Home Inspections 101
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September 10, 2005
Having a home inspection might be the single most important aspect of purchasing a home. You want the peace of mind of knowing exactly what you are buying. We always recommend our clients make a home inspection contingency part of a purchase contract. There may be rare instances when an inspection can be waived.Sellers have legal responsibilities to either disclose all known defects to potential buyers or provide a disclaimer that they are selling "as-is". The latter is a notice of buyer beware and is the usual notice that sellers make. Even in the "as-is" notice, sellers and their agents have a legal obligation to disclose any known material defects or abnormal conditions. The inspection contingency gives you many alternatives based on the inspection report:
- void the contract,
- request the seller make necessary repairs,
- re-negotiate the price, or,
- accept the property as-is.
For Buyers
The purchase contract will stipulate time limits for having the inspection done and a specific amount of time after the inspection for you to give notice of action. If there are issues, we usually recommend that you re-negotiate the price, receiving credit for the cost of any repairs or equipment replacements if they can be reasonably fixed. This way, you can make the corrections yourself (using contractors of your choice) and to your specifications.For Sellers
Based on the age of the home and its condition, we often recommend sellers have a "pre-list" home inspection for the peace of mind of knowing what it might reveal. If we know of conditions that need to be addressed, getting these done before hand will make your home more desirable and reduce the chances that a buyer will walk away from a purchase contract because of defects.If a buyer finds issues after a purchase offer, we usually recommend that you re-negotiate the price, giving credit for the cost of any repairs or equipment replacements if they can be reasonably fixed. This way, the buyer can make the corrections and remove any future disputes as to whether they were done properly or to the buyers expectation.
I found a great web resource providing detail on what inspectors look for...
Take the Virtual Home Inspection Tour now to learn about some common problems found during a home inspection.We can recommend many companies and individuals who are certified by the American Society of Home Inspectors (ASHI), are ethical and are highly experienced. All of these perform to the highest industry standards as well as our own standards for professionalism and customer service. Each charge about the same for their services. We let you choose.
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About the American Society of Home Inspectors Established in 1976, ASHI is the oldest, largest and most respected national professional organization of home inspectors in North America. We are a nonprofit organization and our membership consists of more than 6,000 individual home inspectors representing solely owned, franchise and multi-inspector companies.
If you don't have the Macromedia Flash Player installed: This tour makes use of Macromedia Flash software. To experience it the way we intended, you need the latest version of Macromedia Flash Player, a plug-in for your Web Browser, installed so you can play the content. Click here to download the Macromedia Flash player now. Macromedia and Flash are trademarks of Macromedia, Inc.
About the American Society of Home Inspectors Established in 1976, ASHI is the oldest, largest and most respected national professional organization of home inspectors in North America. We are a nonprofit organization and our membership consists of more than 6,000 individual home inspectors representing solely owned, franchise and multi-inspector companies.
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