Kimberlee Quarles, Realtor

1530 Hilton Head #201, El Cajon CA, 92019
(619)987-5143 verified

Buying a Home - Property Inspections

10/25/2011 2:13:00 PM by Kimberlee Quarles, Realtor

With the number of bank owned properties on the market today, getting a home
inspection is even more important. Banks are exempt from providing buyers with
the typical disclosures a seller would provide. They will not provide the
Transfer Disclosure Statement which a seller fills outs and answers questions
about the property, among others. The banks must disclose anything they know
about the property but in many instances they do not know any of the homes history.
Even in a transaction where there is a "regular" seller who has lived
in the home, you need to consider the source of the disclosures. You need to
keep in mind that the seller is trying to put the property in the best possible
light to a potential buyer. It is imperative that you have the property
inspected by a qualified inspector so you are aware of any defects before they
purchase the home.

There are steps to this process, the first being the offer to purchase
itself. Your offer should include an inspection contingency that allows you to
inspect whatever you would like. Some inspections you may want to consider are
a pest inspection, general home inspection, well inspection, septic inspection.
It really depends on what is important to you. If boundaries are important, get
the property surveyed. Does there appear to be drainage issue?  Get it checked out. If you are concernedabout permits go to the county and pull the permits. If the general inspector
says the roof is questionable get a roofer out there to check it out and give
you a bid. I have a list of well over 20 inspections that you may or may not
want to have performed. Do whatever it take so that you feel comfortable moving
forward with the purchase. This being said you also need to understand that the
inspections must not harm the property or you must pay to put the property back
into the original condition. For example, if there is evidence of water damage
on the ceiling of a room below a bathroom, it may be necessary to remove
drywall to see if there is an active leak. You would need the homeowner’s
permission before you go tearing into walls and you would need to put it back
into the same condition or work something out with the seller in advance. So
when you write your offer make sure there is a broad inspection contingency.

You will also need to establish in the offer the amount of time you will
need to get the inspections done. The standard time allowed is 17 days. This
may seem quick but for the most part the inspectors are aware of the time
constraints and will get things done very quickly. It is important that you
understand that once your offer is accepted and escrow is opened things will
move quickly. You will be very busy the first couple weeks of escrow. Your
lender will be asking for items to complete the loan. You will be scheduling
and attending inspections. I will be going over disclosures and escrow
paperwork with you. You must remember that there are deadlines built into the
contract that you must adhere to. Make getting all the necessary inspections
done a priority.

One of the biggest objections I hear to doing an inspection is that it will
cost the buyer money. This is very true. The buyer is responsible for paying
for their inspections. However some inspections may be negotiable. You can
request in the offer that the seller pay for some inspections for example the
termite, septic or well inspections. But you need to remember you might be
competing against other offers and the more you ask for the less likely the
seller is to accept. I also like to remind my buyers that spending $400 or so
for a home inspection is money well spent, especially if a fatal defect is
discovered. This is probably the biggest investment you will make and a home
inspection could save you a lot of money. It is best to know what you are buying.

The purpose of the home inspection is for the buyer to know the condition of
the property so you can make an informed decision as to whether or not you want
to continue with the purchase. The home inspection is not meant to create a
shopping list of repairs you expect the seller to perform. While you can submit
a request for repairs to the seller before doing so you need to limit your
requests to "deal breakers". These are items that must be done in
order to feel comfortable with moving forward. I have seen buyers use the
inspection report to come up with a laundry list of repairs and upgrades they
wanted. The seller's response was "tell them to go buy a brand new house
or raise their price by $100,000". The seller is under no obligation to
even respond to your request for repairs. The inspection is meant to help you
decide if you want to purchase the property or walk away.

You may have been searching for a year and this is your dream home. You may
have written numerous offers and been outbid or waited around for short sale
approval that never came but no matter what, do not let your emotions cause you
to cut corners. Yes it is nerve wracking and I understand you really want the
home to check out. I have seen buyers devastated after doing a home inspection
and discovering the well was bad and they could not purchase the property. It
took a little bit for the sting to go away but in the end they were very happy
they found out before they moved in and yes, they found another home and are
perfectly happy. Do the home inspections so you know what you are buying and you
can have some peace of mind.




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