Vancouver Wa Real Estate - Elite Realty NW

Save Yourself $9000 By Cleaning Your Gutters!

"My tenant just called me to tell me that there are mushrooms growing in the downstairs bedroom! Do you think that will affect the sale?"

That is how the call started a few weeks back when one of my clients called to let me know that we might need to withdraw the listing for one of his rentals. At the time, he didn't know what had happened. Two weeks and over $9000 later, the story can be told.

After receiving a call from his tenant he went over to investigate. The carper was soaked with water and there were 5 or 6 mushrooms growing in a corner. He couldn't identify the source of the moisture. I called in a favor with an inspector friend of mine who went over to investigate. After a quick inspection of all of the plumbing in the area, it was determined faulty plumbing was not to blame. An exterior inspection identified two issues: 1. A clogged rain gutter that was spilling over right next to the foundation, and 2. a crack in the basement wall that was located right next to where to dripping water from the clogged gutter was landing.

"There is the culprit." the inspector declared.

It seems that we have a clay rich type of soil here in Vancouver Washington. Generally, water does not penetrate the soil and just runs off to the lowest point. Because this run over drip was sustained and focused on such a small area, it managed to sort of drill its way through the clay and saturated the entire area with water. The weight of the wet clay pushed against the outside of the basement wall and caused it to crack. The water in the soil then seeped through the crack, soaking the carpet and creating the perfect environment for our shroomy little friends. A perfect example of where an ounce of prevention would have saved several thousands of dollars in repair! (and several weeks of mortgage payments without a tenant!)