Split Level Homes
In a split level home, the living spaces are provided at different levels. There are different styles of split levels and they all do not provide a comfortable and meaningful home for most homeowners, particularly families with older members and children. Those among us, who do not mind going up and down steps, a few to several times a day, in a staircase with inadequate risers and treads are the exceptions.
Split Level Houses Were Built For The Wrong But Obvious Reasons
According to Robert Gerloff and Jeremiah Battles, authors of Split Levels, the birth of split level homes can be attributed to the following reasons:
- First, home buyers were demanding more square footage in houses, but lots weren’t getting any wider. Stacking the bedrooms over the garage was a simple way to squeeze a larger house onto a lot.
- Second, home buyers were looking for houses with a more substantial presence. Ranches, however efficient, just didn’t have the same emotional appeal as the traditional two-story Colonial, or even the story-and-a-half Cape Cod. Splits look more substantial.
- Third, and most important, builders in the Midwest were seeking ways to minimize the costs of excavating full basements.
Disadvantages Of A Split Level Home
Real estate agents are good at highlighting the positives of any home, whether it is a split level home or a ditch in the ground. These are a few disadvantages of a split level home and I would not recommend that any home buyer consider buying a split level home.
- Uneven heating and cooling in split level homes is almost a certainty.
- Going up and down the poorly designed staircases will become tiring, its only a matter of time.
- Typically, the kitchen is small.
- It’s hard to bring in groceries in a split level homes.
- The laundry area is located far away from the bedrooms.
- The poor design does not make sense outside the context of the builder or the subdivision developer’s bottom line.
- Gutters are located at a height and cleaning them is difficult.
- Roof is difficult to inspect and repair.
- Curb appeal is poor because of the asymmetric front elevation.
 White Stains In A Wet Hollow Block Basement Things Of Note
- According to a real estate agent, basements constructed with hollow blocks are common in the Cleveland area while in the Cincinnati area, basements are typically constructed with poured concrete.
- The height of the bottom layer of hollow blocks is about half that of the upper standard hollow blocks. Using a standard hollow block would have probably resulted in a higher basement wall integrity.
- This was a newer home, it was built in 2002. I think the probable cause of this water penetration in this basement was poor rain water drainage.
Real Estate Appraisal Guidelines
The Federal Reserve, the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp., the Office of Thrift Supervision and the National Credit Union Administration released the new guidelines for home appraisals. A copy of the guidelines document is available for download from the News and Issuances tab of the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency website.
- Lenders can exchange information with home appraisers, but they cannot directly or indirectly coerce, influence, or otherwise encourage an home appraiser or a person who performs an evaluation to misstate or misrepresent the value of the property.
- Banks cannot tell the home appraiser of any expected or qualifying estimate of value.
- Banks cannot specify a minimum value requirement for the property that is needed to approve the loan or as a condition of ordering the home appraisal.
- Banks cannot tie a home appraiser’s compensation to loan approval.
- Banks can’t blacklist a home appraiser if the home appraiser’s valuations fail to meet expected thresholds.
Some real estate brokerages own their title companies and they try to steer → continue reading Dirty Home Appraisals
According to Norman Becker, author of Home Inspection Checklists, a study concluded that children exposed to an electromagnetic field were more likely to develop leukemia. High voltage transmission lines near a house cause electromagnetic fields of concern as do local power distribution lines.
This incredible sight of home backyards adjacent to high voltage transmission lines may be observed in Preserve subdivision located in Solon Ohio.
 High Voltage Transmission Lines-Click to enlarge
 Preserve Subdivision of Solon Ohio-Click to enlarge
Most states have their own Residential Property Disclosure Forms. Ohio Residential Property Disclosure Form prescribed by Ohio Department of Commerce, Division of Real Estate and Professional Licensing is relatively weak. As a comparison, New York has a better Property Condition Disclosure Statement but its far from comprehensive.
First do no harm, is one of the concepts of medical ethics that all medical students are taught in medical school. The real estate industry is generally alien to this concept. The idiom dog eat dog describes the real estate industry better. In my opinion, not having a State prescribed and real estate industry engineered Residential Property Disclosure Form is the better path because → continue reading States Without A Residential Property Disclosure Form
Before signing a Home Purchase Agreement or Contract Form, home buyers may be strongly urged by a real estate agent and/or home mortgage lender that the buyer will need a pre-approval letter from the lender. This is a common practice in the self serving and closed looped real industry where a large group eats out of the same trough. The apparent advantage is that the home buyer can show the home seller that they are more likely to be able to buy the house, even though the pre-approval letter offers no guarantee. 
Further, the pre-approval letter information will also provide the real estate agent clues regarding the highest price the home buyer might be willing to pay for the home. Since the real estate agent’s commission is directly proportional to the home selling price, the agent might have an incentive to drag this selling price higher. The real estate agent works for the real estate broker and therefore has fiduciary responsibility to the employer, the real estate broker. Therefore obtaining a pre-approval letter is a disadvantage to the home buyer. → continue reading Home Purchase Agreement or Contract Form: Preapproval Letter
What is a Standard Home Purchase Agreement (or Contract) Form?
I don’t think there is any such thing as a Standard Home Purchase Agreement (or Contract) Form. When a home buyer in the Cleveland, Ohio area (a similar practice might be prevalent in other areas) is ready to make a purchase offer to a home seller, a real estate agent, may present to the home buyer, a Home Purchase Agreement (or Contract) Form, which the agent may refer to as the “Standard”  I call it the Standard Home Purchase Contract for Sheeple. This contract form may be a rudimentary real estate document authored by a local real estate body or group. It does not mean that the home buyer (or the home seller) is legally required to use this so called Standard Home Purchase Agreement (or Contract) Form. Make no mistake when it comes to this form; this document is arguably the most important document in the arduous home purchase process. I have two words regarding this Standard Home Purchase Agreement, BUYER BEWARE. In my opinion, this standard contract strongly favors the home seller; it shields everyone but the home buyer. Hire a real estate attorney, don’t be penny wise and pound foolish when it comes to a home purchase. → continue reading Contingency Clauses in THE Ohio Home Purchase Agreement (or Contract) Form
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About  I am a Civil Engineer from Louisiana State University. The compound word, Americaneer, is a combination of the words, American and Engineer. |
