Should we mention that our house has a French drain?

[Anonymous]

I would see it as a benefit. Any educated buyer in this area knows that basements will get water from time to time. If I knew someone already but the bullet on a French drain I’d be happy. I’d definitely be looking for any evidence of mold/water damage - but I’d be doing that in any house in this area.

[Anonymous]

When we built our custom home the builder installed a french drain. I didn't think to mention it when we sold. The basement was bone dry.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It doesn’t mean a house had “problems.” The building code requires that you have perimeter drains and unless the lot is sloped such that they can drain with gravity, you need a sump pump. A sump pump can also be there to handle an exterior drain below grade like at the bottom of basement entrance stairs.

A house in our area *without* a sump pump would be more unusual and you would need to look at why, probably a slope that lets the perimeter drains exit with gravity. But you’d want to look.

Agreed that sump pumps are common here, but many homes built before codes were stricter on drainage/pumps (eg many colonials) will not have them. They have the waterproofing technology of their day, which likely included parging and exterior drainage of some sort but not pumps (interior or exterior). If gutters / grading have been handled correctly and the home site is decent, many older homes here, including those with finished basements, don’t have/need pumps. So the presence of a pump does reveal something about water issues, at least if the house is old enough that pumps were not required by code when built.

I think a lot in the DMV where you genuinely didn’t need functioning perimeter drains (whether they end in daylight by gravity or a sump pit) to have a finished basement would be really unusual. If I were looking at an older house without drains going outside or a to a pit, I would factor in the cost of adding them unless the basement was unfinished and unused.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Yes mention it. The new owners will need to know and most should see it as a positive.

This! Of course you mention it it's one less thing they have to do!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Yes mention it. The new owners will need to know and most should see it as a positive.

This! Of course you mention it it's one less thing they have to do!

Why do you mention it if buyer is not asking about it ?

[Anonymous]

People are probably talking about multiple things. Some people are talking about perimeter drains installed under the basement floor (called “interior” even though they’re not inside your house) and some people, including I think the OP, are talking about drains outside in the yard, not up against the house.

It sounds like OP has functioning perimeter drains and a sump pump but also installed a drain somewhere in the yard to handle surface water from rain.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:When we built our custom home the builder installed a french drain. I didn't think to mention it when we sold. The basement was bone dry.

Like this person is probably talking about perimeter drains, which have been required by code since the 90’s and they either drain by gravity if there’s a big slope or to a sump pit. That’s not something you have to “mention.”

[Anonymous]

Absolutely not. It isn't important.

[Anonymous]

Unless you’re in some sort of flood plain and it’s going to be a key issue you don’t need to go out of your way to bring it up.

[Anonymous]

A sump pump is totally normal on new construction with a below grade basement. There is no stigma against a sump pump whatsoever.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:A sump pump is totally normal on new construction with a below grade basement. There is no stigma against a sump pump whatsoever.

My basement has a sump pump and an ejector pump and an hvac condensate pump and I like to think they are all friends.