors, the evidence of past water damage generally is found in the basement.
First, look for rust stains on the floor. That can indicate water’s interaction with items containing iron that may have previously occupied those spots.
Also check drains and the bases of metallic objects such as the water heater and furnace for rust stains.
While examining the concrete floor of a basement, look for signs of efflorescence. “This looks like a sparkly, chalky residue on the floor,” says Vera Wadler, spokeswoman for the American Society of Home Inspectors in Arlington Heights. “It’s caused by water seeping through and leaving minerals behind.”
Bottoms up
Wadler also urges buyers to check the bottom of walls for dark stains in triangular shapes, with the triangle pointing up. “Those stains are left behind when water wicks up off the floor,” she says.
Also look for a stain that leaves a level mark around the basement walls, says home inspector Tom Corbett, president of Tomacor Inc., a Chicago home inspection company. This, he says, can be a sign of sewage or seepage in the basement.
“Of course, people can hide these lines easily, through new baseboard, new paneling or paint,” he adds.
“Actually, anything new in a basement makes me a little suspicious. So I advise people to look for the same kind of level line inside the furnace or boiler housing. That indicates that water has sat there. And if it’s six inches inside the furnace, that means that there’s been six inches of water all through the basement.”
Another tip is to examine wooden posts and stairs. Deteriorated or crumbling posts-or new posts-can be an indicator of serious water damage. And the underside of stairs can also show signs of prior flooding. “People will paint the stairs, but often neglect to paint the underside of the stairs, where the water stains will still be visible,” explains Brent Harless, owner of Broyce Home Inspection of north suburban Hawthorn Woods.
Before leaving the basement, don’t fail to take note of obvious warning signs. Look for irregular-patterned, greenish-gray or black mildew stains on the walls and floor. Check under the windows for water staining. If the home is occupied, note whether boxes or other items are stacked off the floor-a sign, says Wadler, that the owners may have faced a flooding problem more than once.
Finally, use your nose. While most basements take a little water from time to time, a very musty odor can send a strong signal that further investigation is warranted.
Next, step outside to inspect the home’s foundation and yard. “Walk around the entire outside of the house and look for cracks in the foundation,” says Corbett. “Cracks can provide easy access for water to come into a basement.”
Both Corbett and Harless also advise buyers to scrutinize the landscaping nearest the house, paying special attention to the grading of the yard or patio within three to four feet of the foundation.
Checking the pitch
“Whether the land pitches away from or toward the house can be a key,” says Corbett. “If the landscaping pitches in, the water runoff may overload your sewer system. You want to make sure you’re not in the middle of a soupdish.”
Another good idea while outside the house is to look for improperly functioning gutters and downspouts, according to Wadler. “The whole purpose of this system is to deposit the water as far away from the home as possible, using, for example, elbows on the bottom of the downspouts,” she says. “A gutter and downspout system that isn’t working properly can leave water too close to the house.”
Of critical importance is the level of the driveway in relation to the basement windows. “This is one of the most common things you see in homes that have flooding problems,” says Corbett. “If the driveway is above the level of the basement window-and that’s not unusual-the water will run off the driveway into the home.”
Now step further away from the house and note its location on the street. “If the house is toward the bottom of a slope, and there’s a catch basin near the home in the street or back yard, that can be a sign that a home is more prone to flooding,” says Harless.
Corbett even suggests coming back to a home after visting it with a real estate agent. “As you’re coming back, check the elevation of the area,” he says. “Starting at about a mile away, note whether you’re traveling uphill or downhill toward the house.
“And when you get to the neighborhood, talk to the neighbors. Ask them if they’ve suffered flooding in their homes, and if they’re aware of any flood damage to the home you’re interested in buying.”
Real estate agents can also help buyers identify potential flooding problems, according to Tony Saviano, real estate broker for Re/Max Central in Roselle. “When we go through a house with the buyer, we do a visual inspection,” he says. “If we notice mustiness, water stains or other signs of water in the home, we have an obligation to make the buyer aware that there might be a problem.”
The same obligation applies with a seller, he adds. “We also do a visual inspection when working with a seller. If we see signs of problems, we directly question the seller. If it turns out there has been flooding in the past, the law says the real estate agent and the seller must disclose to the prospective buyer.”
Check the history
A call to the engineering department of the town’s village hall is another way to determine if the home might be flood-prone. These departments have flood insurance rate maps drawn up by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), which show where floodplains are located.
“The maps are based on historical data on the frequency of rain events,” explains John Wielebnicki, director of public works for the City of Elmhurst. “Using those maps, our office-and most municipalities-would be able to identify if the home in question is in a floodplain. People buying homes within floodplains are required by lenders to take out flood insurance.”
But Wielebnicki cautioned that the maps are simply a guide, not an absolute guarantee of an area’s susceptibility to flooding.
“For example, development upstream and downstream since the map was produced will affect floodplains,” he says.
“Also, there are different kinds of flooding, and not all kinds would be shown by a rate map. Overbank flooding from streams, creeks and rivers would be identified on flood insurance rate maps. But flash flooding probably wouldn’t be shown. Nor would sewer backups.”
Chicago attorney Ken Bellah, whose practice is heavily involved in real estate, is another who warns that the maps are not infallible. “I’ve run into a lot of homes outside of floodplains that flood, and homes in floodplains that have never had a drop of water,” he says.
“Even though the house may never flood, the homeowner still has to pay the flood insurance. That’s an average of $200 to $300 a year, and that may be enough to get many people to pull out.”
Another resource for the flood-wary prospective homeowner is county government offices. Du Page County’s Department of Environmental Concerns in Wheaton, for example, can advise callers as to whether a specific area or subdivision is in or near a floodplain, and if there are any projects underway to alleviate the problem, according to the office of chief engineer Jeff Dailey. The office can be reached at 708-682-7130.
However, if information is needed on a specific parcel of land, those interested in the parcel are required to come to the office. “The office is open to the public, and people can come in with the permanent parcel number, or they can pull out the plat book and find out the number,” says Dailey.
“We have maps, directions and people to help them find out if a particular parcel is in or near a floodplain.”
And if all these methods still leave you worried about flood problems, go right to the source.
“Ask the seller specifically if there have been flood problems with the house in the past,” advises attorney Bellah. “And get the sellers to put into writing that they have never had flood problems. If you wind up in court, it makes proving a lie a lot easier.”
