Tips For Having a Pre-inspection for Your Home

Selling a property is no easy task. Although you might have found the right price but it will be a while until you can start moving the boxes because the house needs to go through an inspection. Inspectors tend to check every inch of the area and can bring down the price if the property requires expensive repairs. If you are asking: what do building inspectors look for? Read on to know more. 

However, from the buyer’s viewpoint, it is the only way that secures their investment. So if you are about to have an inspector come take a look at your house, Granite Foundation Repair experts provide some important tips that will help make the house look worth buying.

Pre-Inspection Home Selling Tips

Provide Easy Access to Difficult Areas

It is often that homeowners tend to make it difficult for the home inspector to access relatively difficult areas such as the roof and attic. This is intentionally done to hide any major defects or flaws. However, you should steer clear of this practice and provide easy access to the home inspector. Infact, you should call the home inspector and ask the date of his arrival. This way, you can grab a ladder or any other tool that helps him reach complicated areas.

Remember, areas such as the roof and attic are major selling or buying points in a property. The overall condition of these areas tells a lot about how the property was maintained. So if the home inspector feels that the seller is not accommodating, he might sense something fishy. 

Clear the Perimeter

The home inspector will look for flaws and defects inside the house and around it. Anything that surrounds your property can either bring up or down the selling price. For instance, trims and caulking around windows and doors can negatively impact the price. If the inspector finds trash in the perimeter, he might term the property as not well-maintained. 

Check the Roof

As mentioned earlier, the roof is the most important part of the house, and roof repairs are not cheap either. Well-maintained properties tend to have roofs in top-notch condition as the homeowners tend to perform an annual inspection. This allows them to remove and fix any defects beforehand. A faulty roof will cause headaches to the customer down the road and reduce the overall life of the property.

Plus, some homeowners tend to opt for cosmetic fixtures, which is not ethical. Putting someone’s life in danger just so that you can sell your property at a good price is simply not right. Therefore, before the home inspector comes looking, you should give the roof one final look and fix any minor cracks or damages. If you have been maintaining the roof all these years, you would not have problems fixing minor flaws in terms of time and money/

Keep a Clean House

They say the first impression is the last impression, which stands true particularly in the case of home inspection. A home inspector can tell a lot about the property just at the first glance. Some home inspectors are so professional at their job that they can easily guess where the defects and flaws lie. 

Sometimes homeowners tend to forgo maintaining the property once it is sold. Keeping the property clean for a few more days won’t bite. If you let go of the property and the home inspector pays a visit, then you are in trouble. A property with a disappointing level of cleanliness will lead to negative marking. Although a dirty property does not count in home inspection, it can surely make the inspector suspicious of other areas.

Replace Bulbs and Switches

You might have seen home inspectors randomly turning on the switches while inspection to see if they work. These are minor details that homeowners tend to ignore. However, home inspectors value these factors and therefore, you must make sure all the bulbs and switches are working. 

Additionally, you should replace switchboards that are cracked or damaged as they can present a serious risk of an electric shock. Plus, inspectors do not have the time to check if the switch is fixable or not, they will simply note it down as a defect. Therefore, avoid such situations by ensuring that everything is in perfect working condition. 

Clean the Furnace

If your house includes a furnace, you should get it cleaned as well. A dirty and grime accumulated furnace presents serious health concerns due to toxic fumes entering the house. Plus, it can also cause a huge fire. With that being said, you should thoroughly inspect the furnace to highlight the fact that your home’s heating system is well-looked after. 

Check the Doors

Squeaking doors are a major deal-breaker. If the home inspector comes across doors that have a problem while opening and closing, he/she will go down hard on your property. The doors should latch perfectly into the frame without any problem. Plus the locks and doorknobs should be in perfect working condition as well. Sometimes a shift in weather conditions can also warp normal functioning doors. Therefore, be sure to check each door for problems.

Look for Leaks and Water Damage

The last thing you would want is the home inspector coming across leakages and faulty drain pipes. Such problems are neither easy to fix nor cheap. Therefore, the home inspector might suggest the buyer look for other options simply because the current owner failed to address major problems.

Moreover, leaks can also damage wooden floors and walls. If the items inside your house are exposed to moisture for a long time, rot and mold can occur. This is not something you would want the home inspector to see. 

Final Word

Finally, be prepared. Although it can be a nervous 3-4 hours, you need to be prepared and hold your ground. You should make sure that everything goes as smoothly as possible. Clear the access areas, turn the utilities on and ask your family to vacate the house for a while. And if there are a few minor issues, do not panic, most buyers aren’t always looking for complete perfection. 

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