Thursday, January 17, 2008

Order a Home Inspection Before You Sign Anything

It's important that you do a thorough inspection of the house you're intending to buy before signing a single binding document. Even when the house is sold on an "as is" basis, the results of the inspection can provide you with arguments for a better deal.

Even if a house looks perfect from the outside it may have serious defects inside that can be detected only by a trained professional inspector.

Many banks and mortgage institutions demand you conduct a radon and termite test as well since correcting such problems can be very costly in the long run. Banks mandate such an inspection before they loan any money in case they'd need to foreclose the property. Properties with structural problems cannot be re-sold easily on the market.

Have a Licensed Professional Engineer (P.E.) report on the condition of a house's foundation and walls, sewage system, electrical system, plumbing, heating, cooling, roofing, insulation, the floors, etc. Does, for example, the existing roof need to be removed completely before re-roofing it? If so, that would be a high cost item which can be revealed during the inspection.

Signs of any prior structural alterations and water damage should also be on your inspection report. Such an inspection would be worth every penny you spend even if it reveals nothing wrong about the house.

It's better to be safe than sorry.

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