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Homes are big investments that can take up to thirty years to pay off. Before you spend hundreds of thousands on a new place, you should be sure you know what you’re getting yourself into; that’s why you should pay for a home inspection. Here’s the best argument for a home inspection: a $375-$425 fee now could save you thousands or tens of thousands of dollars in repairs later.
One might be tempted to feel a home inspection an unnecessary cost. After all, if there were any problems with the home, the seller is required to disclose them. However, not many sellers wander into their attic or know how to check for problems under the house. When you hire a professional home inspector, you’re hiring somebody who has seen numerous homes and understands where the problem areas tend to be.
Professional inspections are thorough, taking as many as three hours. Inspectors come from an unbiased, third party organization which means that you can trust them to give their honest assessment of a home. It’s very important that you contact an inspector right away once a home goes into escrow. The reason for this is that buyers have 17 days to complete inspections and sign disclosure agreements before the window of opportunity closes for a buyer to back out of the deal without losing their deposit. The sooner a buyer is made aware of a problem, the sooner the buyer can either reach an agreement with the seller to have the seller fix the problem or abandon the escrow altogether.