The Real Estate Browser Volume 8, Issue 7 | Page 6

6 — Say you saw it in The Real Estate Browser of Lynchburg — Volume 8 Number 7
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How To Choose A Home Inspection Firm
By Drew Howard , President, HomePro, Inc.
If you are planning to make
improvements to your home to
increase market value, it may be a
good idea to have it inspected first. A home inspector
can help you to prioritize your home improvements
and advise you as to the best way to approach repairs.
How do you choose among the many inspection
firms on the market? Primarily, by asking some tough
questions of prospective companies. Will the inspector
perform these functions when he visits your home?
• Climb up on the roof, crawl through the attic and
crawl space, open the electrical panel, check the fur-
nace heat exchanger, look for woodborers and rot,
check for toxic substances, operate all appliances
and equipment and report on basement water leak-
age evidence?
• Put your property into perspective by comparing it
with its peers i.e. houses of similar vintage, material
usage, intent?
• Summarize the major points of concern and the sig-
nificant qualities of the property?
• Include in the written report the level of complexity
of the property and the probability of undiscovered
problems?
• List and place these components which have a high
probability of failure within the coming five year
period? (Good home inspectors will do this for the
roofing, heating and air conditioning, kitchen and
laundry appliances, and water heater).
• Identify potential remodeling problems such as
materials containing asbestos; electrical systems
which cannot be expanded to accommodate a new
kitchen; and old galvanized plumbing supply which
will not deliver adequate supply of water or may
leak?
• Inform you about amateur workmanship or sub-
standard maintenance, or advise when to consult an
expert to look more closely at suspected problem
areas?
• Detail the maintenance for all the components of the
house?
• List problems in major and minor groupings?
(Major problems are defined as problems that cost
$500 or more to repair or constitute a significant
safety hazard).
• Report on potentially dangerous or harmful ele-
ments such as
- Unlined fireplace flues
- Aluminum general lighting circuits
- Unvented gas space heaters
- Cracks or holes in heat exchangers of furnaces
- Toxic substances like asbestos
- Inadequate combustion air or clearances to
heating equipment
- Inadequate insulation
- Overextended electrical systems
- Restrictive ventilation in attics
- Wood close to earth, increasing the risk of
woodborer and rot damage
As always if you have any questions please call Drew
Howard 660-3449