Talked to my neighbor who's a plumber about the $20k sewer line repair he just did on a house in Plaza Midwood, and he said something that made me look at old listings totally different.

He said he can tell just from the street which houses from the 50s are about to have a major problem, because of the trees. The roots go for the old clay pipes every time. Now I'm looking at all these charming old bungalows and wondering if the pretty oak out front is a $15,000 time bomb waiting to go off. Has anyone else had a pro point out a hidden cost like that after you already liked a place?