Home Inspection

Buying a home is a big investment. Doing a home inspection can protect you by ensuring you don’t get less than you bargained for.

There are two ways to arrange an inspection.

Method one: If there’s enough time before the offer date, you can find, or I can arrange for a home inspector to come in before you even register your offer – the cost to you is approximately $400-$500. If there’s no ‘holdback’ date, of course there’s a chance that someone else could make an offer on the home before you are ready. To reduce this risk, I can get next-day service from the qualified home inspectors on my Recommended Professional Services list.

Method two: The other option is to put a condition in the offer, stating that the agreement will be null and void unless you are satisfied with the inspection report. Usually you have 3-5 business days after acceptance of the offer, to get an inspector in there. Again, this can weaken your position if there is more than one offer on the property.

A qualified home inspector will give the home a thorough examination, checking the heating and cooling systems, plumbing and electrical systems, the roof, attic, walls, ceilings, floors, windows, doors, foundation, basement, basically all visible structures of the home. They’ll point out the need for major repairs, identify areas that may need attention in the near future, and explain what level of maintenance will be needed to keep the house in good shape. Most inspectors are more than happy to tell you about the home’s good qualities as well, so you can decide if it’s a good fit. Sometimes the final reports can be hard to read if you don’t know too much about the inner workings of a house, so we’ll go over the report together to make sure everything is clear.