How long does home inspection take?

Getting your home inspected by a professional home inspector is one of the best ways to find out the flaws and defects that your home accumulates over the years. A pre-listing inspection is not only a smart but also very time-efficient way to get your home ready for sale. There are a few things that you should expect from a home inspector to check out. These are the house’s HVAC system, it's interior plumbing, the electrical system, and the basic quality and health of the structure of the house. To give you guys a short answer, a general home inspection usually takes about two to three hours. More time might be needed if your home is bigger than an average home. It’s a good idea to shadow your home inspector during the process. You might end up learning way more about your house than reading a report. Try to be as inquisitive as possible, but not too much that you might become a hindrance in the process. Now that your curiosity has subsided, let’s move on to the fun part – how to go about your home’s inspection. Home Inspection for Beginners The American Association of Home Inspectors (ASHI) has prepared a list of items that every home inspector will have to check to form a detailed report on the house’s health and condition. This checklist of items includes: Heating System Central Air Conditioning Plumbing and electrical systems Roof Attic, including visible insulation Walls Ceilings Floors Windows and doors Foundation Basement Structural components It should be pretty obvious by now that the inspection will not require you to tear off your walls and floors to check every minor flaw in your house. But, your report will be more detailed and informative if the inspector has access to the main items in the checklist. How a Seller Can Help the Home Inspector? If you are planning on selling your house, then it’s probably a good idea to get your house inspected by professionals. A pre-listing home inspection can direct you in the right direction of areas where repairs are most needed. To help or assist your home inspector follow the following tips and tricks to get a detailed report as possible. Provide easy accessibility. Make sure the pilot light is lit on all your heating instruments so that your inspector can check them all in the least amount of time. Clean your basement- One of the biggest help you can give to the inspection team is to make sure that your basement is neat and clean. You don’t want them to trip over old wires and pipes when they come over to check your HVAC system or anything else. Just like your basement, tidy up your attic as well. Tidy up key areas of your front and back yard, you don’t want your inspectors to be using a lawnmower to access a septic system or drainage pipe. If the property is currently not in use and the utilities have been turned off then turn them back on. How to get a good rating? Like any other kind of inspection or test, thoughtfulness goes a long way. If inspectors visit a good smelling home with clear access to all the utilities, there is a high probability that the owner will end up with a better rating and report. So next time you are expecting a visit from home inspectors, try to clean up as much as possible to get the best report possible. Who pays for the inspection and how much does it cost? Usually, the buyer arranges for the payment but sometimes the seller might also be asked to pay for the inspection. This is an item of discussion during a home sale. Sometimes sellers arrange for a pre-listing inspection to get on top of all the flaws in the property and fix them on time. Doing that can attract more potential buyers and increase the value of the home after the repairs are done. A home inspection can take anywhere between 200 to 400 US Dollars. The price depends on the size of your house and the area where your house is. You will need an inspection team that has considerable experience under their belt to inspect your future or current home. These guys don’t come cheap but this is one of those areas where you cannot tighten your pockets. You need the best in the business to inspect your and your family’s future home. How Long Will an Inspection Last? Let’s get to the chase! The crux of our whole discussion, the distillate of our efforts, the answer to your queries, the solution to your worries. The big question! How long does a home inspection take? Well, the time required to complete a detailed inspection depends on four basic factors: The size of the house The total number of flaws in the home how thorough the inspector is how helpful the owner of the house proves to be for the inspector After accounting for these four factors, we can estimate that an inspection might take about two to four hours. Conclusion In the end, we can say that home inspection is an important part of a house sale. No matter how busy you are, or how much you think you know about houses, it is always a good idea to get a second opinion. These inspectors are professionals and have worked in this business for years. That is why they are capable of doing a complete inspection within 2 to 4 hours. These inspections usually cost between 200-400 US Dollars and are usually paid by the buyer. In some cases though, sellers are asked to pay for these inspections. A home inspection is vital in getting you to buy a safe and livable house and protecting you against any false claims or fraud. Full version... How Long does home Inspection take