Should I replace the roof if I’m selling the house in > 4 years?
Background: the house was a primary residence for 1.5 years, a rental for 3.5 years and now I’ve moved back into the house. Originally I planned on living here for another four years before relocating out of state due to the cheap mortgage payment and the house itself being a better fit size wise for my needs than the houses I’ve been living in, not to mention centrally located. The inspector said the house needed a new roof 5 years ago when I bought the place…
When I walk on the roof there are areas of clear rotting in the sheathing under the shingles, it’s spongy as if there has been moisture intrusion and rotting of the sheathing…The roof is bowing in some areas also, and has a couple of curled shingles. These are of course classic signs that your roof needs to be replaced. This last weekend we had a REALLY bad rainstorm (Seattle) and it leaked in one spot, though I was able to catch it in the attic with a bucket before it damaged the ceiling. After inspecting the roof it turned out that the nails for one of the vents got pulled up and that’s likely where it was leaking. The location of those holes for the vents nails correlate with where the leak is inside the attic (which as stated I caught before it did damage to the ceiling of the house). So, I likely need to replace the roof if I intend to live here longer….and that’s the issue…
So here is the dilemma: I’m not sure I will want to live here for the 4 full years I intended to live here for when I moved back in and in hindsight I would have sold it to avoid capex. The section 8 rental diagonally across the street is at it again, I brought the city down on them years ago but I moved to a new house after/converted my house to a rental and they went back to their old behaviors after that. The rest of the neighbors don’t care for them either, but are too afraid to call the city like I did. It’s otherwise a great location and neighborhood.
These section 8 rentals are everywhere, even in good neighborhoods. With any luck once it starts raining again they will remain inside most of the fall and winter (it is Seattle after all…). In any case I might move again in 9 months. I might move again in a couple of months and rent it back out. It’s a good rental, cash flows well $600 a month after all expenses and money set aside for vacancy, capex, etc. But if I could do things over again, I would have sold it while it was a rental instead of moving back into it, and 1031 exchanged it for two new properties. I would have sold it primarily to avoid the upcoming capex of the roof and eventually the galvanized plumbing…
Now, Luckily the money I’ve set aside for vacancy, capex, etc. from rents will cover the roof cost. I just hate to drop 8K on a new roof when I plan to sell it in a few years. That money that was set aside could otherwise be profit if I had sold the house this summer. That said, I can risk another winter with the roof that seems to be holding up decently, only one leak (which I think I can fix) though there is obvious water damage to the sheathing under the shingles, it’s not coming into the rest of the house yet.
I’d rather not have to spend 8K on a new roof then sell the place in a few years. Sadly, in hindsight I should have sold this place instead of moving back into it…I had planned on keeping this Seattle area house even after relocating out of state in a few years to retire, just in case I decided to come back, but now I see I’d rather sell it and buy something else with the money as a base that can remain a rental in case I ever decide to return.
So what to do and why?
- Spring for the roof then sell the house next year when I move out?
- Spring for the roof and turn it back into a rental whenever I move out, depending on how long I can stomach the neighbor?
- Tough it out, fix the current leak and be ready with tarps in case of more leaks this winter, then sell the house next summer?
- Fix the roof, stay here and sue the city to revoke the section 8 rentals license (the details are for another thread, but I think I could make a cogent case as many neighbors view the house as a nuisance and the police have told us they KNOW who they are…). Literally my only issue with living in this house is the section 8 neighbor…I got the Mayor to send some people down to police the place and they calmed down but I had a house under contract right before that happened and ended up moving anyways.
TL;DR: Should I shell out 8K to fix the roof on a house with currently minor and fixable leaks but with a roof that needs replacing soon, or should I just move again and risk having to put up tarps if it leaks this winter (Seattle). It didn't and has never had a leak unless it was a bad rain storm.