Attend Home Inspection
As you prepare to make a significant financial investment with potential long-term repercussions, it is crucial to attend the home inspection. This is one of the most important parts of the home-buying process, and we strongly recommend that buyers be present during the inspection, which we will also attend with you. While you will receive a written report during or after the inspection, it is better to be present. This allows you to see any issues for yourself and ask the inspector follow-up questions. Without extensive knowledge of home construction, it can be challenging to distinguish between minor issues and significant problems. For example, while ungrounded outlets may seem concerning, water seepage in the basement possibly compromising the structural integrity of the home will be a much larger and more expensive problem to fix. Attending the inspection and being able to see the issues for yourself is often critical to making informed decisions about your potential home purchase.
Here is our list of tips for attending the home inspection:
Inspections of condos take approximately 2 hours and single family home/multi-unit buildings generally take about 4 hours. Plan to be there for the final hour review period.
Wear comfortable clothes and shoes that can get dirty as the inspector may ask you to crawl in the basement or get up in the attic to see any problems.
The inspector is only a visual inspector. He can only see obvious defects and cannot see what is going on inside the walls with plumbing, electrical, etc. Therefore, having a clean inspection report doesn’t mean you won’t ever have a problem with a home. It just means what can be seen during the inspector’s “test run” seems to be in good shape.
Don’t be afraid to ask questions to the inspector, especially if you don’t understand what he is explaining to you. It is their job to help you understand each issue and whether it’s a minor issue or an expensive repair.
Bring a tape measure with you to take any needed room measurements as we may not be able to get back into the home until the walk through the day before closing.
Bring your checkbook or credit card with you as most inspectors require payment at the end of the inspection. Make sure to ask how they can receive payment prior to the home inspection.
Inspection reports are generally emailed to you within 2 days after the inspection. As soon as you get the inspection report be sure to email it to me so we can look it over. We’ll then set up a time to discuss any items we want to ask the seller to fix or give a closing cost credit to repair after closing.
Remember that the point of the inspection is to:
Discover safety issues
See if there are any structural issues
Discover any needed repairs to the working components. For instance we want to make sure that all of the appliances are working, that the furnace and AC units are working, roofing is in good condition, no structural issues, plumbing issues, electrical issues, radon or sewer line problems, etc.
We are NOT there to nit pick because we don’t like the paint colors, there is a dent in the fridge door, the gutters need to be swept out, etc. Unless you are buying new construction, no home is going to be perfect. If you want a perfect home, buy new construction. If you aren’t buying new construction, then we need to accept the house with its cosmetic flaws or find a new house. Remember, we are mainly concerned with the major systems, possible safety issues and things not working.
Questions about Colorado Home Inspections? Reach out to the Appreciate Realty CO agent you are working with directly or Call us at (303)956-4948 or email us at hello@appreciaterealtyco.com