Two-family with suspicious basement

[Alessandro M.]

Hi,

I found a nice two family house with 2 stories + basement in my area. The house is lower than the street level on the front and degrades towards the backyard, it is basically on a slope. The house is in really great conditions and also at a good price. All the units are repainted and in a great shape. The basement is unfinished, just repainted and clean.

When we were looking at the basement I noticed a sump pump and a beaver system. Also, I noticed a little rust on the boiler bottom. Finally, the owner had a dehumidifier up and running. There were not signs of water leak or mold smell, but is also true that the walls and the floor had been painted so possible signs would be hidden. When I asked the owner about the sump pump he said that he had installed it because he is very precocious and that he never really needed it. He said that he did not had water in the basement (of course).

These signs made me think that there could be a problem with water in the basement and I am trying to figure out what's the best way to proceed. I should have an inspection done soon and I will look for more signs. I don't know if these signs are enough to give up the deal or not. Maybe a solution could be to propose some kind of escrow to keep some of the house money until the winter passes. But I am not sure if he would accept it. Any advice is welcome.

Thanks.

Alex