Common Financial Mistakes: Foregoing the Home Inspection

The young couple seemed confused. They bought their home with the help of a realtor, who had assured them that waiving their rights to a home inspection would help them clinch the purchase during a bidding war. The realtor was right; the strategy won them the home. But a few months after moving in, the couple learned that winning the home because they did not pursue a home inspection came at a huge cost; the home's basic structures were faulty, and it needed to be taken down to the studs for a complete rebuild of the plumbing and electricity. (Synopsis of a "Holmes on Homes" episode, HGTV).

Sounds terrible, right? Well, this situation is all-too-common, although the repairs on this home were extreme. Most often, people may forego a home inspection to save a few hundred dollars, only to run into expensive repairs at a later date. For this reason, if you're not a trained home inspector, hiring one when you put in an offer on a home can save you time, money and headaches. Let's look at home inspections in depth.

Home Inspections 101

Before we go too far, let's look at exactly what a home inspection is. Basically, a home inspection is a service that can be completed on a home or building that you have offered to purchase. During the inspection, a certified and trained home inspector will look your potential home over from top to bottom to give you an opinion on the quality of the structure, including the plumbing, ventilation, heating and cooling systems, roof quality and electricity. In addition, he or she will be on the lookout for any problems or issues that you may have to repair immediately or within a few years for safety reasons.

A home inspector is completely different from an appraiser, and it's important to make the distinction here. Because the appraiser may spend a fair amount of time looking over some of the same things to determine the value of your home, many people tend to confuse the two – which can sometimes lead people to believe that they will not need to hire a home inspector. However, it's dangerous to forego the home inspection; the appraiser is not fully trained to identify the issues that may pop up, and you could be left buying a lemon.

Choosing the Right Inspector

Even if you hire a certified home inspector, there is no guarantee that he or she will catch every improvement that may need to be completed. Just like hiring any professional, there are good inspectors and there are poor inspectors. One of the best ways to weed them out is to get a few recommendations. Often, realty companies and banks will be able to direct you to favorites. Additionally, asking friends and family who they used can help you narrow down your choices.

Follow Your Gut

During the inspection, you should expect to spend one to two hours with your inspector going over the home. He or she will look into nooks and crannies; spend time in your basement, attic and crawl spaces looking over the furnace, water heater and some structural work; test outlets, air flow and plumbing; look at peeling paint; check out the roof; and possibly more. If your inspector does not spend a little time on each of these tasks, you may not have found the right man for the job. At this point, ask some questions, complain or get a new inspector; it's better to shell out a few hundred more dollars than to be stuck with a home that will need some major repairs.

That's the basics to home inspections; join us for more home purchasing tips and tricks in the weeks to come!

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