Peter, lots of good advise. Out of all the mechanical systems in the house that could be "bad", the electrical is probably the most inexpensive to fix. If everything else checks out, I'd stick with it.
For me, the big red flag would be cracks in the foundation and water leaks. That is a far more difficult and expensive fix. Some questions for thought: What type of soil is there? Clay, sand, or rock? What is the grading like? Does it flow away from the house? Have they had water in the basement in the past?
Sorry, water and I are not friends. At our last place we had clay soil and the entire back yard sloped towards the house. With the spring thaw and nowhere for the water to go, my backyard stayed wet and completely unusable until July. My sump pump ran constantly and I actually burned out 3 of them in 10 years. Luckily I had an awesome foundation - not even a hint of a leak. It could have been a disaster.
Shawn
