Whether you’re a homeowner that has either lived in your home for a while or you’ve just purchased a home, there are always a few things that you might not realize need attention.

This fact was brought to light once again as we performed our weekly home inspections for homeowners who are away.

One of our newer clients recently purchased a second home here in beautiful St. George, UT.  The new homeowners spent the time and money necessary to do some updating to the lighting, the bathrooms, and the kitchen as well as install new hardwood floors.  They’ve made the home their own and love it!

One thing they didn’t realize needed some attention was the outside drains.

When a cracked, underground pipe to the pool started leaking, it filled the back patio.  It came within ½ inch of going into the house and onto the new hardwood floors.  Luckily on our weekly inspection we discovered this puddle and could quickly call in the pool guys to get over there and get it taken care of.  The homeowner was indeed surprised and responded, “There are two drains in the patio, how come they didn’t drain the water?”  Because unbeknownst to the homeowners, they were plugged!! 

Who thinks to get their outside drains cleaned and make sure they’re working properly?? It’s something we take for granted.

While this home has a few years on it, outside plugged drains are also common in new construction homes due to the construction debris and sand filling them up.  Especially here in the desert, where there’s no place else for the water to go, it’s imperative that the drains are functioning properly.  I guess the main point would be –  as a homeowner do you know if your drains are clear of debris and will drain properly when needed?

Even though you’ve thoughtfully covered your bases before leaving your home alone, the surprises can be not only stressful but very costly.

As the Home Watch experts, we are always looking for these types of surprises and are ready to handle them if they do occur.  This is just one of many reasons why having a neighbor, a relative or your real estate agent doing a quit check on your property is not the best way to care for your unoccupied home.  They often don’t know what to look for or what to do if they do discover a problem.  There’s no need to impose on your neighbor with the huge burden of caring for your home investment when our services are so very affordable.

HOME WATCH – we’re here to pay attention to your unoccupied home!!