Don’t consider an inspection of the home as a complete evaluation, but rather property evaluation on the day it is inspected, taking into account normal wear and tear of the home based on age and location. A home inspection can also include for a little extra of course, Radon testing, pest inspections, pool inspections, water testing, energy audits, and many other specific items that may be location-specific.
Home inspections are also conducted (less often) by a home seller prior to putting the property on the market to see if there are any hidden problems, and also by owners simply wanting to care for their homes, prevent surprises, and keep the home investment value as high as possible
The following are areas that inspectors pay close attention to when inspecting your home:
1. Serious defects, such as large cracks in the home’s foundation; building out of level or plumb; decks not supported or installed properly, etc. These are items that are expensive to repair, which are systems needing more than two percent of the purchase price to fix.
2. Things that could lead to major defects – a roof flashing leak that could get bigger, damaged down spouts that could cause backup and water intrusion, or a beam that was not tied to the structure properly.
3. Safety hazards, such as exposed wiring in kitchens and bathrooms, no safety railing on decks more than 30 inches off the ground, lack of GFCI (Ground Fault Circuit Interrupters), etc.
Your inspector should counsel you on what to do about these issues. She may recommend a formal evaluation on more issues – by licensed or certified professionals who specialize in the problem areas. For instance, your inspector will advise you call a licensed structural or building engineer if they find areas of the home that are misaligned, as this could indicate a serious structural deficiency.
Home inspections are always done by a buyer when they sign a formal agreement, right?
This is patently false! As you will discover whenever you keep reading, a home inspection may be used for interim inspections in new construction, as a maintenance tool with a current home owner, a proactive technique by homeowners to create their property more sellable, and by buyers wanting to find out the situation of the potential home.
Homeowners, particularly, can benefit from getting a home inspection before listing the home. Here are just a several advantages for the seller:
· The seller knows the house! The home inspector will be able to obtain answers to his/her questions on the history of any problems they find.
· A home inspection can help the seller be much more objective as it pertains to setting a good price on the home.
· The seller may take the report and make it into an advertising piece for the home.
· The seller is going to be alerted to any safety issues found in the home before they open it down for open house tours.
· The seller could make repairs leisurely instead of being in a rush after the contract is signed.