The Home Inspection - Investment or Expense?

Congratulations!  After much searching, you’ve found the perfect house.  With the help of your real estate agent, you’ve negotiated a sales agreement you can live with.  You might even have talked with a loan officer.  Are you beginning to notice a lot of people you meet in this process have their hands out (and not just to shake hands)?  Buying a home can be a cash-draining experience, considering the downpayment, appraisal fee, credit report, loan closing costs, insurance, escrows, etc.  It’s understandable for you to consider whether or not you really need to get the home inspected.  After all, it’s not required.

Hopefully the sales contract you negotiated contained a clause that allows you to bring in a professional home inspector to examine the house with satisfactory results.    The purpose of the home inspection is to give you a better idea of the condition of the home.  There’s nothing wrong with buying a house that needs repairs, but it's important to understand the extent (and maybe the approximate cost) of the repairs before taking on the obligation.  That way, you can make an informed decision.

Professional home inspectors are trained to determine the presence of otherwise unsuspected problems in the home, through clues and symptoms that an untrained eye may not connect to the problem.   For example, is a crack in a basement foundation wall due to serious water problems or just normal settlement?  Having an experienced professional examine and evaluate problems can give you peace of mind and confidence you made the right purchase decision.

Hiring a professional to make repairs is expensive. Have you priced electricians or plumber lately?  Even having kitchen appliances repaired can be pretty pricey.  Finding out about defects like these up front and negotiating with the seller can offset the price of the home inspection many times over.

At House Call Inspections, we’ve never believed the sole purpose of a home inspection was to point out the defects.  A good home inspection should also educate you, pointing out the house’s strengths, how systems operate, and maintenance considerations.  After all, this will soon be your home!