Home Inspections – how to avoid big headaches!

Home Inspections – how to avoid big headaches! 

Everyone seems to fear the home inspection because you just never know what will come up and what could potentially kill the deal.  As with everything in this business, there are certain steps one can take to minimize the chance for surprise and disaster.

I recently had the chance to speak with Michelle Teague of All About Homes and she provided some very helpful tips that I will share below:

Prior to a home inspection it is helpful to review what a home inspector does and does not cover during the inspection with your client.  This will set realistic expectations.  A home inspector will visually inspect all safety and functionality issues that deal with structure, the exterior, the roof, chimneys, electrical, HVAC, water heater, plumbing, attic and the interior (i.e. walls, ceilings, floors, windows, appliances etc)

A home inspector will NOT do code inspections, they are not contractors, they cannot do repairs themselves, they do not inspect systems owned by utilities or municipalities and they will not do specialty inspections such as mold, termite, or structural.  They will recommend that a special inspection be done and can usually point out problems like mold, but they cannot test the mold for instance.

One thing a buyer should know beforehand is that home inspection reports are not as scary as they might appear to be.  A good home inspector will provide a very thorough report and it helps to let buyers know that every home inspection will reveal “problems.”  The key is to distinguish between the major problems and the minor ones.  I always tell my clients that the issues to pay attention to are the ones that are classified as “Safety Concerns,”  or anything else that may be a major expense in the near future.

Major expenses include masonry work (look for heavy cracking, leaning walls, cracking and sagging around windows, or crumbling parapets), plumbing (check for low pressure), electrical (look for old fuses and panels that might indicate things aren’t up to code), heating and cooling systems, structural issues, and water damage.
Everything else can usually be categorized as minor and not worth losing a deal over.

If you set expectations up front, your home inspection will go more smoothly and buyers will be less stressed out about this potentially difficult step in the process!