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Question about purchasing a house with a slab foundation

HeltonCreek

HeltonCreek

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All knowing Pit,

I've been pre approved for a mortgage and am looking at houses now. I really like one but it has no basement or crawl space and is on a solid concrete foundation. Are there any problems with this? Any possible issues down the road. I realize that if I have a plumbing or electrical issue, I'll have to pull up flooring and get through the concrete to address the issue. Should I look for a house with a crawl space or basement instead? The house was built in 1991 and so far no issues. Thanks.
 
I'm on house number three. Bought my first in 1994. I've never had anything but slab and have never had, nor heard of, any issues.
 
Does the place have an attic and/or garage?
 
My house is on a slab. No problems so far after 3 years living there. My house was built around 1990.
 
Slabs...such a southern thing. I'm not sure I could own a house w/out a basement.
 
WFFaithful said:
http://voices.yahoo.com/common-pros-cons-living-slab-foundation-1966272.html
Click to expand...
Can't disagree with anything there. While I like the house we have right now, storage is an issue (though I probably have a lot of useless shit I need to get rid of too).

As to the heating issue, we were having problems cooling and heating the house until we had the duct work in the attic replaced last summer. We put a new roof on a few weeks ago and the house is even more comfortable.

Never thought about the concrete being hard on joints, but it does make sense.
 
No issues w/ ours...other than the occasional Wizard of Oz "oh shit, we are so screwed" thought when we see a news flash about a tornado being spotted in the area. Good times in Holly Springs last year being huddled in the downstairs crapper w/ the dog and no power when the tornado came thru and missed our street by about a block.
 
The house does have a 1 car garage and storage area behind the garage for lawn equipment instead of a separate storage shed. I've been living in 1 bedroom apartments for 5 years now so I don't keep much stuff but I know I'll spread out when I get a house.

It's 3 bedrooms, 2 and a half baths. Has a decent front porch, a decent deck and a patio on the back.
 
One thing I'd worry about, given the time frame it was built, was if it has polybutylene piping which may cause you to have to cut up your slap to replace it earlier than a normal piping lifetime.
 
When digging my basement, we hit solid rock and had to do a solid slab for my basement and foundation. It wouldnt be as much an issue above ground, but when we have a huge rain I will occasionally get water in the basement due to the masons not perfectly lining up the block with the slab. It created a small lip, and even with tarring down the block and slab and installing french drains we occasional get some water. Thankfully its only when it rains 3 inches or so in the span of a few hours. Since its above ground, as long as you have adequate runoff from your house, you shouldnt have a problem though.
 
The biggest issue with slab foundations has been relative to future renovations and positive drainage. As said earlier, if you anticipate any kitchen or bath renovations which might require moving fixtures around, you are looking at a more expensive renovation to dig out the concrete and then repour. Most electrical and all HVAC is overhead so you shouldn't have to worry about that.

I would be more concerned about the adjacent grades of the planting beds around the house. Ensure that water moves away from the foundation quickly in storms and be sure that any mulch stays below the weep holes in your brick foundations. This might require piping your gutters further away from the house.

Slab foundations can save some money in energy efficiency (plumbing is encased in concrete, HVAC is within attic spaces which is usually further insulated). Also, slab foundation homes are more easily converted to handicap accessibility because they don't have the need for all the ramps (not that this is a concern). I don't know if you would notice, but homes in age restricted communities are usually built on slabs.
 
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