Electrical and electrical box or fuse boxElectrical and electrical box or fuse box (electrical panel) and anything related to the electricity is important to consider. Here's what to think about when selling, buying or refinancing a home. The electrical wiring in your home doesn't mean too much for an appraiser as long as it is up to date and is in good working order. But I'll tell you what I know. 200 amp fuse boxes are common for newer homes and homes that offer updated fuses boxes. Sometimes, I'll go to a home that will have 150 amp service or worse yet, the home will have knob and tube wiring. Most of the times, I can tell when they have knob and tube wiring, because they will have two buttons on the light switch panels. One button turns on the lights and the other turns them off. RefinanceAs long as there are no frayed wires or safety hazards and the lights turn on and off correctly, you'll be okay. Look at the electrical box. If all the wires look okay and they are not frayed, that's pretty much it. Now you'll want to have the 200 amp service box. This is the most common in today’s homes. If you buy a home with an older fuse box or with the knob and tube lighting, you may be in for a big surprise. It will be difficult for an appraiser to determine if knob and tube lighting will actually influence the value. This is because there will be limited to no sales or the MLS will not disclose this type of outdated wiring.Many banks do not finance homes with knob and tube lighting. I once went to a home that offered this type of wiring. They had spoke to almost every contractor in the area and most of them would not fix the lighting and most of the bids to change the lighting to something modern was outside of most people’s budget. There was another home that I went to where most of the wiring was complete, but they still had some wiring to update. The cost was $10,000 to finish replacing the lighting and install some basics lights in the kitchen area. For refinancing, there is not much that you can do, but be honest and tell your lender if you have knob and tube or outdated wiring. This will at least prevent you from paying appraisal fees knowing that your bank will not even finance your home until the wiring is updated. BuyingIf you are buying a home, look to be sure that the electrical box has been updated. Turn on and off the lights to be sure that they are in good working order. If the electricity is turned off, don't buy the home unless you are absolutely positive that the lights and all of the other utilities are in good working order. If the home offers knob and tube wiring, I'd walk from the home. There must be houses on the market area that offer traditional wiring amp boxes. Many times, home owners will not be able to insure homes with knob and tube lighting, because it is just too old and poses a safety issue with a fire hazard. 150 amp breaker boxes may be okay, but I'd try and find a home with 200 amps. If you buy a home like these, the value will be insignificant, but when you go to update these items you'll feel your wallet get emptier. Only consider buying a home like this if it has many other positive features such as river frontage, lake frontage, excellent deal, spectacular views with no obstructions or something to offset the wiring.SellingIf you are selling a home with outdated electrical system, then you've either been living in the home for a very long time or you bought the home like this. You could fix the issue by updating the wiring. This of course, will cost you possibly 10's of 1000's of dollars. Or you can attempt to sell the home as is. If the rest of your home is spot on and your home offers enough high in demand features, someone may want to buy your home and deal with the issues. |