Landlord Quick Tip

Tip #82: What’s Wrong With This Picture?

by Jay Markanich, Real Estate Inspector

One of my pet peeves is driving through neighborhoods, trying to locate the house I am to inspect, and seeing no visible address numbers from the street. That, or they are cleverly placed in the same illogical spot on every house, but not at all visible from the road.

landlord helpSuch was the case with this house.

Do you see an address? I don’t either. But it’s there.

I knew it was the right house because the one next door had a very visible address. But not this one.

There are VERY IMPORTANT reasons for have a very visible address!

It could be that Grandma wants to come visit, sure. Or the mail man gets the right box. Or so your guests arrive in time for Thanksgiving dinner.

But a VERY IMPORTANT reason is so Emergency Services can find your house in a hurry, particularly at night.

Have you found the address yet? It’s there. Right on the mailbox! The numbers are the same color as the mailbox! Do you think that on a rainy night, even with a great flashlight, an ambulance driver is going to be able to see that? Neither do I.

I have heard the urban legend that there are jurisdictions which fine people for hard-to-find address numbers. I don’t know if that’s true, but why wouldn’t we want our addresses to be very easy to see?

My recommendation: If when you pull up to a house and the address numbers are no where to be found, suggest that difficulty to the listing agent and make the change! Somebody’s life might depend on it!

Jay Markanich has 29 years experience, is bi-lingual English/Spanish, and owns Jay Markanich Real Estate Inspections, LLC, based in Bristow, serving all of Northern Virginia. Prior to doing home inspections Jay was a general contractor.

See last weeks Landlord Quick Tip.

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