What moisture problem am I looking at. Need to adjust my offer.

[Scott Williams]

Hello Everyone at BP. 

I'm looking at a property in VA with moisture issues in the basement. There's a clear musty smell and it's down to the studs, insulation was pulled out too. I thinnk the issue is coming from the walls under 2 windows, but I can't tell is it's water coming through the foundation walls or from the windows.

Based on the two pictures, is the issue obvious to any of you? I can fix lots of things, just haven't dealt with this before. My best guess is water is coming through the foundation wall. Property was built in 1973. The grade is just below the windows.

Thank you all for everything!

[Greg Scott]

Cinder block tends to be leaky.  Poured foundations tend to be more water tight. Hard to tell from the picture but I suspect the dark stains show where the water is coming in.  If that is correct, it is coming through the wall because there is water build up against it on the outside.

We have several subterranean units in our apartment and have seen stuff like this before.  We inherited two down units that filled with water every time it rained.  We had two other units where the residents complained of dampness.  In all four situations the ultimate remedy was to regrade the ground outside to push water away from the wall.