As you certainly know, a professional home inspection is a critical part of the home buying process. A home inspector is trained to identify defects and deficiencies in the home, as well as safety hazards that could put you and your loved ones at risk.
The simple truth is, people who are shopping for a home tend to look past some very serious problems with a home. And it's easy to do (I'm guilty of this myself while home shopping). You may be smitten with a very attractive room or layout in the home, and in your fog of admiration, you may fail to notice that stain on the ceiling which could indicate a roof leak...and subsequently, a huge repair bill.
Another example: that white chalky residue on the basement floor and walls may look like a little discoloration of the concrete to you, but to a trained home inspector, it could indicate a major problem with water intrusion in the basement. In this example, the home inspector's training and knowledge could save you thousands of dollars if the basement floods. Replacing a drowned furnace and water heater is not cheap, and disasters like this can be avoided if you enlist the services of a qualified home inspector.
Safety Hazards and your Home Inspection
Another important aspect of your home inspection is SAFETY.
While safety seems somewhat unrelated to home inspections, it is actually at the very core of the home inspection.
For instance, a home inspector may note that the sidewalk near the swimming pool is cracked and one edge has tilted because frost in the ground has lifted it. He notes in the home inspection report that the damaged sidewalk should be repaired as soon as possible.
Yes, the damaged sidewalk is something that is "broken" in the home, so it makes sense for the inspector to mention it in the report. But why is it so important that the sidewalk be repaired immediately? After all, it's just a chunk of concrete to walk on.
The reason is because it is a safety hazard: a child walking near the pool can trip on the sidewalk, strike their head on the pool edge, and drown in a matter of minutes.
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Home Inspectors have YOUR BEST INTEREST in Mind
The stairs in your prospective new home might LOOK okay, but are they really constructed properly to ensure your safety? Are the electrical panels and sub-panels properly grounded or bonded? Is there adequate ventilation in the attic? Is that black mold in the basement dangerous, or just unsightly?
These are the sort of questions that home inspectors are trained to answer. A home inspector's job is to take the guesswork out of the equation so that you know exactly what you're buying and where you might encounter a problem in the future.
Your Home Inspector will give you CONFIDENCE and PEACE OF MIND so that you can make an INFORMED decision regarding your home purchase.
After all, you have enough to think about during your real estate transaction...mortgage payments, escrow, closing costs, down payments, legal costs, and moving, of course. Worrying about whether your home's systems and components are healthy is a headache that you don't need.
