Your buyer's agent is there to guide you through every step of the home buying process, from the hunt to the closing. One event that occurs in the middle of the home buying process is the home inspection. Many first-time buyers are unaware of how important this step is. Here's what your agent wants you to know.
Home inspections take time
Home inspection services take time. You need to schedule an afternoon off and allow several hours to attend the inspection. The home inspection company not only looks over the home's mechanical systems, roof, and foundation, but they also take the opportunity to explain everything to you. The inspector will tell you about how long you can expect the furnace to last and take a moment to show you where the furnace filter goes. Think of the home inspection as one big training session on homeownership.
Don't waive your right to a home inspection
While the pandemic created an insane seller's market and many buyers waived their right to an inspection, this is never a good idea. Home inspection services are designed to spot expensive repairs that a home needs so that you are fully aware of what will be expected of you before you buy. No one wants to purchase a home only to find out that the foundation is shoddy. When you waive your right to inspection, you waive the right to walk away from that shoddy foundation. Essentially, you are stuck.
No house is perfect
Your inspector will find things wrong with the house because no house is perfect. Minor things are always wrong, like a loose gutter, an upside-down plug, or even an aging furnace. You need to decide what you are willing to accept because you love the house and what you are not.
Home inspection results are not an excuse to lower your offer
That said, the results of a home inspection are not an excuse to return to the home's sellers with a low-ball, revised offer. If there is a serious problem that you were unaware of when you made your original offer, then ask that the situation be remedied by the seller. It is perfectly acceptable to ask for a radon mitigation system to be installed when the radon results come in higher than average. It is not, however, acceptable to lower your offer by ten percent because the house will need a new roof in the next three to five years.
Using home inspection services is a key step in the home buying process provided you keep the above points in mind. For more information, contact an inspection service such as Have It Inspected Property Solutions.
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