Why home Inspections can save you Thousands of Dollars.
Why you should get a Home Inspection - One of the Home buying steps
So you've got yourself under contract with a Home, Congratulations! Now the fun truly begins. Buying a home, for most people, is going to be the biggest purchase you make in your lifetime. I recently purchased a home, yep, Realtors move too, lol. Now I purchased a new home, and made the rookie mistake (yep, I make mistakes too, we're all human and I trusted the builder), I didn't have it inspected.
In fact, in Arizona you can have a Professional Home Inspector come out and inspect your Home. Don't let the builder tell you any different, in fact, if the builder hesitates when you request this, raise that red flag in your head....somethings not right! Understand, the inspector will have to provide documentation, showing they are a certified and Arizona licensed inspector, as well as sign a waiver should they cause any damage during said inspection. Also, in most cases (I have had professional inspections on new homes I have sold).
Having an impartial opinion helps you understand the components of you home, how they work (if they work) and what needs to be done to ensure they are working. Case in point, in Arizona, an Air Conditioner is just as important as a Furnace in Ohio. A home inspector will asses the functionality of the unit, how cold it is blowing, the split (what the thermostat is set at vs what its blowing into the home).
I just had my AC guy come out to my new home, one of my AC units isn't functioning properly, am waiting on the service call to come out and correct the situation. Had I not had my AC guy come out, I would never know I had an issue until my bi annual service, which isn't due until March/April.
An inspection will break down all the elements of your home; Plumbing, Electrical, Attached appliances, insulation, HVAC and Furnace. He'll look at the roof, recommend having it reviewed by a roofer if need be. They'll inspect pools and spa (if applicable). My home inspector checks for termites as well.
Once you've completed your home inspection, you will receive a Report from your inspector. My guy is great as I not only get the report, but a summary page, which makes it easy to read and cross reference. I have had some inspectors over the years (as I represent both buyers and sellers) use reports without summary pages and it is a pain the you know what!
Your Realtor will then walk you through the report, discuss which items are of concern for you, in Arizona, we populate a repair request document we refer to as the "BINSR" Buyers Inspection Notice Sellers Response. We have ten calendar days here to conduct all inspections, including home and termite, then report back to the listing agent and seller and request repairs.
Over the years, my Home Inspector, has saved my clients thousands of dollars. I just killed a deal, based on an inspection this morning, The report showed some major issues with electrical and plumbing as well as a foundation issue, funny thing is, house looked great. Very well cared for, nice sized yard and seemingly move in ready. My client reviewed the report, we discussed, and she felt better walking away and finding another. Because we did so in the inspection period, her Earnest Money is 100% protected and now we are off to find another home, which, we will inspect as well, just to give her the peace of mind needed.
Had she opted not to do an inspection, she would have discovered this issues over time and would have had to make repairs, at her expense. Electrical and Plumbing issues can be rather expensive, so always better to spend $300, $400 to $500 on a home inspection now as opposed to $7500 in the middle of the summer because your HVAC Unit crashed and needs replaced.
Happy to answer any questions, 602-321-6188. Happy Thursday!