Home Inspection

A big part of buying or selling your home is the home inspection. Here’s a few things to consider whether you’re buying or selling.

Be present, or don’t be present

This is going to depend if you’re a buyer or seller. If you’re looking to buy a home, you should definitely attend the inspection, or at least confirm that your agent will be there on your behalf

If you’re the seller, it’s best not to attend. You already know the house. Your presence isn’t necessary, and if anything could get in the way. As a seller, you don’t want to get emotional or argue with buyers during the inspection.

Use someone you trust

This goes without saying. Except, that I just said it. At the very least, confirm that your home inspector is licensed.

Ask questions

It never hurts to ask question. Your inspector probably has a better idea of what to look for than you do. But as a buyer, you’ll probably feel better knowing as much as you can about the property. Your inspector won’t be annoyed, and you won’t have any regrets.

Take photos

Your home inspector should have photos to go along with notes. Chances are, you’ll have your phone with you anyway.

Pre inspection

This is more for sellers than buyers. If you know you’re going to put your house on the market, do a pre inspection. You could hire a licensed inspector if you have concerns. But a walk through with your Realtor should give you a sense of the condition and identify some easy fixes to help sell your home faster with fewer concessions.

Check the roof

Roofs come up pretty often during inspections. Going into the sale, you should have an idea of its condition. At the minimum, have someone get up there on a ladder, clean the gutters and give a once over.

Take care of easy fixes

A stitch in time saves nine. If you know of any marks on the wall, cabinets off their hinges, anything like that, just fix it. Replace and burnt out light bulbs. Get a magic eraser. If there are any toilets running, take care of those too.

Clean up/Make Way for Easy access

If your home is on the market, you should clean it up anyway. Especially because it’ll make moving easier. Declutter. Make sure there’s easy access to anything that’ll need to be checked out like the HVAC systems and water heater. Don’t forget about the yard too. Refrigerators and rusted cars on cinder blocks don’t look appealing to buyers.

If you have any questions about inspections, or real estate in general, give me a call! My cellphone is 617 528 8461. I can also be reached at willy.charleton@nemoves.com.