How to Get a Professional Home Inspection

Why pay for a home inspection? A home inspection will help buyers uncover defects in a home before they invest. For sellers, getting a home inspection before the home goes on the market will avoid unexpected costs, delays or cancellations after an agreement has been reached.

Steps:

1. Include a clause in the purchase contract (if you’re a buyer) making the purchase of the home contingent on the findings of a professional home inspection. Specify who will be responsible for the cost of repairing or replacing items discovered by the inspector.
2. Search your local yellow pages for listings of area home inspectors. Make sure you select one who is a member of the American Society of Home Inspectors or the National Association of Home Inspectors. Or, contact a local real estate broker who can give you a referral.
3. Set up an appointment with a qualified inspector immediately after the purchase agreement has been signed.
4. Schedule the inspection at a time when you can actually go through the home with the inspector so that you will fully understand the findings.
5. Expect to pay about $300 to $500 for the inspection – costs vary with geographic location, house size and the expertise of the inspector.
6. Expect the inspector to test the built-in appliances, electrical outlets, windows, heating and cooling systems, sprinklers, alarms, sinks, showers, tubs and toilets.

Tips:

• A thorough home inspection should take at least two hours.
• Remember that an inspection is not an appraisal, and market value has nothing to do with the findings of an inspection.
• Consider hiring specifically licensed inspectors to handle environmental inspections.

Warnings:

• As a seller, you will want to limit the amount of work you agree to do or to pay for.
• Don’t let your desire to buy a house override the sensibility of having a home inspection done.
• For homes built before 1978, make sure you have a test for lead paint done.