You might find such a house on a crawl space. That would have the ductwork etc under the house but without a basement.

Yes, piping would be under the slab, which could be expensive to repair. Asbestos could be in vinyl tile flooring, spray-on ceiling texture (popcorn), pipe insulation, attic insulation (vermiculite), drywall compound, siding and duct insulation. But it's unlikely to be in all of those. We're in the north, and looking for a house on a slab greatly reduces the pool of available houses.

If the house is built on a slab, the HVAC/ducts are probably in the attic. If it's on a crawlspace they could be under the house or in the attic. If you have ductwork in the slab, you can just seal it off and run new ducts in the attic.

Asbestos flooring was use up until the mid/late 1970s. If you want to remodel, it could be an issue.

We have a house like you are looking for in Florida. The plumbing is in the concrete slab. Ducting for AC and heat in the attic. Our attic is crawl around, not stand up height.

When we had a water leak in the pipes (within the slab) the plumbing was rerouted to the attic. Not as big a job as we expected and commonly done here. The only negative since the rerouting is that the water in the pipes (in the attic) gets hot so you have to let the ‘cold’ run for awhile before you get cold through the taps.

Why do you want a house without a basement?

Just tossing this out there and it does not have anything to do with what happened last week. Are you planning on a safe room for tornados? Ohio is spread out but some areas have been seeing an increase in the number.

maifleur03;

That's interesting you should mention tornadoes because that actually did cross my mind and I did research it a bit on the internet. That is a good reason to have a basement. However I have two other brothers in the area and can visit them if tornado warnings go up but that's a pain and it's better to look no further than your own house, I know.

I am actually not opposed to a basement provided the laundry is on the ground floor. I am actually not eliminating a basement, I am only researching the implications of the pitfalls of owning a house without a basement.

Forget about your brothers because as I found out one year by the time the various weather stations broadcast that there is one it will have gone past you unless you plan on staying with them every time severe weather is forecast. Good luck finding one on a slab but you might want to think of a basement as the attic's of old except for safety of what you store put it above the floor. I know about that one also.

Whether or not your laundry is in the basement, I'd prefer a home with a basement, for added storage and a place for mechanicals. You'll need to see if the homes had aluminum wiring (you can read about issues of homes of this period, elsewhere), and what type of plumbing is installed (some types used in that period were prone to leaks). Homes may have plaster walls and wood floors (better sound absorption/construction) or drywall and plywood flooring. No matter where you look, check for water drainage/potential infiltration points should there be a "100 year" rainstorm. Search for your own home inspector and make sure they're well qualified with years of experience. Note that many of today's home inspectors are reluctant to point out too many negatives for fear that real estate agents won't call them for future jobs. I realize that you're an experienced home owner, but once I began looking for another home, I saw first hand how much things had declined, re: disclosure statements from home owners and real estate agents.

Interior room of the house with no windows (e.g. closet) is your best option for tornado shelter if no basement.

I would encourage a basement for storm reasons alone, but also easy access to HVAC, plumbing, etc. If you find a home w/o 1st floor laundry, you can have space accommodated in an extra bedroom, or bathroom.

ceilsan32 - I especially like your response about home inspectors being reluctant to point out too many negatives because I believe that's what happened on my first home purchase. I was a first home buyer 30 years ago and I didn't know at the time so I let the realtor pick the home inspector. He inspected the house and didn't find any water problems. Then a few weeks after he left, we had a big rainstorm and water started flowing into the basement from the outside. I had the home waterproofed from the outside, a very expensive proposition costing about $10K. That was 30 years ago, now it's probably double or triple that. That is the last time I'll let realtor pick a home inspector. Next time when I buy this upcoming house, I'll pick my own and research them to be sure they are the best.