Person Hand With Magnifying Glass Over Luxury House
Hello Everyone,
This is Charles McShan from Century 21 Universal. I want to thank you for reading this blog post. This is part 2 of Steps to Home Ownership in the Chicagoland area. This part goes into greater detail involving the Home Inspection process. As the saying goes, looks can be deceiving. As the above photo shows, a home can be lovely to look at, but what is beyond the glamor? Some people have bought a house just the way it looks and now have regretted it. Before you make that ultimate decision, you must know what you are purchasing. Have you ever bought a car to find out later that it was a lemon and constantly took money out of your pocket? I have! A house that is a lemon will take more money out of your pocket than a lousy car ever will. To make sure this does not happen, we suggest that we call in a House Doctor. Look at the photo above. That is the purpose of a home inspector. They will come to that property and, using tools symbolized by a magnifying glass, will look beyond the beautiful exterior and look into the deeper parts of the home. After all, appearances can be deceiving.
Article Guide
How do I find a Home Inspector?
So once you decide to become a home buyer, you should also start looking for a Home Inspector. Keep in mind that most of them have busy schedules. You cannot confirm a date and time because you do not know how long it will take to find the home of your dream. So you narrow your search down to at least 3 Inspectors and see which of the three will be available with a two t0 three-day notice. Keep in mind that once you find a home you like, you will sign the contract if negotiations are successful. That contract now gives five business days for attorney review and for you to arrange for a home inspection. If your Inspector cannot meet that deadline, your Attorney can confer with the Seller’s Attorney and give you additional time. If you do not have personal references to find an Inspector, you can go to these two websites for guidance.
What should I expect of my Home Inspector?
Now that you have found the Inspector to represent you, what should you expect from them? That is a good question, ask him questions, and you will find out. What sort of tools will they use in their service? Some Inspectors are now using Drones to check the roof and other inaccessible areas. Others use remote control devices with a camera to inspect the damp crawl spaces and cramp quarters. Many are using Infrared and thermal cameras to look behind walls and rooms. These are the latest uses of technology, and the use of these devices is just recent. They still might not be considered part of a regular inspection, and if so, there might be an additional fee for these extra services.
So now you meet at the property at the assigned date and time. Before any Inspection occurs, you will pay your Home Inspector upfront their fee. That is very important to know. They get their check or cash not after the Inspection or the next day or week or when you get your paycheck but right then and there. You do not pay them, and they do not go in. Once the money part is over, you, the buyer, the Inspector, and your Real Estate Broker all walk together onto the property to begin the Inspection process. If the property is a condo, it shouldn’t take more than an hour. However, if you are purchasing a single-family home, you, the buyer, should prepare to invest at least 2 to 3 hours of your time in being there with the Inspector. Why? A good Inspector will work slowly and thoroughly. For this illustration, we will use the example of a Single-Family home.
What will be inside the completed Home Inspection report?
As you stand at the property line, you first assess the exterior. Are the driveway and sidewalks in good shape? What about the lawn and Garden? Are there dead or dying trees? What about the shrubbery, bushes, and grass. They will take note of that and nothing more. I will explain that answer in the paragraphs to follow. Next, you move onto the property, looking for standing water, leaning foundations, or bad rain gutters. Next, check the garage for wiring issues, rotten timber, floor cracks, and side damage. Next, they check the building walls and foundations for cracks in the Mansory, Bricks, Stucco, or the viny sidings. Clearance levels are measured between the sliding and the ground. The exterior Windows are also checked for bad frames, rotting caulking, and defective glass. In regards to the Roof, The Inspector, for the most part, will not climb onto the roof. Instead, he might do a visual or use a drone to check for Bad Shingles, flashing, or problems. Outer door water valves are also checked along with any external power outlets. They also look at the Central Air Conditioning unit if available.
