Most common questions asked before having a home
inspection:
Why would I need a
home inspection?
The purchase of a new house or
condominium for most people will be one of the biggest investments in their
life time. Having first hand knowledge
about the present condition of the property can prevent costly, unpleasant and
inconvenient findings. A home inspection
will help you learn about major or minor issues and maintenance procedures.
If you plan on selling your home
in the near future, or bought it new without an independent evaluation, a
professional home inspection allows you to have first hand knowledge about issues
with the home. These issues may be
significant enough to warrant repairs before putting it on the market and
having an offer from a potential buyer. Having concerns addressed by the original builder before the home
warranty is up is a "must" to protect
your investment!
How important is a
home inspection for a new house or condominium?
Inspections performed on new
construction are an absolute necessity. A new home is a structure that has had no use to the plumbing system, related
fixtures, electrical system, heating system, etc.. A used home has had a "break-in period" and
the test of time has occurred. The most
common problems with new construction is the overall quality control of the
tradesman building the home and finding their mistakes, unfinished work or non-professionalism
when building the structure. Several
surprising issues will always be revealed during a new construction inspection
that usually cannot be seen by the average person.
What is the cost of a
professional home inspection?
All inspections performed have
several different ranges of prices, usually varying by size, features of the
home, age, location, and the overall time it will take to perform the
inspection and final report. Do not let
the price of the inspection be the deciding factor when choosing a qualified
professional to inspect one of the biggest investments of your life. The phrase "you get what you pay for" speaks the truth in our profession. You have the right to choose any inspector,
do not make the mistake of just getting the job done as quickly as
possible, or as cheap as you can, just to move to the next step of the home
purchase or meeting a deadline. Waving an
inspection just to get an offer accepted is the biggest mistake you could ever
make.
In the very least have a brief
"walk-through" inspection which is better than nothing. If you wave your inspection contingency, at
least, for your sake, have it inspected for the wealth of knowledge you will
gain in your buying decision. It is well
worth the cost and your time, even with a new home. Remember, all home inspectors, their
inspections performed, qualifications, experience, final reports, and their overall
professional service are not created equal!
How much time will
the inspection take and when do I receive my report?
For an average condominium you should
allow for one and half to two hours time. Most homes you should allow for three to four hours time from start to
finish. Very large, custom or unique
homes will typically take up to
five
to eight hours to finish the inspection. We encourage that you are present for the
entire inspection, or at least attend the last hour or two for a complete
walk-through. The walk-through is
designed to discuss the entire home and related issues that will be in the
report. You will have a complete verbal
understanding of the home before you leave the site and hopefully all of your questions
will be answered. By attending the
walk-through you will learn valuable information, several maintenance tips, and
how the home, or its related systems operate. If you cannot attend the inspection our report is exceptionally
narrative and will explain all of the issues as if we were personally speaking
to you. Digital pictures are available
(at an additional cost with some homes) if requested, and most reports are
available within 24 hours of the inspection.
Can I do the
inspection myself, or have my "knowledgeable" friend or family member do it for
me?
It is always great to have an
extra set of eyes from different people to look around and give an opinion
about the home you are about to purchase. Unfortunately most friends or family members are not a third-party
professional in all aspects of the home inspection and it can become more bias
or more emotionally involved with your purchase. They may specialize in one part of the entire
inspection process that is needed. For
example, lets say your brother-in-law is a roofing contractor and offers to do
the home inspection, he may be a great roofer and very knowledgeable in that
area, but will lack all of the professional skills to perform a complete thorough inspection of the
remainder of the home and provide a detailed report.
A qualified home inspector can
identify many issues that the average person would never see, and issues that
will need corrections now or in the upcoming future. This comes with specialized training and every
day experiences on the job. We have performed
thousands of inspections seeing the same system homes with completely different
issues from one development to the next. Even knowledgeable and professional contractors, individual private investors
and real estate investment groups always hire a third party home inspector to
provide a detailed list of issues needing corrections to make an educated
decision before a building purchase.
When problems are revealed,
can we ask "did it pass or fail the
inspection?"
