The first thing you notice about this 1997 stucco home in Glendale, Arizona is the bright blue paint. Behind that bold color is a house with deferred maintenance, water getting in, and roof details that tell the real story. My thermal camera found active leaks that you’d never see on a walkthrough.
Outside
- Patchy stucco repairs and open holes in the walls.
- Foundation cracks, peeling paint on the patio, and settling at the patio roof and walkways.
- A cracked garage door panel, loose trim and poor caulking where the water heater lines go through the wall.
The roof
- Curling underlayment, missing bird blocking under the tiles, exposed nails and loose ridge caps. The original underlayment is failing.
- The flat roof section shows alligatoring (a cracked surface that looks like reptile skin), cracked mortar and missing flashing. The 2020 heat pump up there runs fine, but the roof around it doesn’t look good.
The leak you can’t see
Inside, the thermal camera confirmed active leaks coming from the upstairs bathroom. Water damage was already showing in the garage ceiling below it. A thermal camera sees temperature differences, and wet drywall shows up cooler than dry drywall around it, so it can point to a leak before stains appear.
Other findings
- Hot and cold lines reversed at a sink.
- Noisy appliances and weak bath fans.
- Cracked bathroom tile and a loose toilet.
- Loose windows upstairs and battery-only smoke detectors.
What it means for buyers
This house has good bones. It needs proper paint prep, sealing, insulation and, most of all, water control. Eye-catching paint or not, the hidden water damage is what really matters, and it’s the kind of thing that can lead to mold and termite problems if it’s left alone.
Watch the full inspection
See the unscripted inspection in the video above, or watch it on YouTube. Book your inspection online or call 623-399-0079.
Property Inspections Plus is a Gilbert, AZ home inspection company led by Certified Master Inspector Dan Pierce. We inspect homes across the East Valley, the Phoenix metro and the rest of Arizona. See all of our service areas.
