Call us paranoid, but it is unlikely that you will find a home that doesn’t need a little repair here or there. Even though the home looks fine to you and you can totally envision yourself living in it, you need a pair of trained eyes to detect the problems for you. Those eyes belong to the inspectors.
Upon your request, an inspector will come to the property you have placed a contract on and perform a thorough examination on it. After the home inspection, you will get a written report from the inspector describing the current condition of the home’s heating system, interior plumbing, floors, etc. The report will specifically point out the problematic areas, both immediate and potential ones. From there you will ask yourself whether you want these problems fixed by settlement, and if so, who is going to pay for it, you or the seller? Generally, as a buyer, you have leverage to push for the seller to pay for repairs; in fact, you can negotiate this right into the contract! Consult with your realtor, or ask CFHomes for advice as you write the contract.
Usually your realtor will recommend to you inspectors he or she has worked with before. There is nothing wrong with this, but if you are really concerned, you can hire an inspector from any home inspection company that provides the service in your area. After all, you are the one paying for the inspection, so you should make yourself feel as comfortable as possible. That also means asking questions whenever you have them during the inspection or after you read the report.
On average home inspections will cost you $250 to $300. Considering the home price, the cost of repair, and being able to leverage the seller to make these repairs, it is worthwhile to order an inspection before you seal the deal. If you use the City First Homes $75,000 Down Payment Assistance program, we will even order a second, extra inspection for you (which we will pay for) because it is really important to us that you live in a proper conditioned home that won’t eat up lots of your time and money in the future.
- Anlan Zhang
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