Don't Skip These 5 Inspections When Buying

If you're buying a home, we recommend investing in five different inspections to get a better idea of the condition of the home you’re buying.  Thinking of selling? Get a free home valuation  Thinking of buying a home? Search all homes for sale on the MLS Home inspections are a vital part of any real estate transaction. Which ones should you get and how much do they cost? These are the top five inspections we recommend when buying a home: Home inspection. This one is obvious; the home inspection will make the overall condition of the property clear. There is no specialty for things like heating and air, but they can identify problems that will need further investigation from someone like a plumber or electrician. It's a general overview, and it's great because you can do a general walkthrough following the two-hour inspection period. This will help you understand any concerns the inspector may have. These home inspections generally cost between $400 and $450, depending on things like your foundation and crawlspace. Pest inspection. This not only checks for actual termite activity, but also dry rot and fungus. These issues, if not addressed immediately, can only get worse. Pest inspections usually run about $100. Roof inspection. This will tell you if there is any part of the roof that needs maintenance or repair, and what the costs would be in order to get a roof certification. Roof certifications normally cost about $250, and there could be some items that need to be corrected in order to get it. The report for the roof inspection is actually free, so there is a lot of value there. Chimney inspection. You just don't know the condition of a chimney, and yet, there could be a lot of issues going on. For $150, you can have a specialist come out for a cleaning, and they'll also inspect the condition of the chimney and the flue and make sure it's all functioning properly and is safe to use. You don't want to start any fires in an unsafe chimney. Sewer line inspection. Not everybody gets this, but it's only $100 and they actually run a camera through the sewer line. Our inspectors have found multiple instances of issues with sewer lines that could have cost up to $6,000. We have been able to correct these issues or get a credit from the seller to fix them simply because most people wouldn't do it. “ These inspections are well worth the investment. ” These are the top five inspections we recommend, but there may be more special inspections depending on the type of property. These inspections are all well worth the investment on a property that's $250,000, $500,000 or more, just so you know what you're buying and that things are working properly, and if they're not, we will ask the seller to take care of them before the close of escrow. If you have any questions about inspections or about the Sacramento real estate market, give me a call or send me an email. Let's talk soon!