House Inspection - Do Your Own?

Should you do your own pre-purchase house inspection, or should you hire a professional inspector? Doing both may be the best way to go. Before you write an offer on it, you can inspect the house yourself, and take notes. Then you can put an inspection contingency clause in your offer, and hire a professional inspector before closing.

Why should you do both? To begin with, you can get a better price. This is especially important on fixer uppers which may not have entirely predictable costs. That leaky toilet, cracked window, warped door and every other little thing becomes a negotiating point, because you can point them out. You could just make a low offer, of course. But a seller is more likely to accept your offer if there are good reasons for it being lower. You can even attach a list of your "concerns" to the offer, as an explanation and justification for offering less.

Use a good house inspection checklist as you walk through the home. This keeps you from forgetting anything. It isn't important that you know the difference between 12-gauge and 14-gauge wiring, or become an expert on the building trades, but use what you do know, and make a note if something looks "funny" or "sounds odd." This way you can tell the professional inspector what to look at.

Why should you pay for a professional pre-purchase house inspection? Because it can save you a lot of headaches and money. An investor I know just discovered that the house he made an offer on was almost beyond hope, because of termite and other damage. He backed out of the deal, and I don't think he's regretting the $300 he spent for inspectors.

A walk-through inspection before you make an offer helps you get a lower price, helps you put a price on repairs and improvements, and points out problems that a professional can take a closer look at. Then put that clause in the contract allowing you to have professional inspections. Now, how do you choose the right person(s) to inspect the house?

House Inspection - Hiring An Inspector

You can probably rely on most reputable companies for specific inspections that are customary in your area. Termite inspections are the normal in Tucson, for example, and pest control companies will do them inexpensively (they hope to get the job if you need help). If the roof has obvious problems, you can get a roofer to take a look and give you an itemized quote for free.

For general pre-purchase house inspections, though, it isn't as easy to get the right person. It's easy to get licensed for general home inspection in most areas. You don't really want someone that read the right books and passed a test, but an inspector with real life experience, like a former builder or tradesman that has real experience with everything from electrical work to roofing to plumbing. In addition to experience spotting problems, these kinds of inspectors can help suggest solutions and costs for those.

See if the inspector can give you estimates for repairing any problem he finds, even if only in the form of a range of the possible costs. After all, you could be re-negotiating the price based on his findings, so you need some idea of where you are. Contractors can give you quotes on big problems, but you need to at least know which are big problems. A good inspector should be able to tell you.

House Inspection - Four Steps

2. Find an inspector with relevant experience.

3. See if she can note estimated repair costs next to any problems found.

4. So you can learn more, ask if you can tag along for the inspection.

Do these things and you'll have a thorough house inspection. Then you shouldn't have to go over-budget on your renovation and repair plans. This means making the profit you plan on.

Tips For Flipping A House | House Inspection - Do Your Own?