Now, the Inspection goes into the interior of the home. They are instructed to look for shifting floors or walls. They check for stains on the ceilings indicating water damage. They look at door trims and floor moldings. They check all electrical outlets, circuit breakers, and fuses. They also check for visible mold, especially on the walls and floorboards. In the kitchen, they contain the heavy-duty circuit breaker outlets, the kitchen hood fan, the sink for leaks, and the cabinet’s drawers. Water pressure is checked in the kitchen sink along with every sink tub, toilet, and shower in the building. Of course, all water drains throughout the home must work properly. Next, they inspect all plumbing pipes, which they can visually see. Next, they will evaluate the Hot Water Heater. The Furnace is the main item. They will check to see that are connections and vents are in good working order. Next, they contain the Basement for mold, cracking along the walls, and water damage. Will they check the Sump pump? I do not know.
Can Home Inspectors answer your every question?
Crawl spaces are essential. That area can determine the moisture you can have in your home. For the record, a Home Inspector is not a superman. They can not see thru walls and spot defects. Inspectors are not Plumbers. They can only visually inspect pipes and outdated equipment. Septic tanks, sewer lines, and everything related in those areas, they will ask you to consult a licensed plumber. Can a Home Inspector tell you about termites? No, They are not experts in Rats, Racoons, Squirrels, and other animals. You must consult an exterminator. The same rule applies to the roof, they can spot a leak, but they can not tell you how long that present roof would last. They do not check for Radon, Lead, Gas, asbestos, or toxic mold. They do not Inspect the appliances, namely Washers, Dryers, Ovens, Stoves, Refrigerators, and Garbage Disposal units.
They might make a note on those items, but nothing more. The same rule applies to HVAC systems. They might make a note but with a legal disclaimer because, like the other above mention appliances, they have no way of knowing if that appliance will be working tomorrow or ten years from now. They also do not inspect the landscape for dead or dying trees or malfunctioning sprinkler systems. Instead, they will instruct you to contact a professional landscaper.
Summary of the inspection report!
For everything the Home Inspector does, they will document the process by taking photos and maybe Videos. All the while, the Inspector will be explaining the process to you, the buyer, and your Broker. Please keep this point in mind. A newly constructed home has problems so will a home twenty, fifty, or a hundred years old. No home is perfect. You can expect minor issues. It is the structural defects that you must avoid. After the Inspector finishes their work, they will summarize their findings. They will email you and your Broker an exact copy of the Home Inspection report within a few days. The information will go into detail, complete with photos of their findings. The report will detail all the defects they found. These defects could be minor and do not have to be corrected right then and there. A Seller is not obligated to fix everything a Home Inspector says is wrong with the house.
On the other hand, Major issues such as Structural, Building Code Violations, and other Safety defects are another topic. The seller has to either fix the flaws or offer the buyer a credit repair. If this agreement happens, the seller will be released from that obligation. If the seller does not want to fix the repair cost or grant you credit to fix it, then you, the buyer, can now legally break the contract and get their earnest money back. It will benefit the seller to try and sell this home to you. Why? Because if they let you walk away, they will have to disclose the newly discovered defect to the next buyer. If they have to move to another location ASAP, they will negotiate.
2022 update. A car is just like a used car. If you /the home inspector look hard enough, you will find things wrong. You, the homebuyer, have to decide which issue poses a hazard to you and your family. Which defects will cost a lot to repair, and if that repair will prevent you from moving in on time?. Due to low inventory, homes are selling today in less than three weeks, defects and all. A few years ago, you could be picky. Those days are over.
In conclusion, no Inspection is 100%. Will the inspectors discover every defect or fault? No, they will not? But a high majority of Inspections have benefitted the homebuyers. It will help you in the long term because you can also put money aside to address the problems you found out that will occur 2 to 5 years down the road. A seller of their home could also benefit by knowing what needs to be repaired before they put their home on the market. So for you buyers out there, do not worry about the minor problems in the future house of your dreams. Follow the steps to homeownership, and use the services of a licensed Chicagoland Home Inspector. You will be one step closer to obtaining the keys to your new home. Once you clear this hurdle, the next step will be The Home Appraisal Process. We will discuss that in part 3 of this blog post. If the appraisal part does not go the right way, the deal will be off like a lousy inspection. So please, they are tuned until the next time. Take care for now.
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