4 Reasons Why Having a Home Inspection Matters in Real Estate
You have bought a house and feel like you are walking on cloud nine. Why shouldn’t you after realizing one of your life dreams? On the move-in day, you take your family to the house you describe as paradise. The moving company truck stops in the driveway. Your children run and jump excitedly to the front door.
Now, you take out the key to your house, open the door, and proudly walk in. Oh, God!
Several things that are just not right-the musty smell, the wallpaper is peeling off, the ceiling bends downwards in one corner, the roof leaks, and you also see a pool of water on the living room floor.
Your mind is spinning because you require money for roof repairs, floor renovations, and water damage cleanup.
You have no one to blame but yourself. You should have done a home inspection.
What is a Home Inspection?
A home inspection is a process that a trained and professional real estate inspector carries out to establish the value and state of the features of a house. Further, the inspector can find out the problems in the real estate property. The inspector also gives the estimates of the repair costs of the noted problems.
Whether you are a home seller or buyer, you need a home inspection for the following four reasons:
1. The Structural Issue
The structural features of a house are the most crucial factor to consider when conducting real estate negotiations. If you have structural weaknesses in a building, you can spend thousands of dollars in repairs. A home inspection discover the problems and alert you issues such as the foundation, cracks in the walls or ceiling, door frames, or the floor. Your home inspector will conduct a comprehensive check and write a report on several areas including:
- The exterior walls for cracks, a missing or damaged siding.
- House foundation to establish if it has the potential to allow water damage.
- The grading to see if it slopes properly.
- Garage to ensure the door locks smoothly.
- Roofing shingles and gutters.
- Plumbing, electrical, heating and cooling system, ventilation, and the HVAC air-conditioner.
- Kitchen appliances.
- The laundry room, bathrooms, and fire safety appliances.
As the buyer, your presence as the home inspector explains the findings will help you to understand the cost of the repairs in the home you plan to buy.
2. Home Inspection and your Price Negotiation Power
Once the home inspector files his findings on the house-for-sale, you have the opportunity to negotiate the price of the real estate based on evidence, not emotional feelings. If the inspector indicates that you need roof or HVAC replacement within five years, you can request the seller for price adjustments. In the case of too much damage to the property, the buyer can cancel the deal and look for a better house. Sometimes, the buyers can use the inspection report to ask for repairs from the home seller.
3. Establish the Home Safety Standards
The home inspector may find common issues that both the buyer and seller agree are not serious. However, there are serious problems that can compromise the safety of the occupants. For instance, you cannot overlook faulty electrical wiring, out-of-order plumbing, torn roofing, missing shingles, or inoperable doors and windows. Having the inspection gives you the chance to ascertain there are no obvious safety issues such as pest infestations by termites, powder post beetles, wood-boring insects, or the carpenter ants.
4. Know what the Home is Worth
Just as you take your car to a trained mechanic for repairs, you will need a qualified home inspector for guidance whether you intend to buy or sell real estate property. You cannot enter into a deal without knowing that the house has the correct pricing. The Realtors opines that you can buy a home at an overpriced amount, say at $245,000 while the actual value is $185,000. For the buyer, the inspection is the means to deciding how to sell the home as per the current market value. The home inspector is your teacher on the state of a particular real estate item.
