Stucco Problems In Houston

[Mitchell Petras]

I've been house hunting in Houston for a while now, and I finally found what I think might be my house-hacking dream home. The home was built in 2007, never flooded, currently priced well under market value, and after hearing a previous buyer fell through, my realtor and I asked around and turns out this home has some stucco issues. My question is this: How much of a deal-breaker should this be? 

Is there a cost/sqft range with which I could estimate repair costs and would repairs now be a permanent solution so long as I upkeep the stucco better than the previous owner?

The asking price is about 80k under what we've seen comps going for in the area, and so long as repair costs are reasonably under this it would seem like a no-brainer to make an offer, do the repairs, and refinance soon after to get back the repair costs and then some. If anyone has any experience with stucco repairs I'd like to hear how much of a headache it was.

Unfortunately we don't know the extent of the issue just yet, but I'd estimate there's approximately 1500-2000sqft of stucco exterior, so give me a worst case scenario.

Thanks so much!

[Scott Mac]

What are "some stucco issues"?

Brick with a standing seam metal roof is good in Texas (it withstands the hail and high winds pretty well and is low maintenance. it's also expensive.

Hardy Board type siding and hurricane rated shingles (properly installed shingles) works decently also. Although the hardy board type siding needs to be re-sealed where it butts together from time to time and repainted from time to time.

Everything else seems to have more maintenance issues.

For instance vinyl siding tends to get holes in it from the hail allowing water behind the siding.

 It's probably best to get a few local repair estimates from workmen who do this for a living.

Make sure they are licenced and have insurance, plus go in person and check some of their past work and talk to their references.

Good Luck!

[Jaison Emmanuel]

Hard to tell... need to know the exact area of the neighboorhood. If you can get ARV cost for that neighboorhood and can figure estimate for stucco job and other repairs... as long as it's below 80K.. I would think it a good deal. especially if its a house you like.

[Jeff Wallace]

It’s probably synthetic stucco and a lot of people are scared to death of the product due to past lawsuits primarily from improper installation of the product – get an inspection specific to the stucco and the water penetration - text me and I will share contact info for the go to company in Houston - inspection will not be free and this guy isn’t cheap with the repairs, but the job will be thorough and done right

[Mitchell Petras]

@Jeff
I wouldn't think it would be synthetic stucco given the year it was built, but it'll definitely need a hefty inspection, I'll send you a connection

[Justin Jarmon]

The "stucco Issues" is broad. If it is cracking stucco it could be due to shifting. Some of Houston soil is terrible. Stucco is a ridged exterior material and can crack in the shifting. In the inspection, maybe add a structural inspector to see if there are issues there. you may also notice it in the slab if you can see it. 

[Adam D Rinehart]

In addition to what Justin said in regards to stucco being brittle, it can and frequently does crack from thermal cycles. Stucco and wood expand or contract at different rates when exposed to the same temperatures so it's not surprising to see cracks in similar locations you would for brick cladded homes, near corners and framed openings like doors and windows. These are typically the weakest areas of stick build construction so if it's localized to these areas and doesn't seem to have gaps that you can see through, you should be fine.

One exception to this would be the presence of rust along the crack edges. If that is present it is an indication that the crack has exposed the wire mesh that the scratch/base coat is applied over and is getting in exposed to moisture (rain, dew, sprinklers, etc). If that isn't fixed correctly, the corrosion will get worse over time until you get to the point that the mesh no longer serves its purpose and begins to detach from the house.

[Mitchell Petras]

 We did a pretty thorough walk around and didn't find anything major that was visible. We're in the process of trying to pay the previous buyer for their inspections, but we're still waiting on that. Looking at other homes in the community you can see some minor discoloring in the stucco, but nothing that jumps out at you. The owner definitely cleaned and repainted the stucco, so if there was anything it's probably covered up.  Worst case scenario we pay for an inspection during the option period and back out if it's a lot worse than expected.

[Tushar P.]

https://www.biggerpockets.com/forums/756/topics/750429-stucco-houses-in-houston

[John Collins]

You really shouldn't be asking us about "some stucco issues", talk to various inspectors about what they know about the specifics then pay them $300-500 to check out the property and do a detailed report. Every situation is specific - the 3 owners of stucco housing I know of have not had 1 problem in the area. But if this has something 80k lower than you need to dig, DIG, dig!