You can always ask, but the
answer is….professionally performed home inspections will not fail the home. It is people that fail home sales or purchases
by the response to what was revealed during the inspection. Most sellers are honest and disclose all
knowledge they have about the history of the home. All homes have positive and
negative features, but most homes can always be repaired to meet industry
standards if people are willing to make an agreement and complete the
corrections warranted. Keep things in
perspective, you cannot expect the seller to repair every maintenance issue or little item that is found during the
inspection. Do not walk away from your
dream home over small issues or difficult sellers. Although a home may look perfect when initially
walking through it, no home is perfect and you should always be more concerned
about major defects, issues that will lead up to defects, safety issues, or
expensive items that could affect the financing of the home. Our
job is to identify the positive and negitive issues with the structure at that time
and indicate what will need to be repaired or replaced, we are not there to "pass or fail" the house.
Would it help if the
seller was present for the inspection and review?
No, although it can be helpful
for some history of the house, or if you have questions that need to be addressed,
we can make a list of these things and have it answered in the inspection
report. Buying a home can be very emotional
for people and the inspection time is our
time to tour the home and speak freely between us without distractions,
conflicts or disagreements about of our findings. An inspection time period is your time to walk
the property, neighborhood, take photos, measurements and plan out the layout
of your new home. In some cases the
homeowner may not be able to leave and we can still conduct our inspection with
no problems and review it with you in private.
What if something was
missed during the inspection?
Unfortanully performing a home
inspection is not a "rubber stamp" or final approval of the home and is not a guarantee
that some other issues will not develope over time. Most issues that come up later are usually a
misunderstanding of a condition found during the inspection, and/or not
reviewing the inspection report and acting upon the information provided. In many cases if issues found are not
corrected in a timely manner they will usually result into some other problem(s). Hiring professional contractors to perform
repairs and/or having the homeowner conduct some of the repairs after reviewing
the inspection report is something that happens most often. If these items are not professionally re-inspected they can turn into other
issues in the future or be brought up again during another inspection.
Can a real estate
agent influence your inspection findings or final report?
Never, our inspection and the
information provided are for you, and you only. I really appreciate referrals from real estate professionals but our
jobs are separate. Most real estate
agents want you to have the best home inspection experience possible with
clear, concise information to protect you. They will usually refer you to a list of qualified professionals with a
wide range of experience and price quote fees. It is your choice to use who you like. (Most real estate agents will discourage a
cheap inspection…remember, you get what you pay for). I will provide quality information needed for
you and your agent so you can move forward to the next step of your home
purchase decision.
What about future
questions after the inspection?
We encourage you to contact us
with any follow-up questions that you may have. During the inspection we strive to answer all of your questions and
concerns, but an inspection period is a small window of time to absorb a lot of
information. Please feel free to contact
us anytime after your inspection with Thompson Inspection Services.
When do I schedule
the inspection and make payment arrangements?
Please call us as soon as you can
after your purchase acceptance agreement contract is completed to get your
appointment time arranged. We perform
inspections Monday-Friday at
10:00 AM
or
3:00 PM, with a 3-4 hour
process with you. Weekend inspections can be requested without an extra charge
depending on our weekly schedule, workload, and the time of year. Payment is always due at the end of the inspection performed by check. If it is sent to escrow a small extra charge
will apply. We do not accept credit
cards.
Residential
inspection check list before having us arrive to perform your inspection:
In order for us to conduct a complete and thorough home
inspection please confirm the following to expedite the inspection process. We want to perform the best possible service
for you in a timely manner!
- Make
sure the utilities are on: Electricity, natural or propane gas, main water
supply, hot water pilot lights, and direct vent fireplaces. We do not turn on the main water, related
plumbing fixture shut off valves, the main electrical disconnect or ignite
gas appliances or fireplaces.
- Make
sure that access to all areas are available for inspection or to
access: The crawlspace, attic,
garage doors, electrical service panel, heating plant, hot water heater,
main water shut off, locked gates, rooms or their access doors.
- Make
sure that the homeowner's pets are accounted for by having them removed
from the property, inside a kennel or in a safe location to prevent
escape. We are not responsible for their well being, but if friendly it
will not be a concern to stay present.
- If the
structure is new, or being remodeled, you will receive a more complete and
thorough evaluation if the home is completed; All kitchen appliances
installed, plumbing fixtures in place and functioning, doors, cabinets and
flooring installed. Basically the home should be close to "move-in
condition" or just before your builder walk-through orientation.