In Search of The Perfect House
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The
engineers of Carson Dunlop & Associates Ltd. have conducted
over 50, 000 home inspections and we haven’t found a perfect
house yet. Since perfection is not an option, what should you
expect?
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THE 1% RULE When you consider the life cycle of every component of a house, a reasonable annual estimate of the cost of normal maintenance is 1% of the value of the house. One year you may replace the furnace; a few years down the road you may re-surface the roof. Throw in the odd unexpected repair in between and you average 1% per year. It’s incredible but this rule is not far off even for very expensive and very inexpensive houses. |
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NORMAL MAINTENANCE If you strip away the cosmetics, a house is made up of the structure, roof, exterior envelope and the “systems” of the house. The “systems” are things like heating, plumbing, electrical and cooling. All components and systems eventually wear out. Fortunately, they don’t all wear out at the same time. Different components have different life cycles. Houses tend to settle into what you might call a “normal maintenance pattern”. |
WHAT’S THE MESSAGE HERE? A homebuyer should arrive at the home inspection with realistic expectations. If you are buying a 12-15 year old home, let’s face it, you may need a new roof covering. If you are buying a 60 year old home, you may have to update some plumbing. Don’t let this scare you away from a perfectly good home. HOW LONG DOES IT LAST? Here is a short list of typical life cycles of the most common components of the home. Please keep in mind that there will be exceptions in every category. |
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| ROOF
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conventional
asphalt shingles ............................................................12
- 15 years |
| EXTERIOR
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| gutters
& downspouts .......................................................................20
- 30 years copper gutters and downspouts .........................................................50 - 100 years aluminum siding ...............................................................................50 plus years wood siding................................................................................... maintenance dependent stucco.......................................................................................... maintenance dependent exterior paint ......................................................................................4 - 6 years deck.................................................................................................10 - 20 years asphalt driveway surface.....................................................................10 - 20 years driveway sealer ...................................................................................1 - 3 years concrete driveway............................................................................................30 - 40 years garage door opener..............................................................................8 - 12 years |
| STRUCTURE
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| termite treatment ...............................................................................10 - 20 years |
| HEAT
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| conventional
furnace ...........................................................................20
- 25 years mid efficiency furnace .........................................................................20 - 25 years high efficiency furnace..................................................unknown, suspect < 20 years cast iron boiler ....................................................................................35 - 50 years steel boiler .........................................................................................20 - 30 years copper tube boiler................................................................................10 - 20 years humidifier .............................................................................................5 - 10 years electronic air filter.................................................................................10 - 20 years |
| COOLING
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| air conditioning condenser ...................................................................10 - 15 years |
| PLUMBING
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| galvanized
steel supply pipe .........................................................................
40 - 50 years copper pipe ....................................................................................................... indefinite toilet........................................................................................................... 30 - 40 years sink ........................................................................................................... 12 - 20 years faucet......................................................................................................... 10 - 15 years whirlpool bath ............................................................................................. 15 - 25 years shower pan................................................................................................. unpredictable submersible pump for well ............................................................................ 10 - 15 years suction or jet pump ...................................................................................... 10 - 15 years water softener ............................................................................................... 5 - 15 years sump pump .................................................................................................... 2 - 7 years water heater.................................................................................................. 8 - 12 years tile bathtub enclosure .................................................................................. 10 - 50 years |
| INTERIOR
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| paint.............................................................................................................
5 - 10 years windows ...................................................................................... maintenance dependent |
Re-orders of any Carson Dunlop Report can be obtained by contacting any office. We invite your comments and suggestions of topics for future reports.
• Toronto (416)964-9415
• Burlington (905)333-4663
• Other areas 1(800)268-7070
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