Within the confines of this brief summary, it is impossible to tackle all the issues you should examine in a potential property. Make sure that you have trustworthy and knowledgeable people available to give you advice before buying a house. While this is always important, it is particularly crucial with a renovation – you and your lender are taking a greater risk buying a property “as-is” and sellers are less willing to include correcting problems as part of the price negotiation. Some people you may want to have examine a house before you put in an offer include:

• Realtor® – sound advice on price and potential appreciation
• Architect – discuss potential design, space, and structural issues
• Structural Engineer – determine severity and remediation of structural damage if any is noted
• Independent Inspector – provide background on potential code and safety issues
• Environmental – test for presence of lead paint or asbestos
• Independent Appraiser – how much will the house to be worth after rehab

Sources of Property
The primary sources for property acquisition are: private individuals, private corporations, city government, and the federal government. Private property is sometimes listed for sale through a licensed Realtor® and available for purchase to the general public. Many of these buildings, while requiring either renovation or updating, have been recently occupied and are in reasonably good physical condition. When purchasing a private individual residence, make sure that your purchase price accurately accounts for the money you will be investing in its renovation. Your bank will help ensure you don’t dump more money in than the house will be worth, but remember that they are also interested in selling you a loan.

Much of the privately owned unoccupied property has been left abandoned for years and is in poorer physical condition. These buildings are generally boarded up and not listed for sale by a Realtor®. The owners may also be difficult to track down, particularly in cases where he or she lives out of state or has moved repeatedly. The City’s property information database (http://www.stlouiscity.com/assess/lookup.cfm) and the local Neighborhood Stabilization Officer are two places to start your ownership search.

The City of St. Louis is the city’s largest landowner. When someone defaults on property taxes, the city government may take possession of the land and structures. The Land Reutilization Authority (LRA) holds the property not sold at auction and either offers it for sale or holds it for potential large-scale redevelopment opportunities. In order to purchase one of these properties, you must demonstrate the ability to redevelop it within a specified time period. For more information on purchasing city-owned property, visit http://stlouis.missouri.org/development/realestate and click on the “How to Make an Offer” link.

The Department of Housing and Urban Development (http://www.hud.gov) also has property for sale. Teachers and police officers may purchase properties in specific zip codes at half price.

Purchasing Land From the City
In St. Louis government, LRA stands for Land Reutilization Authority. The LRA gains title to property through "donation" and delinquent taxes. Some of the property is sold to individuals and developers for redevelopment through the St. Louis Development Corporation Real Estate Department. Other parcels are held in order to aggregate land for larger-scale redevelopment.

To a great extent, the local Alderman helps guide how city resources (gap financing, tax abatement, and LRA property are prime examples) are allocated in his or her ward. When there is a strong neighborhood organization with a development plan, this is also used as a guide.

For a current list of for-sale properties, surf over to the City's Real Estate Department web site. Properties in designated redevelopment districts are typically not for sale to the general public through the SLDC Real Estate Department.

Assessment
The average person can quickly assess some basic structural conditions and determine if professional advice is required:

• Brick Masonry – Look for large sections of missing mortar, missing or cracked brick, and bulges in the exterior walls. Check for cracks around openings (windows and doors) and misshapen (squashed) brick arches. On the inside, look for areas of discolored plaster along the exterior walls that may indicate water leakage
• Foundation – Examine the basement walls for missing and/or loose mortar around the stones. Minor cracks in the foundation may be a function of acceptable settling – they can be filled. Large cracks need to be examined by a professional.
• Plaster – Small diagonal cracks around doors and windows can happen over time as the house settles. These can usually be patched. Large areas of cracked, damaged or sagging plaster may need to be replaced and may indicate underlying structural issues that need to be corrected. Areas of discolored plaster may indicate water leakage through the roof or adjacent wall.
• Fire Damage – A professional should assess any fire-damaged portion of the building. Some indications of fire damage include black char marks outside windows, soot stains on walls and ceilings, exposed charred joists, missing sections of roof and significant water damage in only one portion of the building.
• Water Damage – Long-term exposure to ice and water can severely compromise a building’s structural integrity. Look for areas where the floorboards are coming up, where the roof is missing or damaged, plaster has fallen to the floor, the joists and/or floorboards have significant “give” or areas of visible mold and mildew. Do not walk on any questionable area.
• Beams and Joists – Examine the beams and joists in the basement for large cracks, areas of rot or mildew, missing posts, and large sags.

Each of the above issues may result in rebuilding or removing a portion of the structure. If you think that the building may have one or more of these problems, contact a professional. If structural remediation is required, be prepared for it to take a significant amount of time and/or money.

Often, the building systems have been stripped out of abandonned buildings for resale, reuse, or scrap metal. If furnaces, electrical wiring, and plumbing remain, you will need to assess their condition and determine what, if anything, can be saved.

• Plumbing - Look for missing sections of copper supply line in the basement, lead pipe coming into the residence from the water main, and any areas of obvious water damage caused by leaking pipes. Areas of cracking concrete in the basement may indicate a collapsed cast iron sewer line as may sinkholes in the back yard. If you are making changes to the plumbing fixtures in the bathrooms and kitchen, you will probably need to install a new waste stack and vent. Your plumber may be able to tie in to the existing sewer line - he or she can "camera" the sewer to determine its exact condition.
• Electric - Fuse boxes, knob-and-tube wiring, and 100 amp service should be upgraded to 200 amp service and may require a complete rewire to conform to current codes.
• HVAC - If the gas and electric service are connected, adjust the thermostats to turn the HVAC units on to test them. Look for evidence of leaking at all radiators. If there is a forced-air unit verify that air gets to the furthest ducts and is an appropriate temperature. Floor plan changes may require potentially costly alterations in the HVAC system.