All Forum Posts by: Haiyang A.

Thanks for the information on HUD's inspection, Greg! I sure hope that it's something minor.

I have a question regarding an electric issue. It's a HUD property, and on it's property condition report, it indicates the Electrical Writing as Damaged, and not functional (see the screenshot). I am a little hesitant to speak to an electrician without knowing the location/extent of the issue. Should I just hire a licensed electrician to find any problems and fix them?

Thank you, @JD Martin! It looks like the project is too big and not worth the effort.

That's a great point, @Deanna McCormick! I can't imaging of going through all this and found out that the city won't allow the discharge water to go to storm drain. 

 No, the creek is a bit further down (see photo), but it does look like that excess water would go towards the direction of the creek. The only water that comes towards the backyard is from neighbors to the right side and immediately up on the slope. I can drain the water to city storm drain that is right in front of the house.

 Thanks @Deanna McCormick! I'll contact the city to find out if there was a in-ground pool. Great tip! I don't know if it's a sewer seeping issue, but the way the house is situated does make some water coming from neighbors (both to the right side, and on top the slope), and partially goes to the neighbor on the left side (their yard also has noticeable green grass that eventually goes down to a creek). If it's indeed the head/start of a creek, and not a swimming pool issue, should I be concerned? I still think that a french drain system would help to channel excess water down to a city storm/sewer drain, and I'm thinking that as long as the backyard is not muddy, and the foundation of the house is not affected, then I don't worry about it, right?

 Thanks @Jd martin! Do you think a French drain system would fix the issue? What about subsurface water that accumulates deeper in the pool that even a French drain system won't be able to reach?

I'm looking at a bank REO that needs some repair (only 20 years old), but it's the drainage issue in the backyard that worries me. The yard is on a slope, and it looks like that rain water would run towards the house (see 3rd image). However, the garage and the back of the house (including area underneath the deck) are pretty dry.

There is a very large area that is quite muddy with very noticeable green grass (growing like on a refilled swimming pool, see 2nd image). I thought about installing a French drain system to fix the drainage issue, but I worry that it’s a refilled swimming pool that has not been done correctly (e.g., not drilling enough holes at the bottom of the pool, and now causing this backyard marsh). If that is the case (how can I find that out?), then does that mean I need to excavate the swimming pool, get rid of the bottom part, redo the refilling, etc. I wonder how much would that be? Do I need a structural engineer to take a look at this, or would a lawn care person will do the job just fine?

Thanks you @Julia Dugger, @John Weidner, @O'brian R. for sharing your insights on this. 

I intend to owner occupy the property. I just find it frustrating not being able to make an offer at all, even still within the First Look period. What if my offer is better than the one they currently have?