Buying a home is a huge undertaking that demands financial commitment and great diligence. Besides engaging the services of a real estate agent and organizing the paperwork and finances, you need to make sure that the home you buy is in great shape. Before you purchase a home, you need to conduct a home inspection. According to the American Society of Home Inspectors (ASHI), an inspection involves a visual examination of the home's physical structure and its systems, ranging from the foundation to the roof.
Inspecting the physical condition of a house is a critical part of your home-buying process. It helps you determine whether you're paying a fair price. Also, the inspection report informs you about the nature and extent of repairs the home might need before you can move in or shortly after you move in. An inspection report that gives the home a clean bill of health contributes to your peace of mind and confidence in your newly acquired real estate asset.
Though not a mandatory requirement by your mortgage lender or financier, having a home inspection is often highly recommended to ensure that you invest in a sound property. An inspector looks at potential problematic areas of the home, such as the roof, plumbing, HVAC, foundation, driveway, and electrical wiring.
No matter how good the property looks or how experienced your real estate agent is, there are hidden defects that only a professional home inspector can detect. Even if the sale contracts include an inspection report from the seller, it's best to have your own independently conducted inspection. The seller's inspector might have inadvertently overlooked some equally important issues for you as a homeowner.
Structural issues are not easily detected. However, home inspectors are trained to spot such problematic areas as they know what symptoms to check. Make sure to use a qualified and licensed home inspector in your state for an impartial assessment before buying.
A home inspection is particularly critical if you are buying an older property that might need several upgrades. Home inspection experts can also help you plan for future renovations or upgrades. Such a detailed home inspection report tells you about the home's "life expectancy" in areas like the roof, furnace, or appliances.
An inspection can also reveal whether illegal alterations or additions have been made to a home. For example, altered basements or garages that didn't follow the building code or were completed without a proper permit can affect your taxes, insurance, and overall property value.
In addition, some insurers won't insure a property if certain physical conditions are found or one without certifications like four-point inspections. A four-point inspection looks at the roof, plumbing, electrical, and HVAC systems of a home for risk. Home inspectors can perform these assessments and save you the time and money for such tasks later when seeking insurance coverage for your newly acquired home.
Since a home inspection explores all architectural issues and potential system malfunctions, you can leverage the found variances when negotiating a better home purchase price as a buyer. If you are not comfortable with the home inspection findings, it also gives you an opportunity to back out.
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