Home inspections generally vary across states, cities, and countries. For example, home inspections in California may be different in scope when compared to home inspections in New York. Inspections in the US may differ from inspections in the UK. However, any home inspector is supposed to disclose and submit reports about specific and general areas of the house.
Homebuyers, particularly the first-timers, might not be able to fully decipher and understand home inspection reports. Many buyers have a hard time figuring out what types of defects should be treated as serious. If you are wondering whether your home inspector has checked the essentials, this checklist should help you determine if the important aspects and areas of the home have been inspected.
Structural elements: The home inspector should run a report about the current condition of the walls, the floors, ceilings, roof, and even the foundation of the house. These elements are necessary for making sure the overall structure of the home is ensured and made secured.
Exterior evaluation: If the interior of the house is provided with utmost priority, care should also not be missed in inspecting the outside of the home. In exterior evaluation, check if the home inspection report covers wall covering, grading, driveways, sidewalks, landscaping, windows, fascia, fences, drainage, elevation, trim, exterior receptacles, and lights.
Plumbing: The inspection report should identify and report the condition of pipe materials used in waste, drain, portable, and vent pipes. The report might not include a comprehensive sewer inspection, but it should cover areas like showers, faucets, toilets, sinks, and traps.
Roof and attic: The report would not include roof certification of roof condition guarantee. But it should have inspected ventilation, framing, roof construction type, gutters, and flashing.
Electrical: Check if the inspector checked the main panel, wiring, circuit breakers, receptacles, ceiling fans, exhaust fans, light fixtures, and grounding.
Appliances: You may think inspection of appliances may not be covered, but good and reliable home inspectors include them in the service. In general, a home inspector would tell you about the condition and possible risks involving ovens and ranges, dishwashers, built-in microwaves, and even smoke detectors.
Garage: The inspector should identify problems in the garage, particularly its ceiling, walls, entry, garage door, lights, openers, firewall, roof, windows, and exterior.
In general, you should take note that most home inspection reports are not supposed to describe the overall condition of every home component. They may not identify or tell if the inspected areas and fixtures are in excellent shape. But surely, home inspectors could tell if every item inspected needs maintenance service or is defective.
It could also be a smarter move to hire contractors on your own if ever there is a recommendation for repair or maintenance. Home inspectors could hire contractors upon your go-signal, but to help keep your peace of mind, it would be better if you do the initiative yourself. In this way, you could also not doubt the quality and condition of the repair.
A home inspector is a professional who should provide information about the condition of most areas of the home. It is important that you hire his services regularly, especially if you want to ensure the safety and durability of your home for the long term. A home inspection is a requirement before selling or acquiring any home, especially old ones.
