There is a small family- husband and wife with two little kids had taken a look at a house they want to buy. They had spent one hour observing around the corner of the house and then negotiating the price with the owner. They love the house very much since it is new building with nice furniture and acceptable price. After taking a look, they plan to come tomorrow for purchasing contract. But as they were about to leave the rain poured down heavily prevented them from leaving. After waiting for one hour in the house while it was raining, they decided not to buy the house. Why did they decide not to buy the house? Did the rain do anything wrong?

Truly when the sky is clear and sun is shining we can see the full beauty of the house which is attracted for us to settle down in there. But please remember that we do not live in the house only in good time or nice weather but also in bad weather like heavy rain, storm, dark, and so on. Therefore, I believe that we should go to take a look at the house we want to buy during or after raining because we could see everything and what is exact about the house. Moreover, the house owner would be more powerless in rising up the price while we the buyer have more power to negotiate the price.

What are the advantages of rain for us when buying a house?

1. The rain will show the quality of the roof

For some roof we could see by our eyes, as we stand on the ground, if the roof missing tiles, or different in color, or was fixed, or curling up, or broken flash but for some roofs we need to claim up to check in order to see the truth. Another simple way is to get into the house and check the ceiling if it has ever touched water from the roof or check the wall if the water has ever flowed through. Right after raining, we could clearly see the quality of the roof.

2. The rain will show the quality of drainage system

Good roof is good for preventing the rain get into the house from above but we also need good drainage system to drive water away as quick as possible. Otherwise, the flood water will destroy your house foundation and road. Below are the factors we should check after raining:

The trash in front of the house: Will the trash prevent the drainage? Or if people leave the trash near drainage system?

• The drainage pipe in front of the house: How big is the drainage pipe? How many drainage pips are there in the area?
• The drainage system in the house: We can try to open each tabs in the house to check the quality of drainage in the house. If it is good it will flow quickly and vice versus.
• The foot of the wall: By taking a look at the foot of the wall both inside and outside we can see the scare by our eyes that flood left on the foot of the wall if there are any.
• Location: In a certain location there could be different slop so the water will surely drain to the lower slop. If your house is located in lower slop you should re-consider your purchasing.

3. The rain will show the drainage system in the whole area

After the storm the sky is clear but in Cambodia after the storm the flood is full. It is normal if the flood happens after raining but we should consider the level of the flood, the side that it cover, and how quickly it drain? Most important thing is how bad is the traffic jam in that area?

4. The rain will show the quality of the house material/equipment

When we see a new building truly we see everything new and nice but it does not mean it is good quality or well installed. After 5 years we will see its quality clearly but we cannot wait until 5 years to make decision so we could check some factors to see its quality.

• The factors that we should check after raining are: The painting color: if the painting color is good quality the wall will not change its original color when touching the rain but It will quickly get dry.
• The doors and windows: when the rain comes, the wind would blow so we should check the installing quality of the door and windows and see to it if it is watertight.
• Electrical pillar: electric system in Cambodia is limited so we should be careful and take care ourselves. Please check the electrical pillar in front or near your house if it is well installed or organized that will be able to face the strong wind.

5. The rain will show your true feeling to the house itself

That same family which we just talked about above had taken a look at another house. The house is not new construction but not too old. They had taken a carful observation as it is not new because they were afraid if there is something unacceptable to live in. After a careful look, as they sat down negotiating the price the rain came.  Since there was raining out there prevented them from leaving they just laid down on the sofa drinking hot tea and watched TV. The kids also played around and even took a nap. Right after the rain stopped they inspected the house once again and finally found out something they will need to work on if they buy but they finally decided to buy because they felt like at home while they were waiting in the house during the raining.