At first, they loved the historic Edwardian house with its high ceilings and spacious rooms, exposed attic beams and stone garden wall. They also loved the village life provided by the semi-rural location of the property.
Before moving in, they knew they’d have some work to do, such as replacing old windows and doors. But those projects were put on hold as unforeseen issues cropped up — problems common to older homes that may not be so obvious at the time of purchase.
If you’re considering buying an older home, here are some key points to bear in mind when it comes to common features that may need replacing, how much that might cost, and what to look for before purchasing.
3 pricey red flags: Wiring, plumbing and HVAC
One unforeseen issue that took Priestley and her partner by surprise a few years after they moved in was the fuse box catching on fire. Another was a leak from the shower into the living room below. And another was an HVAC that failed to keep the house warm.
Wiring
The fire in the fuse box was “small and contained,” but resulted in having to rewire the entire kitchen. As this couple discovered, older homes often end up with a patchwork of wiring and rewiring, which isn’t always up to code or even safe.
One electrical issue commonly found in older homes is knob-and-tube wiring, which was installed before modern grounding standards and does not include a ground wire. Over time, some homeowners have attempted to modify or extend these systems, but such retrofits were not always done correctly and can raise safety concerns.
If active knob-and-tube wiring is present, some mortgage lenders and insurance companies may be unwilling to finance or insure the home, while others may agree only with conditions, such as requiring the wiring to be replaced within a specified timeframe. Rewiring an entire house is a significant project, and depending on the size of the home, accessibility and local labor costs, it can cost $15,000 or more, according to This Old House (2).
Plumbing
Plumbing is another potential problem area in an older house that may be difficult to spot during the purchasing process, since many pipes are hidden behind walls. If the home still has lead pipes or a lead supply line, they should be replaced for the health and safety of your family.
If the pipes are made of galvanized steel or polybutylene, they might be prone to leaks caused by corrosion or poor connections. These, too, should be replaced with newer materials such as copper to avoid the type of major damage that Priestley and her partner experienced.
But this doesn’t come cheap. How much you spend depends on how much of the plumbing needs to be replaced, where you live and other factors. Installing new rough-in plumbing can cost about $4.50 per square foot (2), while pipe replacement can cost $2 to $4 per linear foot (3). “To replace the plumbing in a 2,000-square-foot home, plus the added cost of fixtures and labor, you can expect to pay between $10,000 and $12,000,” according to This Old House (2).
HVAC
It can be hard to judge the condition of the HVAC system in a home, even during several pre-sale visits. In general, HVAC systems need to be sized correctly for the home and may need to be replaced every 12 to 15 years.
After moving in, Priestley and her partner found their home was hard to heat and now must decide whether to fix the issue. Again, the costs can be high. “You can expect to spend $2,500 to $8,000 to install an air conditioner, $1,500 to $9,000 to install a furnace and $2,000 to $30,000 to install a heat pump,” according to This Old House (2).
What to do before you buy an older home
When buying an older home, it’s imperative to get a home inspection, but be aware that they also have limitations. A home inspection is a visual inspection, which means, according to InterNACHI, an association for home inspectors, that “a home inspection report is limited to describing conditions in those parts of a home that an inspector can see during the inspection” (4).
