residential home inspection Archives - Deschutes Home Inspection LLC.

When you decide to sell your home, the process is not as easy as simply putting it up on the market and watching the offers come flooding in. There is more to selling a home, including the inspection. The residential inspection process includes making sure that your home is in the best shape possible to get the fair market sale price.

But it is not just about making sure you have swept the floors and cleaned the walls. Instead, there are smaller but still especially important things that you need to keep in mind when you are getting your home ready for inspection and selling.

What a Seller Should know Before a Home Inspection

Maintenance and Cleanliness: A clean house is an attractive house! You do not want to check out a house with cobwebs and dirt. The first step is to deep clean your home. Hire a cleaning company if necessary. A clean home will provide a better first impression for the inspector. Deep cleaning also gives you the opportunity to see any other problems that could be occurring in your home. This might be dripping faucets, loose doorknobs, and faulty light bulbs. Fix these issues before the inspection.

The exterior of your home should also be maintained. This does not mean you need to paint your home before meeting with an inspector. Wait until you get back the results to make large investments. Instead mow the lawn, trim any plants, and clean the pathways.

Documentation: Warranties and paperwork, such as licenses for the home’s upkeep, any repairs, and improvements will be helpful during and after the inspection. If the inspector has any questions, a repair document may be able to help. If any large issue needs to be fixed, a warranty could help with the cost.

Focus On Functionality: Ensure that the electrical, plumbing, and HVAC systems in your house are each in good operating condition and are not experiencing any sort of problems. Swap out all the air filters, investigate the smoke alarms, and make sure the light switches and electrical outlets are all operating.

The Roof: Search for all signs of damage on the roof. This is vital because ignoring roof issues can be costly. If a roof is damaged, harsh weather can leave it compromised. Search for missing shingles on the roof, any sort of patchwork that has fallen apart, and places that could lead to leaks. To avoid issues that will be caused by standing water, make sure that you or trained professionals clean the gutters and downspouts as well. You might need to replace the gutter system before an inspection.

Attic and Basement: You might not spend time in your attic or basement often. However, they are both areas that your home should be maintained. Your attic and basement are both prone to water leaks or dampness. A water leak can damage the foundation, ceiling, walls, and cause mold in the mold. The issues from water leaks are difficult to fix. Your attic and basement should be inspected regularly, not just when selling your home.

Doors and Windows: Wind drafts are not only uncomfortable but increase your energy bill. Check the windows and doors for wind drafts, cracks, and damages before calling the inspector. Any damages should be fixed.

Plumbing: We often do not pay attention to our plumbing until something goes wrong. Before your home inspection, call a plumber to check for problems you might not see. A leak might not seem like a big deal to you, but it can cause serious detrimental damage to the home and can lessen the value your home has on the market and the interest it receives from buyers.

Search for all signs of any sort of water damage or mold. All of these will certainly cause purchasers to have reservations about buying your property. Beyond that, mold can cause serious health issues for you or the people who live in your home next.

Now would also be a great time to service your home’s HVAC systems. HVAC stands for heating, ventilation, and air conditioning and it is obviously a crucial part of your property, especially during both cold and warm seasons.

And do not forget about the small fixtures in your home that you thankfully rarely use but will always be vital, if disaster strikes. Check out all fire extinguishers, smoke detectors, and carbon monoxide detectors and ensure that each of them is up-to-date and in good working order.

Address Known Problems: If you are aware of any known problems in your home, like a leaking roof or outlets that are not working, it is the time to take care of them. Any little task that you have been putting off or do not consider serious should fixed. You need to contemplate which of these could be a fundamental problem area for your home inspector.

When the inspection comes, attend it in person, or provide your contact information. This will give the home inspector a chance to talk to you about things and ask any questions they might have. This could ensure that the process goes smoothly and without delay.

Get a Home Energy Score: If you live in Bend, Oregon then getting a Home Energy Score is required when selling your home. But what is a green energy score?

“A Home Energy Score provides an energy efficiency rating for a home, similar to a miles per gallon rating for vehicle or nutrition facts on a food product. It uses a standardized tool to assess a homes structure, heating and cooling systems, and other energy-related features to produce an efficiency score.” –City of Bend

This allows buyers to compare the energy score between homes. You may learn where to make cost-effective improvements, so your home is more appealing to buyers. When you are choosing a home inspector, make sure they are also Home Energy Assessors.

Home Inspection in Bend, Prineville, and Redmond, Oregon

An in-depth inspection of your house could increase the trust of a potential buyer and even result in a faster sale and a higher price. Taking care of all these details could have a very favorable impact on the perception that home inspectors – and potential buyers – have of your house.

