When selling your home, you should consider what a home inspector will find when he or she is contracted by a buyer. What will the buyers home inspector be looking at, what types of issues will they find? At the Jardine AmeriSpec Office we suggest you have a professional inspector look at your property before a buyers inspector does his or her inspection.
1. How old is your roof? What issues will a home inspector find when they walk your roof?
2. Is your siding in good shape? Is there any damage that could cause water infiltration? If it's brick on the exterior do you have any broken or cracked bricks, is there any "spalling" of the brick or deterioration? Should you consider tuck pointing by a professional before you put your home up for sale? Is the trim around the windows and doors caulked properly and is there flashings installed to move the water away from the house?
3. Can you see the entire foundation? Are there any cracks in the foundation? Should you have a professional foundation company make any repairs?
4. Are your faucets operable? Are there any leaks from the spigots?
5. Do you have GFCI (Ground Fault Circuit Interupters) and are they operable? Do all the lights on the exterior work properly?
6. On the interior, do all your kitchen appliances work properly? Stove, oven, micro wave, refrigerator? Are there any leaks under any of the sinks or toilets? All your faucets work properly? Are there GFCI recptacles installed in bathrooms, kitchen, basment, garage and exterior?
7. Interior walls and ceilings free of cracks or peeling drywall tape? Do all the windows work properly and do any of the windows show fogging or condensation if double paned? Is there at least one window in each room that can be used for egress? How about interior doors? Do they all open and close properly? No rubbing jams or stick when trying to open?
8. In the basement, are there any signs of water penetration? Any foundation cracks that could allow water to enter the basement? Has there been any signs of foundation movement? Bowing walls, tilting walls or other signs that would or could be problematic? Should you have a foundation specialist make any repairs prior to listing your home? Have you had a termite inspection in the last year to prove thre are no termites? Most professional termite companies will give free inspection if the property is not for sale or your not refinacning your loan.
9. Is your furnace and air conditioning in good shape? Do you know the ages? Have they been serviced by a professional HVAC contractor? Do you have documentation.
10. Have you had an electrican open your electrical panel and determine the safety of the wiring and look for double tappings or over fusing? Do you know if you have knob and tube wiring or a Federal Pacifici or Zinsco Panel?
11. Is the attic insulated and have good ventilation? Any wiring issues in the attic? Are there any cracked or cut joists or trusses? Do you know if there any stains on the decking? Any cracked decking?
These are just a few things you should know before listing your home. Some of the items could be deal breakers, especially if you are not aware of them. Keep in mind, information is powerful and if you know the issues about your home, you can have them "repaired" before the buyer has their inspection. Makes a much smoother process. And of things, as a seller, you want a smooth and worry free process.
We suggest to find a Certified home inspector you find an ASHI (American Society of Home Inspectors) at http://www.stlashi.org/
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