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Depends if it was rehabbed professionally or not. I've been in fire damaged homes that, even though, everything was new, it still had the odor of lingering smoke, even after 5 years. Water emptied into the basement with hoses may not be as bad as continuous water leakage/seepage, and, that water is 'usually' pumped/vacumn out shortly after the fire.

Kim Eisen
RE/MAX Realty 100
"Helping people make smart real estate decisions for over 28 years'
(651) 457-HOME (4663)

We bought a Victorian house that had fire damage in the third level attic. Since the structure was still sound we had no problem buying the house. We had an inspector take a look at it, and when he gave his safety stamp of approval, we felt ok with buying it. Your best bet is to have an inspector look at the home and check for any remaining damage...you should also check with the city and look at all permits that were pulled on the house and make sure everything was OK'd by a city inspector. If they didn't pull permits, then I would not buy the house.

They always say, lightning doesn't strike twice in the same place, so I personally would not be worried about it happening again.

You have a good of chance hitting powerball as you would the house getting struck by lightening again.... there is no reason not to buy the house if it was totally renovated, you would make your offer contingent upon a home inspection, make sure teh home inspection does a thorough job in checking every part of the house (more than normal) to make everything was done right an dthere are no signs of the fire left behind. If so go for it. you may be able to use it as a negotiating tool to get a lower price on a great home. good luck

Hi Connie:

Write the pros and cons if you were to purchase the house. It sounds like you love what they have done with it, but that you may not get peace of mind. If you love the house so much - make sure you do your due diligence, have an inspection by a licensed inspector, gather all that you can from the contractors that worked on the house, check their standings with the commerce dept. - basically do your homework.

Are you always going to be concerned about the changes of lightning striking your house? What are some things that can be done to alleviate this?

I'm pleased that the seller is providing such complete disclosure. But, the importance of your home inspection cannot be stressed enough. With that much water going through the lower level, you may want to have a mold inspection done as well.

The fact that it was struck by lightening would not deter me; however, your due diligence (inspection) will be just that much more important. If I was purchasing and/or a client of mine was, I would also look into the contractor that did the extensive work.

Sound like a very nice house!