Getting A Residential Home Inspection Before Buying A Home
Posted on: 13 July 2021
A residential home inspection is a normal part of the process when you are buying a home. The inspection protects you as the buyer, and most mortgage lenders will not write a mortgage for a home that has not had a full home inspection completed.
Home inspectors
You can hire a certified home inspector to complete the residential home inspection for a house you are considering buying. Also, in many cases, the mortgage lender will have a home inspector that they work with regularly and can send them out to do the inspection for you as well.
In either case, the inspection needs to be completed before the bank will consider writing the mortgage on the home. If there is significant damage to the house, the lender could stand to lose a lot of money on the home if you can't afford to fix it after the damage is discovered and you need to sell the house.
In most cases, the seller will disclose any damage they know about, but something like foundation damage may not be obvious, and the seller may not know it is there. Often the seller will be as surprised by the damage as the buyer and are more than willing to repair the damage or lower the price so you can afford to repair it.
Inspections Areas
A residential home inspection covers many parts of the home. The roof is checked for damage and overall condition. The electrical panel and system are inspected, and the foundation, plumbing, and septic system are all part of a standard residential home inspection.
The heating and air conditioning system will be checked if possible, and the inspector will look over things as small as the windows and doors in the home. Cracks in the ceiling or the wallboard could be considered damage, and because they are often caused by shifting or settling of the house, they may prompt the inspector to look closer at the foundation than they might otherwise.
The home inspection can extend into any part of the home that the inspector feels should be checked, and typically it takes a few hours to complete. The inspector may not say much during the inspection, but they will give you a full report of their findings a few days after the inspection.
Pass Or Fail
It is important to remember that a residential home inspection is not a pass or fail test. The inspection is more of an evaluation of the home's condition and need for repairs. If the inspector sees something that requires repair, it goes on the report, and the overall condition of each section is reported.
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