The value of home inspections for first time home buyers cannot be overstated. In fact, it can’t be overstated for any home buyer.
Too often, first time home buyers rely of the advice of friends and family and fail to make it a condition of their purchase contract that an inspection be done that is satisfactory to them. When those deals close, potential problems might not be discovered right away but might start to creep up within a few months. Maybe the furnace or air conditioning units have broken parts. Maybe the roof will be in need of replacement very shortly. All of these things can and do occur.
The potential problems when you purchase a home are many. Unless you are a qualified inspector yourself, it is unlikely that you will catch all of the potential problems. Licensed inspectors will have a detailed checklist of items to check that they have been trained to review. The advantage for you the home buyer is that you don’t have to contact a plumber, electrician, roofer, etc. to check all of the different systems within your potential new home.
The other advantage of a home inspection is that you have some level of comfort that you understand the condition of the home you are attempting to purchase. The main advantages for you are that you are keenly aware of what costs are facing you in future and that you now have some level of negotiating power with the seller if a serious problem is discovered.
So, a home inspector is an important part of the home buying process. You should discuss the issue with your real estate professional or lawyer before you start looking for a home to ensure that everyone is aware that it is an important facet to any transaction. If you are negotiating the contract yourself, make sure that you discuss the issue with a lawyer before making an offer so that you don’t prejudice your rights in any way.
Assuming that you have taken these steps, the question is how do you contact and contract with a home inspector in order to take advantage of their skills.
1. Finding a Home Inspector
The fastest way to try and find a good home inspector is to talk to friends, neighbors or your real estate professional to see who they recommend. Typically, someone you know or someone involved in your transaction will be able to refer a professional that they have worked with.
When you are talking to these people, find out as much as you can about the home inspector. Did they pull up in a company vehicle, did they look professional, did they act professional, etc? Other important questions will include whether they encouraged people to stay with them during the inspection? These are all important questions because they set the base from which you can make a decision.
The other options available to you include looking through the yellow pages, surfing the Internet or calling the National Association of Home Inspectors in the US or the Canadian Association of Home Inspectors in Canada. These groups will help you find licensed and trained inspectors in your area.
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2. Deciding on Your Inspector
The process of deciding on a home inspector is fairly straightforward and is the same as when you are dealing with any service professional. If you have a referral from a friend or real estate professional you might give more weight to that in your decision process.
However, no matter how you come about the names of potential inspectors, you should follow 3 rules that work with virtually any home service of any kind:
- Get at least 3 different quotes from different inspectors
- Ask for references
- Ask for details about what they will do including the time involved, the items being checked and the reports that will be produced.
With home inspectors, you should also confirm with them as to what will and will not be inspected. Another important point is to review their Limitation of Liability agreement. This agreement (called different things in different jurisdictions) tells you what an inspector will be, or will not be, liable for if it is discovered after the inspection or if there is an oversight. Taking a few minutes to read this agreement will help you understand what the role of the home inspector is. Of course, there are more questions to ask but these three questions will generally get the answers you need in order to make a good decision.
3. Getting the Inspection Done
Once you have decided on an inspector it is time for you to become more interested in what is involved in the inspection itself.
To find out what is involved in a quality home inspection I suggest that you review the homepages of the associations I listed above. Each of the sites has the list of items that will and will not be inspected. Simply confirm with your home inspector what they will and will not be inspecting.
One of the most important aspects of the home inspection is to try and be there yourself during it. Depending on the property involved, the process may take half of a day so allow yourself plenty of time to be available.
Being at the inspection will allow these four things:
- You will be on hand to make sure that the inspection is completed though this should not be an issue;
- You will be available to discuss potential problems immediately with the inspector. Make him/her aware that you want to discuss problems that day; and
- You will have a chance to ask the inspector about any other issues that might concern you that might not be on the list of items that are inspected.
Once the inspection is completed you will then be presented with an Inspection Report that will outline what has or hasn’t been done, the status of the matters that were inspected and a list of potential and actual problems that may need action. 4. Following Up with Your Inspection Report
The Inspection Report is the written documentation that you will use as support for positions you take with regards to the property you are considering buying. As such, it is important that you review it carefully and that you discuss it with your real estate professional or lawyer.
You should in fact discuss it with these professionals before talking to the vendor assuming that time permits it. In some circumstances the Inspection Report may disclose such significant issues that you may have rights to cancel the deal.
In other cases, the problems might be sufficient to renegotiate certain terms of the contract (ie price) and in some cases it may disclose issues that are minor that create no legal rights whatsoever. This is why you should discuss it with a real estate professional or lawyer prior to taking action so that you are fully aware of what you can and cannot do.
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