Having Your Attic Inspected

attic inspection

While going through the home buying process, you want to make sure the place you hope to call home is safe and ready to move into. Your inspector will check all the essential items, but make sure they don’t miss the attic. Yes it might just look like a dusty and musty nuisance but it is important to check for many things while up there. The attic of the home can tell you more than you expect it will tell you some of the history behind your home.

1. Truss and Rafter Damage- While looking at the outside of a roof it is almost impossible to notice slight damage or sometimes even moderate damage to supports in your roof. The last thing you need is moving into your new place, and a week later part of your roof collapses.

2. Fire Damage- The whole home may look to be perfect and pristine. But is that just a cover-up for what has happened to the house before it was beautiful. In the attic you can see fire damage that wasn’t covered up by a new coat of paint and new flooring.

3. Insulation- this is essential to keeping your home heating and cooling bill under control. You will want to know what type of insulation you have in your attic and make sure it is installed properly.

4. Water Damage- There are only two ways water will typically enter your home. It will either enter from the basement from flooding, or from the roof as it rains. If you don’t have water damage in the basement that doesn’t mean there isn’t any in attic.

5. Animals- Pesky little critters like to make your home their home. We are not talking about cute little mice that help you clean and do chores like in children’s movies. We are talking about the kind that eat your wiring and wreck havoc!

6. Chimney- Your inspector won’t be able to check out the inside of the chimney from inside the attic but he will be able to check the integrity of the structure.

How Both Sides can Prepare for a Home Inspection

home inspection

Regardless of whether it is a law in your area or not, it’s always a good idea to have your home inspected.  There are a lot of things you can do to help prepare for a home inspection.

How the Seller Can Prepare:

Most of the preparation will fall into the hands of the seller- they are trying to convince others to buy their house, so they do not want any road bumps in their way.

  • Before you even get into the larger projects, fix smaller ones like loose handles, light bulbs that went out, and that leaky faucet. Then, you can move on to the bigger projects, like your roof.
  • Many people forget that their house needs to look clean, as well. If someone were to come in and see a dirty home, their first impression would be that it wasn’t well taken care of- and won’t look very good in the eyes of the person doing your inspection.
  • Be ready for the scheduled appointment at least half an hour early. An inspection can take up to three hours, so it’s a good idea to have as few hang-ups as possible.
  • If you have already moved out of the house, make sure that amenities like water and gas are hooked up so the inspector can make sure everything is in order for the buyers.
  • If there are any outdoor electrical outlets or other units, make sure they are accessible. Trim bushes and hedges, and make sure to move any trash cans.
  • If you have had anything repaired recently in your home, keep the receipts to show the inspector- this will show him just how up to date certain features are.
  • If at all possible, allow space and time for the inspector to do their work. This will allow them to work quicker and concentrate better- particularly if there are young children in the home.

How the Buyer Can Prepare:

While there isn’t much, there is some that the buyer can do to make sure the efforts are productive.

  • Attending the inspection will give you an in-depth look at the house and learn your way around it.
  • Make a list of questions or concerns you would have about the property.
  • Understand that every home will have its flaws, so expect some imperfections. Be proactive in the repair of the home!

5 Common Problems Found in Most Home Inspections

Inspecting Your Home

When you’re ready to move into another house, whether you’re upgrading or downsizing, you’ll want a qualified home inspector at your side for both the purchase of your new home, and the sale of your hold one.

Most homeowners feel that a home inspection is just a formality during the process. However, it’s so much more than that. A home inspection protects you from having to deal with an underlying problem in your new home, and it can help you get your asking price on your current home.

To get an idea of what you can expect, check out some of the common problems that are often found during a home inspection.

Roofing Problems

Subjected to sun, rain, and storms, roofs protect us from the elements, meaning roofs take a beating. Eventually, they may develop mold, or begin to shift.

Stucco Problems

Water is an enemy of Stucco, so if it’s on the home’s exterior, it will need to be touched up often. A homeowner might not notice small stucco cracks in the corner, but a potential buyer will.

Sloping Problems

Sometimes, the foundation can slope back towards the house, causing wet spots in the basement or bottom floor.

Structural Problems

Depending on the material that the home consists of, the structural integrity might not be the same as when you purchased it. An inspection will verify the homes safety.

Electrical Problems

There have been so many technological advances in the last few years. It’s a good idea to check the electrical wiring to ensure that it can support all of the technology in your life. Unfortunately, it’s often found that wiring is outdated or unable to support many modern electronics at once.

10 Tips on How to Get Your Home Ready for an Inspection

Home Inspection Servcies

Homeowners already have a laundry list of things that need be done get the home ready to be shown. Now that you have received and accepted an offer, the next step is to have your home inspected.

There are many items that often get overlooked because you walk through your home on a daily basis, but the home inspector will have a fresh set of eyes on your property and he will be able to tell if there are major issues that need to be taken care of before the home is sold.  Here are a few items that you can do on your own to prepare for the inspection.

 

  1. Remove trees or mulch from the siding, rule of thumb is that your brush should be at least six inches away from your house.
  2. Make sure that your gutters are all in working order, run the hose through the gutters to clean them out.  Also, all water should be diverted from your house when it drains through.
  3. Clean out the attic, garage, shed and crawl space, these areas need to be easily accessible for the inspector.
  4. If there are large cracks in your driveway, take time to seal them up before the inspector comes.
  5. If there have been any major repairs done or you have warranties on anything for your house, leave out the proper documentation to show that you are on top of costly items.
  6. Be sure that your house complies with your town’s laws on smoke and carbon monoxide detectors in each room and floor.
  7. Leave all of your utilities connected, the home inspector will test everything to ensure that it is in working order, even if your home is vacant make sure that everything can be tested.
  8. Ensure that your plumbing is all in working condition, including hot and cold water, if there are any leaks; make sure to seal them up.
  9. Clean or replace your heating and air conditioning filters, these items will be tested during the inspection.
  10. Be prepared to leave your house for at least 3 hours.  This will give the inspector enough time to go through your house and answer any questions that the buyer may have.  It is often incredibly uncomfortable for the buyers to ask questions if the current homeowner is present.