Please Consider Your Poor Roof

 Roofs keep you warm, cool and dry. One of the topics this month is roofs. I would say it’s a relatively important system of the home. The construction and the materials will have a lot to do with how well your roof serves you. The rain is going to soak it and the sun is going to bake it. The snow and ice with freeze it and the wind is going to try and damage it.  Trees are going to rub their branches on it and people are going to walk on it. The digs in it and the satellite cable guy put giant screws in it. There is a lot of service given with only a little attention given.

 The round pipes sticking through the roof are your plumbing venting pipes or flues. The pipes have jack-boot flashings with seals, the seals deteriorate so look at them. Be careful of any wires, some may have juice. Don’t walk on the roof when it is wet, you may get hurt and you will probably damage the roof covering.

If you are capable of climbing a ladder and walking on the roof (not all roofs should be walked on) an inspection once or twice a year is a great idea. Don’t step on any areas you suspect might be week. Some places may feel week when they are ok, you are looking for damage. A failure in the material should be note able and a concern. Areas around metal flashings are a good place to start. Look for missing or damaged shingles or flashings. Look at the chimney siding and trim for rot. Does the roof decking feel week around the chimney? Does the roof covering have mildew or moss growing on it?

Does size matter?

Of course it does. Ask any lady and she’ll tell you, there is never enough closet space in the bedroom. The bigger the house the bigger the closets usually are.

Buy the house size that will fit your projected size requirements, number of children, ect, ect.  Are you going to have indoor or outdoor pets, the size of the home may not be the only consideration, what about the yard? Do you have an RV or boat to store at the house? Will my wife and I both keep our cars in the garage?  Financially, the key element in pricing a home is the square footage. Hopefully you are projecting an increase in your pay which may mean the mortgage will be less cumbersome in a couple of years. When the market increases in value it may raise the price of the homes according to the square footage, the more square feet the more it rises.

You can do allot with square footage designed into the home but when a room is added it rarely fits the scope as well as the initial floor plan.  These are a few of the things that should be considered when purchasing a home. A good realtor should be able to help you understand these questions and may more.