What's An Inspection?
Why you should get an inspection and are they worth the cost?
It's been said that the #1 largest purchase you'll make in your lifetime is buying a home. In my opinion, it absolutely is worth the few hundred dollars you will spend before you get ready to spend hundreds of thousands. Once you close on your home...it's yours. All purchase contracts allow you to have an inspection contingency period so please take advantage of this opportunity to make sure your new home is safe and sound.
Whether you are buying or selling a home, you should have a professional home inspection performed.
A home inspection will look at the systems that make up the building such as:
- Structural elements, foundation, framing, roof trusses, etc.
- Plumbing systems
- Roofing
- Electrical systems
- HVAC Air Conditioning systems
- Pool / Hot Tub
- Cosmetic condition, paint, siding etc.
In addition, you will also want to have a WDO Termite inspection and depending upon the age of your home, your lender may also require you have a 4-point or 5-point inspection as well. Also, most insurance carriers today will offer you a huge discount on your homeowner's insurance if you also perform a UMVI Wind Mitigation report and it meets current standards.
If you are buying a home, you need to know exactly what you are getting. A home inspection, performed by a professional home inspector, will reveal any hidden problems with the home so that they may be addressed BEFORE the deal is closed. You should require an inspection at the time you make a formal offer. Make sure the contract has an inspection contingency. Then, hire your own inspector and pay close attention to the inspection report. If you aren't comfortable with what he finds, you should kill the deal.
Likewise, if you are selling a home, you want to know about such potential hidden problems before your house goes on the market. Almost all contracts include the condition that the contract is contingent upon completion of a satisfactory inspection. And most buyers are going to insist that the inspection be a professional home inspection, usually by an inspector they hire. If the buyer's inspector finds a problem, it can cause the buyer to get cold feet and the deal can often fall through. At best, surprise problems uncovered by the buyer's inspector will cause delays in closing, and usually you will have to pay for repairs at the last minute, or take a lower price on your home.
It's better to pay for your own inspection before putting your home on the market. Find out about any hidden problems and correct them in advance. Otherwise, you can count on the buyer's inspector finding them, at the worst possible time.
If you have any questions or would like to get additional information regarding inspections, please contact Joe Bornstein, 877-333-2811 or email at joe@rockspringsrealty.com
