Buying a Previously Owned Log Home

Many prospective log home owners choose to buy a pre-owned home rather than build new. There are advantages and disadvantages of this approach as we point out in our article, "Log Homes: Build or Buy?"

Finding a Home to Buy
One of the first tasks ahead of those who have chosen to buy a previously-owned log home is simply finding one. Most real estate listings, agency flyers, newspaper classifieds, and home-finder web sites make no distinction between log homes and other type of homes. Real estate web sites typically don't allow you to search specifically for log-style homes. This makes for a somewhat difficult task to sort through listings to find the homes you might be interested in.

Know What You Want
Prior to actually visiting a home listed in an ad, the only information you have is the contents of the ad itself, which typically includes a picture or two. Look for ads that have full descriptions of both the house and property.

You should have a good idea of the size of home you want, in terms of square footage. If not, use our Home Size Calculator. Knowing the size will give you a benchmark to evaluate some of the other features of the house. For example, If you find a 1500 sf (square feet) house with five bedrooms and three baths, those bedrooms and baths are going to be really small.

Since square footage is not always specified in real estate ads, you may have to contact the seller to get this information.

In looking at square footage, you should know how the area of a home is determined and how the area is distributed. Generally, the area of a home is measured by the outside walls.

A simple single-story rectangular home that is 40 feet wide by 30 feet deep (measured by outside walls) will be considered to have 40x30=1200 square feet of living space. If the house has a full second story, then the area doubles to 2400 square feet. If it has a fully finished, heated basement, the area triples. Decks, porches, and garages do not contribute to living area, and are usually specified separately.

Many log homes are built as a single story, with what would be the attic turned into additional living space, such as bedrooms, bath, or loft. These are sometimes called "story-and-a-half" or simply "two-story" homes. If the second story contains an open area to the floor below, this empty area should be subtracted from the overall size of the home.

Unlike most conventional home ads, log home ads usually highlight the features of the property that the house sits on. After all, one of the reasons people want a log home is the attraction of a great lot. Look for descriptions of lot size, location, and features, such as streams, mountain views, or utilities.

When You Visit
When you find a home you would like to visit, prepare yourself with a checklist of the things that are important to you so that you'll be sure to look for them. It's too easy to get caught up in the emotional whirlwind of falling in love with a potential home such that you might overlook some of the more practical, yet important, aspects of the house.

Although getting a professional inspection (discussed later) is highly recommended once you've decided on a house, you can do your own preliminary inspection and ask key questions on your first visit. We've provided a checklist here.

Since you'll probably be visiting a number of houses over a period of time, be sure to take separate notes for each visit so that the information will be fresh in your mind later when you have to decide on which to buy. Include your own pictures or sketches if possible. Even a small electronic voice recorder can be useful for making comments to yourself as you tour a house.

The Importance of an Inspection
There is simply no substitute for having a professional inspection performed on a home before making a decision to buy. An inspection can identify problems that you couldn't possibly find yourself. An inspection is especially important when a home is more than five years old.

In general, an inspector will look for building code violations, signs of structural damage, construction defects, potential safety hazards, leaks, and maintenance problems. For a log home, the inspector will look for problems related to settling, checking, rotting, insect infestation, and structural stability.

Ideally, find an inspector (look in the telephone yellow pages for "Home Inspector") who has log home experience. Although not absolutely necessary, an inspector who has special knowledge of log home construction will know to look for those particular kinds of problems that only log homes might have.

The inspector will provide you with a written report of any problems he finds, and will note the seriousness of the problem. You can then use that information to help you make a decision about the house. You can also use the report as a basis for asking the selling owner to either reduce the price or fix the problems.

When You Decide
Buying a log home is not much different than buying any other type of home. The only potential point of concern might be with the mortgage lender.

If your log home is located in an area that doesn't have other log homes, or where log homes are rare, the lender's appraiser might have difficulty finding comparable home ("comp") sales in the areas on which to base the appraisal of your home. This could cause a lower than normal appraisal value, which could limit the amount of money the lender is willing to loan you.

If this happens, you could request that another appraiser look at the house (extra cost to you), or you could find another lender who is more experienced with log homes.

It's good advice to shop for lenders before you find a house to buy. This allows you time to find the right lender at the best rates. This way, you can pre-qualify for a loan and know exactly how much lenders are willing to loan you. This, in turn, allows you to know how much house you can afford. See our Affordability Calculator for more details.

Summary
Moving into a pre-owned log home that has been correctly built and lovingly cared-for can be a very satisfying and rewarding experience that lasts a lifetime.