Buying a Home in Frederick - Home inspections Part III

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Now you have a ratified contract…whew! Alright, what’s next? What did you ask for in your contract? You wanted a home inspection, requested it be completed and reviewed in seven days. I always suggest a home inspection. You never know what you are getting into unless of course you’re a trained professional. You want to make sure your house is a sound purchase. Home Inspectors will check everything in the house. You really need a 3^rd party to look at the house. They don’t care if you buy it or the seller sells it. They just tell you what they see. I know a few good Home Inspectors in Frederick MD. (New law; All Home Inspectors will have to be licensed by the state starting in January 2008) Most, if not all, have a checklist/system that they religiously follow to do the inspection. They will check everything from the roof to the foundation in the basement and everything in between; looking for leaks, suspicious cracks, electrical problems, and code violations…just to name a few things. At the end of the inspection, they will give you a report of their findings. This report is yours…you paid for it when he completed the inspection (remember, I told you this is one expense that you will have)

Now that you have the report, take a look at what he found. Is there anything that scares you? River in the basement, Roof shingles beyond their serviceable life? Aluminum Wiring? There can be many defects or problem areas and there might not be anything wrong at all. This is where you need to decide if you still want the house. You now have three choices; yes, no or I want the seller to fix these items. Most likely you will want some repairs done to the house prior to settlement. So you and I write up some more paperwork (Home Inspection Notice). You now have to give the seller a copy of your home inspection. Depending on the problem, there are certain items that have to be in working condition. According to the contract, paragraph 21;

All electrical, heating, air conditioning, plumbing (including well and septic), and any other mechanical systems and related equipment, appliances and smoke detector(s) included in this Contract shall be in working condition.

Of course this does not apply to a house that is listed “as is”. You will know that upfront. So, we make the list of items and ask the seller to fix them. There is a time limit outlined in your contract that says how long they have to review and respond to our request (usually 2 days). Sometimes they repair everything, sometimes they will just credit you cash back so you can have them fixed and maybe they just say no. You have time to respond also usually a day or two. Fortunately these sellers agreed to fix all of the defects.

Now did you have any other inspections on the contract? You can ask for quite a few different inspections. Let see, there’s Lead Base Paint inspections, Mold inspections, Radon Gas, Septic Inspections, Well Inspections and pool inspections. Your REALTOR® will advise you of suggested inspections based on the property. They all have criteria in which you have to perform the inspection. Remember we are on a timeline according the contract. Everyone wants to get to closing on time.