For most potential home buyers that purchase will be the biggest investment they ever make. As a buyer, if you forego doing inspection due diligence before signing your closing documents, you may be committing to a money pit instead of a dream house. A good home inspector should know what to look for; however, you should consider going past the basic inspection to consider the following extra items be put under the microscope (some of which may also be required in specific regions).
Environmental Health
A home can have many features that add sustaining value. Other features that you may discover will not be assets and can in fact make you ill: uninhibited mold on the walls or within sink cabinets; lead in painted window sills and walls; or asbestos wrapped around boilers or in tiles. You will need inspection services from air contaminants Wilmington NC to uncover these issues before deciding whether the cost of any remediation is worth the price of the house.
Vermin Habitation
Your home should be a shelter for your family and pets, period, with no other creatures scurrying about. First, you need to determine if the house you want has attracted mice or rats, which are not only unappealing guests, but also bring disease and eat your food. On the other hand, termites can be even more unsettling; they can cause structural damage to wood that can be very costly to repair.
Structural Soundness
While many inspectors will look at roofs and systems within a house such as heating and electrical, you would have to rely on a structural engineer to evaluate the soundness of your foundation. Neglecting this analysis, especially where subsidence is common, can lead to an increasing number of cracks in your walls and listing door frames.
The more questions you can ask of a house you want to buy, the better off you will be in the long run. To ensure a happy home for years to come, consider hiring specialized inspectors to scope out issues where your general investigator leaves off.