If you are buying real estate in Portland and you are not an experienced contractor, odds are you’re going to have a professional inspection on the property you are purchasing. If you are a seller, it is almost guaranteed that even though the sale is “as-is,” you are going to see a repair request during the inspection period from the inspections that the buyer conducted. The request is usually made up of actual repairs, credits towards closing costs or reducing the sale price. The seller is under no obligation to make any concession but the buyer is within their right to walk away from the transaction (and get their earnest money back) during the inspection period. If the buyer does nothing during the inspection period, the period ends and the buyer loses that contingency in the sales agreement.
This is an antidotal list of what we see the most often on inspection reports. Sellers might be advised to check through these prior to listing a property so that they don’t get a laundry list of repairs. They are generally easy things to take care of:
Soil touching siding/wood stacked against siding
Furnace needs cleaning/servicing
Rain gutters clogged/not sloping towards downspouts
Hot water heater not seismically strapped to anything
Wood debris in crawl spaces (usually left by builder)
Moss on roof. This can lead to moisture penetration even though the roof is not leaking. Attics and moisture can equal mold.
This list is by no way exhaustive on the topic but are the things that we see called out frequently on inspection reports.
Hello – You posted some great information there. Tip though, since I am the Director of Social Media Content for Lending Club, as well as Tech Evangelist for Criteo.
Break up that first paragraph. Remember it’s a blog, and what looks good in a document will sometimes translate poorly in a blog post.
I read it, but I am trying to learn more about what you real estate people blog about as well as trying to get some of you to try the Criteo AutoRoll.
Rex
How responsible for error/neglegence are inspectors? The home inspection for the house my sister purchased came out great; within 2 weeks of moving in they found water damage beneath the tub, dislodged insulation in the crawl space, mice infestation in the crawl space (all easily noticable under the house) and problems with electrical and phone wiring. If this can happen, why pay for an inspection? A magic 8 ball might be a better option.
Every home inspector has a contract that explains their liability. I am not sure what the specifics are. I will post on Monday more about what might be the next generation home inspections or may be something that just confuses the issue. Stay tuned.