Custom Homes in West End, Cincinnati, OH

The West End (ZIP 45203) lies between Central Parkway and the Mill Creek industrial corridor, a neighborhood whose 19th-century fabric was heavily cleared through the 20th century, leaving a mix of surviving blocks, mid-century housing and open parcels.

Where ground was cleared decades ago, the useful questions are what was demolished, whether it was backfilled to a standard anyone recorded, and what utilities were capped and left. A parcel that looks like a clean grassed lot can carry an old foundation, a filled basement or an abandoned lateral. Those are all solvable, but they are costs, and they belong in the purchase decision rather than in a change order at excavation.