There are countless reasons to have a home inspection. Whether it be to purchase a home, after you have moved in or a general maintenance inspection. This blog post will focus on the most important benefits of obtaining a home inspection.

1. Peace Of Mind

Probably the most common reason home buyers will get a home inspection is for peace of mind. No one wants to buy a money pit. A home inspection will point out any defects in the property ranging from minor, major and material defects. Material defects are ones that pose imminent danger eg. electrical faults that could lead to fire, deck or balcony not properly secured to a wall.

2. Save Money

Many home buyers are unaware that the house sale contract can still be negotiated after the offer has already been accepted. A home inspection may save you thousands of dollars if the inspection turns up major/material defects. Many home owners will reduce the price to keep the deal together. Common defects where a house price may be negotiated…

• roof nearing end of life
• water leaking into the house
• rotted deck boards
• Plumbing or electrical issues
• unprofessional workmanship

Several hundred dollars spent now can save you thousands in the long run.

3. Make Your House More Appealing To Buyers( Pre-Listing Inspection)

In a hot housing market many home buyers were waiving the inspection contingency. For their offer to compete with other offers, buyers were forced to remove conditions(unfortunately). Many home sellers realized that obtaining pre-listing inspection would give their house that leading edge in a competitive housing market.

4. Uncover Latent Material Defects

Latent material defects are defects that are known to the seller but not disclosed to the home buyer. Some examples are a basement that only leaks during the Spring thaw, a leaky roof and a foundation issue that has been covered up. A full in depth home inspection can uncover these major defects.

5. After You Have Moved In

Roughly 75 percent of the inspections we perform currently are post-purchase home inspections. These inspections will highlight defects that should be remedied before they could get worse. If you have recently purchased and closed without a home inspection this is the ideal inspection for you.

6. Knowing The Overall Health Of the Property

No house is perfect, there will always be defects whether cosmetic or material. A home inspection can highlight all the defects and the ones you should address immediately. As the old saying goes ” an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure” this is definitely true when it comes to houses.

Conclusion

There are countless reasons to obtain a home inspection. This blog touched on the most common reasons to get one. An inspection is a vital piece of the puzzle in any real estate transaction and when left out the complete picture will not be revealed.