Wish us luck!

I’ve sold a house but not bought one (I moved into husband’s house) but I’ve helped others get theirs reader to sell. Get an inspector you trust–having other people recommend an inspector tends to work out well. If there’s really a dealbreaker, they will be upfront about it if they’re in the least reputable at all. That’s not to say there aren’t some alarmists out there–This is just me talking, but I think the hysteria over mold is a little out of control. My sister sold a house recently and it was old, but not THAT old (about 60 years). But one deal fell through when the potential owners brought in a mold specialist who, lo and behold, told them they would have to pay him $8,000 to alleviate the mold in her basement. Yet magically, the very next inspector found NOTHING wrong. So just take that with a grain of salt–use an impartial inspector first.

That you will talk yourself into completing the transacton even though you have a deal breaker. Don’t overlook what professional are pointing out.

Also, here in CA the home inspector tells you they make no warranties and such. True as far as it goes. But they can be held responsible later if something major really is wrong and they should have seen/know. This just for future reference.

Not sure of title insurance in the East. But here in CA buy it. buy it. buy it. It might seems expensive but you just never know …

Finally, in a purchase I backed out on, I want not entirely sure of the home inspection, highered an engineer to look … backed out quickly. Moral, it really is worth spending a $1000 to save $50,000.

My husband and I just bought our first home (we actually moved in exactly a week ago today), so I remember well the anxiety you must be feeling. Luckily, you’re getting some good advice here.

My realtor and I were both at the house the day of the inspection. Before he even began, our inspector sat down and explained the whole procedure to me. He told me that he usually spends a bit more than 1 hour for every 1000 square feet of interior. He had a digital camera and took photos of every imperfection. Whenever he came across anything questionable, he pointed it out to me. He was also very patient, happy to answer every question I had, and was able to explain things in a way that I could understand. He also gave me a binder and CD-Rom with general tips on how to maintain a home. The day after the inspection, our inspector e-mailed the report to me. The report was 33 pages long, which certainly sounds frightening, but there were a lot of pics within those pages. In the end, our house was excellently maintained and in very good shape. He said that for most houses in our neighborhood, the report would have been twice as long.

After the inspection, you may still need to hire additional professionals to look at any potential problems with the house (the furnace, plumbing, etc). And in each region, there are particular quirks to look out for. For instance, termites are a big problem in our area, so we hired a professional termite inspector to check the property.

After you have these reports, your realtor can negotiate with the sellers to get things fixed. Just remember that most sellers are only willing to fix things that are absolutely broken. If the furnace doesn’t work, you can certainly ask them to fix that. But if the roof needs to be replaced within a few years but is still good *now*, then you may not have much to go on there.

Best of luck to you!

If you are absolutely unfamiliar with houses, get someone you trust (friend or family) who has owned a house before to go with you to make sure. Even if they aren’t an expert, they may have better ‘horse-sense’ about what are potential big problems.

Another thing to do is ask for references and actually call the people. They’ll probably be all to happy to tell you if he missed things.

I’ve also heard that the final report should have details written out like a narrative, not just a check list.

Good luck!

-C