Insights
6
Buying a house ? Flush the toilet before you do
Recently I had occasion to walk through one of what I ’ ll call “ pop-up ” concrete homes being constructed at what seems like lightning speed around the island .
This home happened to be situated on a whopping 620-sqm property in Mangilao . The home is surrounded by a small walkway , and the backyard has about 5 feet before you hit the neighbor ’ s fence . The front yard isn ’ t much bigger . The interior is an open concept , but at 2,014 square feet of living space , you know the four bedrooms and three and a half bathrooms are not going to be huge .
When you walk in the front door , the first thing you notice is what seems to be a nice decorative stone wall on the left , which goes all the way up to the high ceiling . But upon second glance , you realize that the contractor must have run out of the nice decorative tile about 7 feet from the floor , so they switched to a similar , but not quite the same , tile , which seemed to be falling in some places , revealing the dark grout behind the tile . Even the realtor admitted that it wasn ’ t the best quality .
Moving onto the kitchen , the cabinets seem to be made of particle board with some sort of shiny veneer covering . It may look nice now , but you know that with the natural oils from fingertips that will touch them , the veneer on these cabinets will soon start to peel . I give it a year .
But the crowning glory of this brand new home , for which some developer is asking a ludicrous $ 595,000 , is the
toilet anomaly . When you flush the toilet in one of the bathrooms , sewer gas immediately fills the house . “ No P-trap ,” said my better half , an engineer . This is a plumbing device designed to block sewer gas from backing up into the house when you flush the toilet . It ’ s a rather essential item that the contractor apparently “ forgot ” to install .
So all of this , for nearly $ 600,000 ? To potential buyers , my advice is : “ No way .” They may want to sell it for nearly $ 600,000 , but it doesn ’ t mean you have to buy it for that price . Especially with such substandard quality . Demand better products . Or , after you point out the flaws , counteroffer lower .
I asked a realtor if there were any standards that they hold contractors to when showing a house . The realtor referred me to the Guam Contractors Association .
GCA is not an enforcement agency ; however , the group noted several mechanisms in place supposedly to prevent this sort of shoddy construction . First , the Department of Public Works is supposed to enforce construction building codes . Then there ’ s the Contractors Licensing Board which according to its website , is supposed to “ safeguard consumers by regulating the construction industry through policies that promote the health , safety and general welfare of the public in matters relating to construction .” And finally , there are banks . One would hope a bank would inspect homes upon completion of construction that were
financed by the bank before the realtor and buyer step in .
But what if the builder self-finances the construction ? Thank goodness , if you are getting a home loan , banks have inspectors who go out and inspect the home before you buy it . That way you as the buyer theoretically won ’ t get stuck with having to rip up a concrete bathroom floor to install a P-trap that the contractor “ forgot ” to install in the first place .
Bottom line here is that if you are house-hunting , you can probably buy a piece of property and build what you want for less than what some of these developers are asking for homes these days . Especially if the construction quality is båba .
But if you are looking to buy a ready-built home , especially one that has been constructed recently , here ’ s a piece of advice when you are walking through it with the realtor : Flush the toilets . Every single one .
Jayne Flores is the director of the Bureau of Women ’ s Affairs . Send feedback to jayneflores59 @ gmail . com . rom the comment box
An abandoned dream ?
The Constitution makes no provision for secession . Constitutionally , there can be no such thing as secession of a state from its union . A state cannot secede constitutionally . It is obliged under all circumstances to remain in its union .
Is this treason ? What was the issue to even come to this idea ? I would really think carefully on this play only because technology has proven there is no need for an actual location for wars . Warheads can travel across the world at unimaginable speed . The result is only worth what anyone willing to pay for it .
Chuuk departing from Micronesia will only add to the many problems it already acquired from the past .
What will happened to the Chuukese born in other three states and have settled there permanently ? What will happen to them and what will change in the travels between Chuuk and Micronesia ?
Lastly , the COFA was budgeted based on the population ratio . Chuuk holds almost half of the population . So again , is this a play due to a long unfair treatment or a manipulative play from an outside source ? Do citizens of Chuuk play a role in this decision at all ? Just curious as I have families from Chuuk !
— McJake Ez