With over 550 offices in North America, Pillar To Post Home Inspectors® is in a unique position to acquire valuable feedback from their inspectors who have performed well over 3 million home inspections.
Some of the discussions taking place throughout the network are very enlightening, beginning with the fact that homebuyers need to be cautious that they don’t get intimidated into skipping a home inspection. In fact, our inspectors advise today’s buyers to first look at the obvious things they can identify themselves in a home they are looking to buy. Once that goes well, and the buyer is inclined to make an offer, it’s important to ensure that a thorough home inspection is written firmly into the contract.
Here are some things prospective buyers should look for when perusing a home: water stains, cracks in walls, windows and doors that won’t shut (or open) properly, leaky or corroded pipes and lights that don’t turn on immediately. These are all things that prospective buyers can point out to their inspector.
In bathrooms and kitchens, look under sinks for water, flush the toilets and run all the taps and showers. In the basement and attic, look for signs of water or pests, and throughout the remainder of the home, open and close doors, and give the ceilings and walls a once-over for any cracks, water stains or discoloration.
Your home inspector should thoroughly check the following in the most basic home inspection:
- Evaluate the property’s foundation and whether or not it will pose any problems down the road.
- Take a close look at the structural integrity of the home, as it will determine several other factors moving forward.
- Examine the exterior, leaving no stone unturned, whether it’s on the roof or in the yard.
- Look at the property’s plumbing and HVAC units, as both are big-ticket items worthy of a closer inspection.
- While harder to examine than just about everything else, it pays to have an idea of how the home’s electrical system is operating.
While we’re still experiencing a seller’s market, people began to hear about the consequences associated with skipping home inspections over the last few years and are much more aware of the possible nightmare scenarios that can occur.
At Pillar To Post, we offer a variety of home inspection packages, including the new and extremely popular Ultimate Home Inspection, which is quickly becoming the Gold Standard of the industry.
Dan Steward is president and CEO of Pillar To Post Home Inspectors USA and has been lauded as an RISMedia Newsmaker (2019 – 2022). Pillar To Post Home Inspectors has been named No. 1 in category for nine years in a row on Entrepreneur Magazine’s Franchise 500® prestigious list ranking top franchise companies. For more information, visit www.pillartopost.com.
