You’ve found your dream home, and now begins the journey to closing. Before you can move in and make it your own, you’ll need to have a licensed home inspector come take a look.

Having your future home inspected is beneficial to you as the buyer. It protects you from making a huge financial mistake by allowing you to assess risk based on any findings. If an inspector finds serious issues, you can use that information to negotiate a lower price or ask the current homeowners to take care of the issues before you proceed.

Below are some of the things you can expect when we arrive for your home inspection:

Visual Inspection

A home inspection is a non-invasive process. The more accessible the various rooms and spaces in the house, the more detailed and accurate our report will be. We will not cut into walls to inspect wiring or pipes, or move personal belongings to access crawl spaces. If we cannot get into a space, it will be marked on the report as “inaccessible” and they will move on.

Because of this, any home inspection will not necessarily reveal every problem that exists. However, a trained eye will be able to pick up on early signs of an issue.

Here are just some of the systems and components that we evaluate:

• Grading: Moisture has an effect on a home’s foundation, so we are always looking for signs, like wet spots or bulging, that water is causing problems.
• Foundation: Visible and exposed sections of the foundation walls are checked for cracks or other signs of damage.
• Roof & chimney: Damage to the roof or chimney could indicate water damage inside. We will look for missing shingles, condition of the flashing, and condition of gutters and downspouts. We also check the fireplace and chimney for signs of damage or deterioration.
• HVAC system: We test the heating and cooling systems for proper function, and check that all living areas have heating.
• Plumbing: We will check every plumbing fixture for proper flow and drainage, paying special attention to signs of leaks or poor installation
• Appliances:
• Electrical: All safety breakers, such as ground fault and arc fault breakers and receptacles, are checked to confirm they are operating correctly. A representative sample of receptacles are tested throughout the house, inside and outside. We open any accessible electrical panels and check the interior wiring for conditions that could be safety hazards.
• Attics & crawl spaces: Attics are hot, and crawl spaces are usually wet. We go into them anyway, since these areas can hide evidence of issues that will affect the entire house.
• Walls, floors, & ceilings: As we go through the house, we are checking all the interior surfaces for problems like cracking, bowing, or staining, and be alert for excessive bounciness or squeaking.

Additional Testing and Services

Although we focus mostly on the inspection itself, we do offer a few additional services to our  clients. These include tests for radon, water quality, and the condition of above-ground oil tanks. For other testing, such as for wood-destroying organisms or organic growths, we feel our clients would be better served by calling in a specialist who has far more training than any home inspector could offer.

Home Inspection Report

At the end of the inspection, we do our “debriefing,” where we go through the major conditions we have identified, and answer all your questions. You leave with a binder full of information, including detailed explanations behind some of the common conditions we find, along with a book of home maintenance and repair tips. The complete home inspection report will be available within 24 hours of the end of the inspection. These reports are typically between 70-100 pages long, with pictures and clear explanations of our findings.
We won’t express any opinion on whether a house price is high or low, or offer any predictions about when particular systems will fail. We don’t have a crystal ball! We are there simply to report what we have found at that time so you can make informed decisions moving forward.

Quality Home Inspections in Frederick, MD

A new home is a huge investment. That’s why, at Inspections by Bob, we make it our mission to go above and beyond to give you the thorough home inspection you deserve.

We inspect every nook and cranny of your potential home and provide you with a comprehensive report within 24 hours. Want extra testing for hazards? We offer radon and water quality testing as well. Don’t settle for just any home inspector.