Before buying a home, you need to ensure that the house is in tip-top shape, and not just regarding aesthetics. For a novice or experienced buyer, you may be carried away by elements such as square footage or a beautiful backyard, thus overlooking essentials like plumbing. Here are five reasons why you must consider hiring a building inspection service before making a down payment.
Save money
Homeownership a significant investment and you cannot afford to mess around. Look at a home inspection like getting insurance for pricey items like a car or new phone. By investing in a thorough examination, you avoid making costly mistakes such as buying a substandard house. A comprehensive building inspection report will inform your final decision on the property.
Structural stability
Homes could have structural problems due to shoddy construction, sub-standard materials, flooding, or just because they are too old. Sellers often result to quick fixes like repainting to distract attention from significant problems like cracks in the walls. A building inspector will examine the entire structure and identify even seemingly minor issues like a cracked pavement.
Negotiation
Upon completing examining the home, the building inspector is bound to find a few errors here and there that will need repairs. Some issues like faulty wiring may require the seller to handle the repairs before selling. If there are repairs that you will absorb, you can use this as a basis to negotiate the price. A building inspection report is a bargaining tool that can land you a good deal for a reasonable price.
Safety checks
Besides the structural function, you also need to ascertain that the home is safe for occupation. The presence of mould, wobbly banisters or lousy wiring is not a good sign. Ignoring such issues is detrimental to the safety of the occupants, especially when young children are involved. Problems like faulty connections can trigger electrocution when operating appliances or even burn down the house.
In case of resale
You may decide to sell your home one day, and the new buyer will require a thorough home inspection. The inspector may unearth problems that date back to the previous owner before you such as not adhering to building codes. In such a case, you will have no recourse but to absorb the loss.
Building inspections are a pivotal step in the home buying process. Seek the help of reputable building inspection services before making concrete decisions.