Home Inspection
So, your offer was accepted and now it's time to schedule the home inspection.
No matter if this is your 1st home, 2nd home, or 100th home, I will always advise you to have a home inspection. When you first toured the house, your eyes are focused on the layout, room sizes and other cosmetic issues. Having a home inspection done will dig a little deeper for you and will help give you peace of mind.
There are several different types of inspections you can schedule. In Indiana, I typically recommend having these 3 types of inspections.
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Full house inspection--This is just your general home inspection
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Radon inspection--This will test the radon levels in the home. Anything below 4.0 pCi/L is considered acceptable.
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Termite inspection--The inspector will search the exterior and interior, crawl space and attic for previous signs of termite damage.
You should be able to hire one inspection company to handle all 3 of these types of inspections. The cost will generally depend on the size of the home. It could range anywhere between $350-$700 (sometimes more). You'll want to talk with your agent and see what types of inspections they would recommend having done for your home.
Related: Buyers Guide To Home Inspections
Without having a home inspection done, how are you going to know that everything is working and is up to code? Here are two main reasons I recommend having a home inspection done.
1. Inspection response. The main reason you will want to have this is so that you can request for the seller to make the repairs on your inspection response.
I'm assuming that your agent would recommend you having an inspection as well, so in your offer you will probably check a box that states that the offer is contingent upon a home inspection.
Usually you will have anywhere from 10-14 days after an accepted offer to have the home inspected and to submit your inspection response. Without a formal inspection done, the seller will not take your inspection response seriously. Having one done by a licensed company will show to the seller that there are actual things that need addressed before closing on your new home.
2. Peace of mind. This inspection should give you a peace of mind. Let the inspector go in and do their job. They know what's code and what's not. Once they're done with their inspection, they will provide you with a lengthy report and go over that report with you. What's great about this report is, it's yours to keep. If there are smaller things on the report that you can tackle down on your own, you can use the report as your to-do list when you move in.
Home inspectors aren't going to find everything. There are certain things they will not mess with during their inspection.
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Outlets blocked by furniture. Inspectors will not move furniture
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Wet or high roof. If it's raining, the inspector will not go all the way up on the roof for their safety. Same with height. If the roof is too high up, they will not go all the way up on the roof.
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Chimneys. If there is a fireplace, they will check to make sure the damper is working, but they usually will recommend having it inspected by a chimney sweep company.
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Fences. This is not part of the house, so they typically won't inspect them.
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Mold. They will not scrape mold and take it back and have it tested unless you opt into having a mold test done. They will usually recommend having the "substance" evaluated by a specialist.
Once you come to an agreement with the seller on the inspection response, you're done with this step in the process. You normally will want to request any invoices or receipts once the work is completed. In some cases, you may also want to do a re-inspection on the home. This would be an additional service your inspector may offer once the inspection repairs are done. They will go back an check the repairs that the seller agreed to fix and let you know if they are done correctly before the closing.
Having a home inspection can really help you out in the end. I always recommend having one done. I have seen some crazy things come up! If you have any additional questions about the home inspection, please don't hesitate to contact me.