Types Of Inspections
Your Home
Your home is one the biggest investments you will make in your lifetime, but it isn't only an investment that offers equitable growth and appreciation in value. Rather, your home is the centerpiece of family life, and it provides you with a retreat from the hectic pace of the world around you.
Your home also provides for you a shelter from the elements to keep you safe from rain, wind, snow, heat and a host of other naturally-occurring weather conditions that could damage or ruin your property and possessions or cause harm to you and the members of your family. Your home also functions as a safe-haven to protect you from intrusion while providing you with a place to keep your property and possessions safe from theft and your family safe from crime.
Your home is where memories are made, kept and shared. It is the one investment that you make that not only appreciates in financial value, but also, it helps you and your family to define who you are, how you live, how you grow as a family, and in many cases, the person you and your family members become. There are very few possessions in this world that are so deeply integrated into ones lifestyle that the act of home-ownership can literally define the destinies of all those who live in it.
In many ways, your home is a part of your family. It adds value. It helps to create memories. It protects you. And if your home were alive, there is no doubt that your home would also love you. And with as much as your home does for you, you must ask yourself if you are doing all you can for your home. Are you assuring the health of your home as you would the health of your own being or one of your family members? Of course, your home is only an inanimate object, but its value is no-less important in assuring your health, safety and prosperity.
Types of Home Inspections
Home Inspection Services
Confused about the different types of home inspection services available to you? Not sure if you need your home inspected right now? We can help you sort it all out!
Pre-Listing (Seller's) Inspections
This type of inspection is usually initiated by a seller before a property is listed or announced for sale. A Seller's Inspection is initiated to determine what damage or other problems exist with a property in order to determine factors such as fair market value, discount values, or any pre-listing expenditure necessary to increase the value and desirability of the property.
Pre-Purchase (Buyer's) Inspections
This type of inspection is usually performed after a property has been put on the market by a seller but before a potential buyer has taken possession of the property prior to the closing contract. The buyer will usually sign a contingency agreement with the seller prior to ordering this type of inspection. If a property fails to meet the buyer's expectations as a result of the inspection, then the sale may fall through. In many cases, a Buyer's Inspection will help both the buyer and the seller to identify damage or other problems that may exist with a property so that both parties can either renegotiate the selling price or the seller's responsibilities to repair the property at the seller's expense prior to the final close. Even if the seller has already performed a Seller's Inspection, buyers should still perform their own inspections to prevent "seller's bias" in any shape or form.
Warranty Inspections
This type of inspection is performed prior to the expiration of your home warranty. It is used to take advantage of the features and benefits of your home warranty to assure that necessary repairs guaranteed under your warranty are executed should a damage or problems be discovered.
New Construction (Builder) Inspections
This type of inspection is usually performed immediately after your new home has been built and is considered "ready" for occupancy by the builder and appropriate legal authorities (such as a zoning or code inspector).
Periodic Maintenance Inspections
This type of inspection is performed every two years to assure the health of your family and the safety of your real estate investment. Periodic Maintenance Inspections are necessary to assure the integrity of your structure in-between storms and droughts, to identify possible indoor pollutants (such as radon, CO, CO2, mold), to check the building's integrity that may compromised by cracked beams or foundations, to visually inspect for wood-destroying insects, and more. Any these situations can contribute to decrease home value or pose a physical risk to your family if not identified in time.
Pre-Renovation Inspections
This type of inspection is performed prior to engaging in any renovations of a property. Pre-renovation Inspections help you to assess potential problems that may affect the cost or difficulty of the renovation.
Investigative Inspections
This type of inspection is most-often used when a homeowner feels that a problem may exist. For example, you may want to engage in an Investigative Inspection after a hurricane or tornado, if you experience and odd smell in your home that cannot be identified, or if you notice unusual pest and insect activity. In many cases, Investigative Inspections can help homeowners to catch problems before they become an expensive or irreversible liability.
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