When purchasing a home, one of the must do tasks is to hire a home inspector to have a run through of the home to find any problems that you should be made aware of before making this kind of financial commitment.
You can do a preliminary inspection yourself before you hire a professional home inspector, which should still be done before your purchase the home.
The potential house you may purchase might look perfect until you go through the following locations in the home.
Let us start from the outside first:
• Shingles
Use a ladder to check asphalt shingles for curling, blistering or other signs of wear. You can control this by installing zinc strips along the ridge.
• Gutters
Check to see whether the gutters are clogged, if they are you might have to worry about water leakage around the house.
• Gaps around Doors and Windows
If you do find gaps, it indicates shifting of the foundation
• Exterior condition
The condition of the houses’ paint might be bad when you examine it up close. It will not only look bad but there will also be weather damage you have to worry about.
• Branches Extending to the House
If you do have branches that touch the house, particularly the attic; you have to worry about squirrels, raccoons and other animals. You do not want o have a house that is infested with critters and have to pay to get them out. Have the branches trimmed or cut off completely to avoid any future problems.
• Soil Level
The soil needs to slop away from the house at a grade of 3 inches for every 5 feet to avoid basement flooding. To correct this you need should add extensions to downspouts to carry water at least 10 – 15 feet from the house.
This is only part of what you should be checking around your potential home; I will cover everything necessary to what you should have checked in your home.
Do it Yourself Home Inspection Part 2
Glen Chapman
Broker of Record with Club “100″ GMAC Real Estate
www.club100realestate.com
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