Deschutes Home Inspection provides home inspection services in Bend, Oregon and beyond. We can provide commercial and residential inspections. Contact us today online or call us at (541) 993-9542.

The home inspection is an exciting and nerve-wracking time for the buyer. It’s the time right before you finally get your home, but an improper inspection could lead to troubles down the line as your home ownership. How do you get a proper inspection and what should you keep in mind during the process?

If you’re interested in learning more about getting a proper home inspection for the home you are purchasing, you’ve come to the right place. Read on to learn more about tactics and practical steps you can take to ensure nothing is missed during the inspection of the home. The more you know, the more confident you will feel in your purchase.

Tips for Your Home Inspection

Be On-Site

First, you should be there. It’s always ideal to be present during a home inspection to point out your concerns and ask questions as you go along. Plus, you will be able to provide another set of silent eyes as the inspector does his job. You will feel much better being there in person, rather than waiting on a third-party eyewitness account.

Typically, the home inspection is the first time the inspector sets foot on the home’s foundation. You might already have potential concerns in mind, but they will not. If you’re there, you can tell them about your worries without the stress of communicating with them over the phone or after they’ve been to the house.

Ask Questions

Next, don’t be afraid to ask questions. After all, you hire a home inspector because you believe they have the proper experience to know what is wrong in a home. If you’re concerned about something, let them know. They will let you know if they think buying the location is a poor choice based on the observations made in the inspection.

Of course, ensure you respect their time on the job and the information they provide. If you trust them and they don’t think something you’re worried about is a concern, let it go. However, if you’re certain something doesn’t look solid or don’t know what they mean, feel free to ask. It’s better to get things out of the way during the inspection than after purchase.

Select Someone Trustworthy

Always choose someone trustworthy when picking your home inspector. It’s always a good idea to perform extensive research before the inspection to feel secure in your final decision. Your realtor might have a few recommendations, but unless you know the inspectors they recommended, it’s better to pick one yourself by using the available resources.

A quality inspector might require more money than anticipated on your end, but it’s always best to pay more now than later if things go wrong.

Take Photos

If you invest in a quality home inspector, they will usually take pictures of every area they inspect and crawl inside. Ensure you check with them to see if they plan on snapping these images during the hunt. Ask them to take a photo of anything that looks out of the ordinary and looks like it could be trouble if you purchase the home.

An inspector might also use infrared and thermal cameras to get the best view inside the walls. Most inspectors will have access to these additional features, but some may ask you to pay a little more for access to the tool.

Watch For Cosmetic Troubles

Look out for any potential cosmetic issues on the walls and other areas of the home during the inspection. Many homeowners will add paint and make other small repairs before selling, but sometimes they may just slap paint and other temporary fixes on top of more serious troubles. Keep an eye out for items that look more serious under the surface.

It’s typically easy to spot problem areas if you’re paying attention. Search for a piece of paint that looks newer than the covering on the rest of the wall, a partially patched floor, or other random cosmetic coverups. Your inspector should be able to tell you if there is something more serious.

Try The Plumbing

Test the plumbing attached to the home with the inspector present before committing to anything. If there is a lack of water pressure or anything drains slowly, you might have a bigger issue than it appears on the surface. It’s best to go through these systems during the home inspection.

Check to see if the shower pans and bathtubs are leak-tested. Then, ask the home inspector if they will examine the main shutoff point and the water main. It’s also helpful to have them point these locations out to you so you know where they are and how to access them once the home becomes yours.

Look In the Attic

Finally, check out the attic. An attic that works well is a necessity in any home. It offers a vital point of insulation, a good spot to store things, and an excellent place to learn about any critical repairs or fixes necessary in your home. The attic will reveal secrets buried inside the walls of the house.

For example, you might want to check to see if your bathroom fan vents into the attic. If it does, you could have humid air causing mold and other damage. Up in the attic, you can also look for leaks and other serious issues.

Home Inspection in Central Oregon

A home inspection is a critical point when purchasing a house, so it’s vital to be at the top of your game. You should be there, ask questions, select someone trustworthy for the inspection, and more to ensure everything goes as planned. The more thorough, the better your protection against a renovation nightmare once you move in.

If you’re looking for quality home inspection services, seek no further than Deschutes Home Inspection. Travis Ferrell, the owner of Deschutes Home Inspection is an educated and experienced home inspector in Central Oregon. He will do his best to provide 5-star inspection services. Contact us online or by phone at (541) 993-9542.

Tag Archive for: residential home inspection

Home Inspection Tips for Sellers