You might think you know a thing or two about what makes a home worth moving into or not, and you probably do, but not as much as a home inspector. There is actually an immense amount of understanding and skill needed to thoroughly examine all of the elements of home safety, maintenance, construction and proper installation. This means that your choice will be more informed making one of the biggest investments of your life an all-around better experience.

Did you know…?

A home is a complex system with many components working together in order to function as a whole. A home inspector will know everything about what makes the systems work together, and the numerous ways that one piece of a system can fail, making the whole system fail. Many things can be overlooked by the buyer just because they haven’t encountered a certain situation in their experience with home ownership. A newly constructed house with a one year builder’s warranty should be inspected also to detect problems that might not reveal themselves within that time frame.

Clear judgment

Impartial, unemotional third parties can be worth their weight in gold when it comes to big life decisions. It’s easy to get too excited about a home you really want, caught up in the dreams you have to fix up the property into your dream sanctuary. In doing so many buyers look past serious problems with the house. A home inspection report prevents this from happening most of the time – seeing a list of problems and even going along with the professional as he/she does the inspection can be a real wake up call.

Crucial qualifications

Given the full time job it is to know about all about the many systems that make up a home, an inspector is really the only one qualified to undertake the project of assessing a home. With this in mind, you should choose the home inspector carefully based on their specific experience and credentials. You can receive a recommendation from your realtor, but don’t just assume their choice is the best choice. Conduct a few interviews and do a quick Google search to find good candidates in the area.

Even if the home inspection report is good, it gives you peace of mind in your investment.

A near perfect report is still worth having had the inspection done. All homes have problems, and getting an inspection will allow you to address the problem prior to closing the sale which benefits the buyer as well as the realtor. You can now breathe easy knowing there will be no costly repairs waiting to surprise you as you go into your happily-ever-after.

Preston Sandlin is owner and founder of Home Inspection Carolina and enjoys teaching home inspection classes and giving seminars on termites, radon and thermal imagery. Home Inspection Carolina is a proud member of NCLHIA and Charlotte Regional Realtors Association, and serves Charlotte and all of the surrounding counties of North Carolina including York and Lancaster in South Carolina.