What? The AC Isn't Hooked Up?
It's hard to overestimate the importance of a home inspection. Even if the home is new construction. Maybe even especially then because the expectation is that everything is new and, after all, what could go wrong?
Plenty. Before I became a real estate professional, my husband and I purchased a brand new home in the downtown area of a beach city. Previously we'd owned a condo close by and every time we took a walk to the ocean, we passed this gorgeous property. It sat for a while. Aside from being overpriced for the market, it had a few design flaws that perhaps kept it waiting for us to buy it. The kitchen was very small for a 3000 square foot home and the washer and dryer hook-ups were in the garage instead of in a designated laundry area. Not what the buyers would expect in a home priced at nearly two million dollars. Also, the ceilings were lower than normal, but this accommodated a full third floor deck and bonus room. The exterior was beautifully designed with several outdoor porches and the ability to watch the fireworks on July 4 from the massive deck. I was in love. So much so that we put our home in another county on the market and bought this "rock star" house...my son's description.
We didn't get an inspection. No one told us to. The realtor worked both sides of the negotiations...another thing I wouldn't do now as a buyer unless I knew the realtor really well...which we didn't. So joyous were we to not only live at the beach but to reside here in such style that we didn't think anything could dull the excitement. I know what you're thinking: But something did! Yep. I plugged in the washer and dryer then realized...uh...there was no dryer vent. All this dewy air filled the garage. The builder's fix for that? Get a mobile home dryer kit. Yeah...uh, no. He had to create a hole in the garage for the vent like he was supposed to do in the first place. Then there was the leak in the upstairs bathroom that saturated the carpeting in the downstairs bedroom discovered by a contractor we called in to find out why the electricity didn't work in that room. He pulled the bed from the wall and got his socks all wet. Out came the drywall in the ceiling and in the wall behind the bed. New carpet, too. By summer, we needed the AC. Turns out it wasn't hooked up. I wish I could say this was all, but it's wasn't. You get the drift, though. Yikes!
Recently I sold another brand new home to clients who really wanted it despite the fact that I could already see things that might cause problems. When you can see what might be wrong, it's probably a safe bet there are things that you can't see. I wasn't expecting a list of forty-seven items, though. The inspector maybe went a little hard core, but the downstairs ceiling needed to be refloated, the staircase railings redone, the upper deck resurfaced, stucco repaired, electrical wiring covered and the front and back doors needed casings repaired. Other minor things like drawers that weren't adequately closing, cabinets that weren't aligned and windows that wouldn't open or wouldn't lock were also on the list. The good thing about the purchase of a new home is that there are many warranties on things like appliances and windows, but often the contractors aren't as good about returning to a home to fix things after the home has closed escrow. There was still the problem with the door casings when my clients closed. The handyman hired by the contractor made such an incredible mess of the repair that it finally became hilarious after the third effort on his part. Because a friend of mine is an excellent handyman, I hired him to actually fix it correctly. As a gift to my clients. It felt so good to actually see it done right! And they were blown away.
This is a picture of the third and final fix by the contractor's handyman. See what I mean? The home was priced at almost two million dollars and he thought this was perfectly fine.
Here is how my amazing friend and handyman extraordinaire repaired it!
Bottom line: Always get a home inspection. Period. And make sure you have a realtor who fights for you to get the fixes you deserve.
Plenty. Before I became a real estate professional, my husband and I purchased a brand new home in the downtown area of a beach city. Previously we'd owned a condo close by and every time we took a walk to the ocean, we passed this gorgeous property. It sat for a while. Aside from being overpriced for the market, it had a few design flaws that perhaps kept it waiting for us to buy it. The kitchen was very small for a 3000 square foot home and the washer and dryer hook-ups were in the garage instead of in a designated laundry area. Not what the buyers would expect in a home priced at nearly two million dollars. Also, the ceilings were lower than normal, but this accommodated a full third floor deck and bonus room. The exterior was beautifully designed with several outdoor porches and the ability to watch the fireworks on July 4 from the massive deck. I was in love. So much so that we put our home in another county on the market and bought this "rock star" house...my son's description.
We didn't get an inspection. No one told us to. The realtor worked both sides of the negotiations...another thing I wouldn't do now as a buyer unless I knew the realtor really well...which we didn't. So joyous were we to not only live at the beach but to reside here in such style that we didn't think anything could dull the excitement. I know what you're thinking: But something did! Yep. I plugged in the washer and dryer then realized...uh...there was no dryer vent. All this dewy air filled the garage. The builder's fix for that? Get a mobile home dryer kit. Yeah...uh, no. He had to create a hole in the garage for the vent like he was supposed to do in the first place. Then there was the leak in the upstairs bathroom that saturated the carpeting in the downstairs bedroom discovered by a contractor we called in to find out why the electricity didn't work in that room. He pulled the bed from the wall and got his socks all wet. Out came the drywall in the ceiling and in the wall behind the bed. New carpet, too. By summer, we needed the AC. Turns out it wasn't hooked up. I wish I could say this was all, but it's wasn't. You get the drift, though. Yikes!
Recently I sold another brand new home to clients who really wanted it despite the fact that I could already see things that might cause problems. When you can see what might be wrong, it's probably a safe bet there are things that you can't see. I wasn't expecting a list of forty-seven items, though. The inspector maybe went a little hard core, but the downstairs ceiling needed to be refloated, the staircase railings redone, the upper deck resurfaced, stucco repaired, electrical wiring covered and the front and back doors needed casings repaired. Other minor things like drawers that weren't adequately closing, cabinets that weren't aligned and windows that wouldn't open or wouldn't lock were also on the list. The good thing about the purchase of a new home is that there are many warranties on things like appliances and windows, but often the contractors aren't as good about returning to a home to fix things after the home has closed escrow. There was still the problem with the door casings when my clients closed. The handyman hired by the contractor made such an incredible mess of the repair that it finally became hilarious after the third effort on his part. Because a friend of mine is an excellent handyman, I hired him to actually fix it correctly. As a gift to my clients. It felt so good to actually see it done right! And they were blown away.
Bottom line: Always get a home inspection. Period. And make sure you have a realtor who fights for you to get the fixes you deserve.
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