What Is A Good Home Inspection?

A common question that we are asked when conducting home inspections in South Florida is what is a good home inspection or a bad home inspection? A home inspector should never say that a home inspection is either good or bad because there is no perfect home in relation to whether the home has defects. Even a brand new construction home has defects. When you have human interaction in the process there is a higher chance of errors than something that was generated by a machine and homes are built primarily by people so expect some issues.

The home inspector is being hired to review the property and report the condition of the property on the day of the inspection. Yes, I said the day of the inspection because things change after the inspector leaves especially in a home that is occupied when it is inspected. You still have a family that is using the appliances, plumbing, electrical, and navigating the property. Is there a chance that there can be damage or defects found later after the inspection; yes. In most cases it is cosmetic but there have been some situations when there were more significant issues found once the new owners took possession of the property.

Your best defense against this is ensuring that you and your agent do a proper final walkthrough on the property before closing. I know it’s been a long process to get to the closing table and you are almost there and don’t want anything to slow or stop you from closing but it is in your best interest to ensure you are receiving the property in the condition that you expected to receive it in.

I have to say I had a little bit of a moment when a client recently asked “why do I need a home inspection?”…..the catch is that the question was asked after we had completed the home inspection during the debrief with the client. I was quite surprised. We quickly helped by taking time to explain why the home inspection is important to have completed and we gave them a home maintenance book to help them care for the property after closing.

Let’s get back to “what is a good home inspection?”

There is no good or bad home inspection, I would say that there is a good and bad risk when it comes to deciding not to get a home inspection completed. A few hundred dollars can save you from a safety/health issue that may be happening within the property or an issue that could cost you thousands after closing. I would pay the few hundred dollars any day. I mean these transactions are the largest that most will ever make in their lifetime. Why not pay a few hundred dollars on a purchase that is hundreds of thousands of dollars to get some type of peace of mind.

So if I had to really say what is a good home inspection, it would meet the following requirements:

1. A qualified home inspector is hired to perform the home inspection when the contract is executed
2. The home inspector shows up on time, performs the inspection, and gives a debrief of the property to the clients at the end of the inspection
3. The home inspector is available for follow up questions after delivering the report in a reasonable time
4. The client feels that they have received a sufficient amount of information to be able to make the decisions they need to move forward with the purchase.

Summary – What is a good home inspection?

There is no good or bad home inspection, there is only good or bad risk-taking in deciding whether you get a home inspection completed. I hope this article has been helpful. Feel free to leave me your thoughts in the comments.

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If you have additional questions and want to get in contact with GGR Home Inspections please send us a note, text, or call.

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