It’s a smart move to hire a home inspector to examine your potential home. But, wait. Before you sign that contract and pay the home inspector to inspect your dream house, perhaps you should consider a few things first?

One thing you should know about home inspectors is that their professional standards of practice tell them that their job is only to make an objective and independent VISUAL assessment of a home. That means they are not even allowed to move any personal belongings of the home owner or rearrange furniture in order to gain access to hard-to-reach places, like the attic or the garage. And, of course, if they cannot enter those places, then they wouldn’t be able to inspect them and just satisfy themselves by writing on the home inspector’s report that they “were not able to assess the attic because of personal belongings blocking the way.”

The major components of your house are all important. If something’s wrong with any of them, it is you who’d end up spending a lot of money for repairs. Getting a home inspector to point out the problems and their symptoms before they get out of hand is one way of saving you from unwarranted expenses on a house you only recently purchased.

Therefore, your home inspector has his role to play. And you have your own part to accomplish.

Keep an Eye Out for Yourself

Even before the contract is signed, it pays to keep a keen eye out for potential problems yourself. It isn’t enough that you depend on your home inspector for everything. In fact, that’s even the reason why it’s much more preferable if you join your home inspector during the walk-through.

So below are some tips that you can use as you make the initial walk-through of your potential home:

From A Distance

A good place to start your own inspection is from the side of the road. home inspectors have their own methods of assessing the visual components of a house, but usually, they start with the whole picture before moving in to look at the details. As for yourself, take a look first at how the house is situated. If the land slopes toward the house, find out if there is adequate drainage, in case of flooding. Then, check for straight roof lines. A roof in good shape is one without odd-looking dips, bumps, or bubbles, unless this is all part of the overall design.

Up Close

Now, step closer and examine the house’s exterior. This is the second part of a home inspector’s examination. Pay attention to the siding and trim and see if it is painted. If it is, is there any bubbling or major peeling? Also, find if the earth around the house come in contact with siding or trim details. Look at the windows and doors and see if they are in good condition. Especially, notice if the storm windows are intact or if its screens and glass panels are in place.

Inside the House

Check the ceilings and walls for signs of water damage, such as stains or evidence of mold. Is there loose plaster or peeling paint?

These are only some of the things you need to pay attention to as you do a pre-inspection before a home inspector arrives.

There is a lot of free information available to you about buying, selling or investing in real estate. For complete information about the , Indianapolis, and other area real estate markets including current homes for sale, property values and more please visit the most complete website online dedicated to everything real estate. So please feel free to contact me with any of your mortgage questions and I will me more than glad to answer your queries. Call me, Beverly Stewart,  on my cell at 317-514-9998 or email me at indyhome4u@ameritech.net.