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One of the most important and often overlooked steps in the home buying process is the inspection. For first-time homebuyers choosing a home inspector can be a challenging proposition and finding the best professional inspector not only gives you the peace of mind you deserve but can save you money on costly repairs or headaches caused by unforeseen damage. While it’s not a legal requirement, nearly every Real Estate professional will advise you to get a comprehensive third-party inspection before the option period ends. Here are five considerations to help homebuyers navigate choosing the best home inspector.

Referrals and Reviews

More often than not word of mouth referrals from family and friends motivate homebuyers to choose an inspector. Because they have first-hand experience with an inspector’s services and trust their performance, this is often the best way to choose a professional home inspector. Many people prefer the same inspector for decades of real estate transactions and have built a relationship on trust, transparency, and integrity. Additionally, looking at an inspector’s online reviews will allow you to accurately understand their customer service and the quality of their inspections. Because home inspections need to happen quickly, it’s essential to make a decision as soon as possible and be confident in that decision.

Schedule a Call or Consultation

In this day and age, everything is online and often can be misrepresented, so one of the easiest ways to make sure you trust your professional home inspector is to simply speak to them on the phone. You can get quick answers to any questions and get an idea of their dependability and demeanor. During this call, you can make sure they are bonded, insured, licensed, and experienced. You can also ask how long a typical inspection takes, which will give you an idea of how thorough an inspection they perform. It should take anywhere from 2-5 hours for a typical residential inspection, depending on a number of variables, including age, condition, and size. 

Understand What to Expect

A home inspection provides a detailed report on all mechanical systems, framing, foundation, roofing, and more while identifying potential deficiencies and offering a full view of the property’s condition. Inspections identify any necessary repairs or the potential for future malfunction, which allows potential homebuyers to develop a budget for repairs and negotiate these into closing credits. Inspectors do not perform repairs and ethically should not recommend contractors other than other third-party inspectors. Transparency is at the core of home inspections because they act as an unbiased third party without a vested interest in the real estate transaction. 

Compare Costs

Like most things in life, when choosing a professional home inspector, you get what you pay for. Compare some different home inspectors reviews versus cost, and you will often find that spending a bit more upfront can save you a lot of money down the line in repairs or damages. Home inspections not only identify deficiencies, but they can also predict repair costs and necessary maintenance in the first year of homeownership, which allows for better budgeting and projections.

Avoid Homes Inspectors that ask to Walk the House Solo

While it’s your choice whether or not to attend the inspection, it is often recommended that you do so that inspectors can provide the highest level of service and transparency. If a home inspector requests to conduct their inspection alone, this can be a major red flag, and it is probably best to work with a different inspector. Also, avoid inspectors that offer to conduct and repairs or maintenance themselves and look for a licensed contractor with a specialty in the field that needs addressing.  

As the long Texas summer approaches, homeowners are faced with high temperatures and a generally prolonged period with little precipitation. July, August, and September are among the hottest months in Texas, and preserving your lawn and landscaping through these months can be difficult. Still, with the right strategies and some preparation, you’ll be able to enjoy your outdoor oasis year-round.

Watering your lawn may be challenging as consumption and demand increase during the summertime; this can be solved by developing a more efficient watering schedule and checking local guidelines and restrictions. Warm-season turfgrass can become dormant it undergoes a prolonged period of dry or drought-like conditions. If this occurs, the turf will turn golden-brown and stop growing, though in most cases, it will return when water becomes readily available in late summer or early fall. The ability for the turf to return does require deep, healthy roots that have developed during the previous months. Another important consideration is to water as early in the morning as possible to allow the water to infiltrate the deep roots and not evaporate off of the surface of the blades. It’s also important to make sure you are applying water evenly. In-ground irrigation systems can be an excellent option for homeowners who want to ensure even, controlled watering. One of the best ways to efficiently water your lawn is to water deeply and infrequently to get a depth of approximately 6”.

At the peak of the summer, mowing needs to be performed less frequently to prevent further stress on your lawn. A rule of thumb is that lawns should be maintained at 3” during the summertime. By removing weeds in the springtime, you can prevent unwanted growth and reduce the need to mow during the summer. Many homeowners choose to fertilize in the spring to get ahead of the long dry Texas summer, and this is a great solution for maintaining a healthy lawn year-round. It should be noted that if you do choose to fertilize your lawn, you should reduce or suspend the number of applications when there is less water to support growth. Take a soil test to your local landscaper to identify phosphorous and potassium rates to develop a proper fertilizing schedule.

Many homeowners utilize native plants to maintain outdoor spaces year-round. Because they are naturally drought resistant and stress-tolerant, they require less maintenance and water with the added benefit of contributing to the local ecosystem as food sources for pollinating insects like bees and butterflies. They can also protect soil quality with deeper root systems and natural immunity to regional pests and diseases.

No two lawns are identical, and sometimes it’s best to bring in a professional landscaping service to keep your lawn looking its best, but with some planning and strategy, you can keep your lawn green year-round. Look into your local guidelines for advised watering schedules and restrictions.

Home maintenance is one of life’s inevitabilities, and both experienced and first-time buyers can be caught off guard with an unexpected costly repair. This can be especially true in the first year after purchasing a home when savings have been utilized for a down payment, and existing budgets may have tightened with a higher mortgage payment. It’s a fact that every home is going to require maintenance, both ongoing and unexpected. Still, having a comprehensive view of the mechanical systems, foundation, plumbing, and appliances can allow homeowners to plan accordingly, save money in the long run, and increase their property’s value over time. While there are variables such as the age and condition of a home, common wisdom holds that homeowners should maintain 1% of their home’s value for annual maintenance. Simply put, if your home cost $300,000, you would want to have $3,000 available. 

One of the best ways to be prepared for these expenses is to have a professional inspector perform an inch-by-inch inspection and provide a comprehensive written report detailing any potential deficiencies. While some systems can be checked by the homeowner themselves, the deficiencies that can cause the most expensive repairs like roofing, foundations, framing, electrical systems, and plumbing systems more often than not require a professional inspection. Additionally, breakdowns in electrical systems can create dangerous situations which are invisible to the naked eye and require thermal technology to identify and remediate.

Homeowners can take some relatively straightforward measures to keep their homes mechanical systems functioning optimally, like regularly replacing HVAC filters, keeping gutters clear of debris like leaves, twigs, and bird nests, and occasionally flipping the circuit breaker to prevent corrosion of frequent tripping. For more complex systems like pipes, water heaters, HVAC systems, and roofs, an annual inspection can frequently offset the inspection cost with the savings associated with identifying a small problem before it becomes a major repair. 

It’s also important to know and document your appliances’ age and associated lifespan. Identifying your appliances’ age and lifespan can help you plan for and budget accordingly to choose between replacing the entire unit or getting an older unit repaired if possible. See the guide below for more information.

Appliance LifeSpan Guide

• AC Unit 10-15 yrs
• Dishwasher 9 yrs
• Dryer 13 yrs
• Furnace 15-20 yrs
• Refrigerator 9-13 yrs
• Thermostat 35 yrs
• Washing Machine 10 yrs
• Water Heater 12 yrs

Being prepared for costly maintenance is the best way to avoid being hit with a huge bill for an issue that could have been repaired for a relatively low cost had it been identified before major malfunction. Of course, damage can occur due to natural forces like hurricanes, floods, or tornadoes. Still, for issues that arena your control, a professional inspection with a detailed report is the best way to understand and plan your annual maintenance budget and keep your investment sound while building equity for the future.