Home Inspections

If you are curious to know what happens at the home inspection, it is not all that complicated, although most home inspections are different, and they vary from state to state, and even within the same state, its counties and cities. In addition, home inspectors are not licensed in many states, but that does not take away from the fact that you can find very professional inspector, with lots of experience on the job.

There are things that require a specific license to inspect, so a home inspector's standard practice does not include: Rodents, mold, mildew, and fungi; wood-destroying organisms, lead, radon, methane, radiation and formaldehyde detection.

On the other hand, standard things that are checked during an average home inspection include, but are not limited to: Elements involving structural components; wall, ceiling, floor, roof and foundation construction, exterior evaluation, roof and attic, which does not include a guarantee of roof condition, or a roof certification; plumbing and system components such as the circuit breakers, main panel, wiring, grounding, exhaust fans, receptacles, ceiling fans and light fixtures. The aforementioned are among the things that you can expect during a home inspection.

It will also include appliances, dishwasher, range and oven, built-in microwaves, garbage disposal and smoke detectors, garage, including the slab, walls, ceiling, entry, vents, firewall, garage door, lights, receptacles, windows and roof.

You will get a very detailed home inspection report the report will not describe the condition of an item if it is in excellent shape. However, you should look at your report for the notes that detail serious problems with an item, or the service it may need.

Among the serious problems that you should look for are health and safety concerns, roofs that may have a short life-expectancy, furnace, heater, and/or air conditioning malfunction, foundation problems, and moisture and drainage issues, among others.

You can expect sellers to balk at having to spend large sums of money to fix every issue listed on the home inspection report. This is where your negotiating skills will come into play. You will need to decide which items you can see to fixing yourself, and which items the seller should take care of, but there are sellers who will want to sell the house as is, and they will not move off their price. You are going to have to decide whether the home is worth the price that is being asked and the cost of the repairs.

In addition, if you entrust a repair to an unmotivated seller, it is probable that the seller is going to opt for the lowest cost repair available rather than the best, and to choose the appliances that cost the least.

You are going to have to decide if you can entrust the owner to carry out any major repair, or if it would be better to try to negotiate the price again, or perhaps it would be better to walk away from the deal.

Be aware that no home is perfect, and that even new homes have issues that will turn up in an home inspection report. With this in mind, perhaps you will not be too demanding when it comes time to discuss the inspection report, and the owner may be willing to negotiate.