Selman Home Inspection Company Blog On ActiveRain

Buying A Home From The Home Inspectors Perspective, Older Homes

Part 3 - Buying An Older Home, From A Home Inspectors Perspective

In the present economy and with fewer new homes being built, many people who are in the market for a new place to live are seeing a large number of older homes in well established neighborhoods. These homes offer many advantages over newly constructed homes and other forms of housing. Some of the advantages include; seeing the neighborhood condition over time, close to well established local businesses, they are in great locations and many more.

If you are considering an older home as your new residence, you will also want the expert advise of a Professional Home Inspector regarding the condition of the house, how well the property has been maintained and, how well upgrades and enhancements have kept up to date with today's Texas Standards of Practice.

All Professional Home Inspectors are required to inspect every home compared to "perfect" standards, today's local building codes and, today's Texas Standards of Practice. As explained in Part 1 of this series, not even newly constructed homes live up to these standards in most cases. So, as one would expect, an older home is even less likely to live up to these high standards when inspected.

Although no home is perfect, Upon Further Inspection, a prospective buyer should not rule out older homes. Many home owners, even if the property is well maintained, do not do all of the upgrades and enhancements required to meet today's tough standards. Below are a few defects often reported by inspectors in the standards you may see when considering an older home:

• All interior vents such as bathroom vents should vent to the exterior of the building. In the past, it was common practice to vent interior vents directly into the attic space.
• All kitchen counter tops (including islands) should have GFCI protected outlets. In past construction, only the electrical receptacles near the kitchen sink were GFCI protected.
• All closet and storage areas with incandescent light fixtures should have installed a protective cover and be at least 12" away from combustibles. Incandescent bulbs were used often in closets and storage areas in past construction. (Easy solution - use low E compact florescent bulbs instead)
• Attic access hatches and stairs installed in the garage should be fire rated devices. Few builders follow this standard even in new construction.

How much does your home inspection cost? That is, oddly enough, often times the first question that a potential client will ask me, and in my opinion, among the least important. I am a professional home inspector in North Texas. My education and certifications were costly. I run a business like any other with continuous overhead costs including association dues, license fees, continuing education, INSURANCE, tools, software, fuel, website, advertising and time.

Performing a home inspection is a lot of work. Normally taking between 3-6 hours depending on the size of the home and the number of identifiable defects. Home inspectors crawl under houses, over houses, into attics and completely cover the condition of a home. We often go into dangerous places that the home owner will never venture into.

A thorough home inspection covers over 25 major areas and components and hundreds of individual items and components of a home. We are trained to do it. We are trained what to look for. We are trained how best to report it. We gain experience with every job. And, we provide knowledge for the safety of you and your family.

Good inspectors review the findings with clients and agents taking as much time as is needed. Our reports help sellers properly price their home and disclose defects they may not have been aware of. We assist buyers in understanding what they are getting for their investment.

If you are paying less than $250 for a basic inspection, you should be using a different inspector. An inspector who is charging less may not be professional, may be brand new or may not be truly qualified to discern deficiencies in the best interest of the real estate transaction. I believe in the old adage, you get what you pay for. 

The majority of top professional home inspectors charge between $250 and $325 for homes up to approximately 2000 SF. A high percentage charge even more. Then a small amount per square foot is added to account for the additional labor and reporting time. In my research, this is a fair price range.

What is a home inspection worth? What is your real estate investment worth? What is the safety of your family worth? Can you identified the repair needs of hidden components? If I were buying or selling a home, a professional home inspection would be priceless.

So, what do you think a home inspection should cost?