Are you building your new home from the ground up? Are you working closely with the contractor to ensure that your space has everything you’ve ever dreamed of? Do you get excited about picking out the colors and finishing touches that will make your new home special?
Knowing that you’ll be the first owner to move into your new house is a thrilling prospect. Everything will have that new look and feel. To ensure that everything is in good working order, you need new home inspections.
Just because your house is new, that doesn’t mean that there aren’t any issues. Read on to find out why getting an inspection on your new home is so important.
Why New Home Inspections Are Important
You may be working with a reputable, trustworthy contractor that has been in the business for a long time, but they are still human. It’s possible that mistakes or issues could arise during the construction process. If these aren’t taken care of, they will only become more costly and harder to fix the longer you own your home.
A new home inspection will be able to catch any major or minor issues that might exist in your newly built house.
If these aren’t taken care of before you take possession of the house, you will be responsible for the repairs. Depending on what the problem is, this could cost you a lot of money.
To save yourself unexpected expenses and frustration, it’s worth your time and effort to have new construction inspectors walk through the home and look for any potential problems.
What New Construction Home Inspectors Look For
You might be surprised to find out that when you hire a contractor to build your house, they may not be the ones doing the hard labor.
In fact, many companies hire subcontractors to take on various aspects of the construction process. They may decide to work with someone they have years of experience with, or they may work with a new company.
It’s also possible that the contractor or the subcontractor just hired some new employees. Their first job might be working on your house.
The contractor may have a great reputation and build amazing houses, but there are a lot of factors that you have no control over. To ensure that your house is up to code and everything works properly, it’s in your best interest to have a new house inspection done.
When new construction home inspectors go into the house, they will be looking for a wide range of issues. Which may include the following:
- The yard has been graded properly so that water drains away from the house
- The railings on the deck and/or stairs are in accordance with current codes and are secure
- Water from the downspouts drains away from the house
- Windows and doorframes should be square and not sagging
- The exterior of the house should be free from holes, cracks, or other damage
- The floors, walls, and ceilings inside the home are straight and level
- The paint or other wall coverings are in good condition
- There are GFCI outlets in the kitchen and bathroom
- The plumbing works correctly and there are no leaks
- Smoke and carbon dioxide detectors are in place in accordance with the law
These are just some of the things that an inspector will check for, but you can see the list can be quite extensive.
What to Expect from the New Construction Inspection Process
When a new house inspection is conducted, you can expect that the inspector will find problems.
This doesn’t mean that the issues will be major or have an impact on the structural integrity of the house. It just means that when they go looking for problems, something will turn up.
As the home buyer, it’s in your best interest to go with the home inspector and walk through the house with them. This will allow you to see for yourself the issues that the inspector finds.
At the end of the day, it’s up to you to decide whether or not you want the contractor to fix the problems or not.
If major problems are found, such as air ducts that have been improperly installed or issues with the electrical system or plumbing problems, then getting these taken care of as soon as possible is in your best interest.
Deciding to ignore these or thinking that they aren’t that big of an issue could be a mistake. They could become a big problem in the future, and then they will be your responsibility to fix.
Minor Issues Deserve Attention Too
Even minor issues could become an annoyance if you don’t get them fixed.
At first, you may have thought that the spot behind the bathroom door where they forgot to add a second layer of paint wasn’t a big deal. But the longer you live in your home, you find that it’s all you can focus on when in the bathroom.
You might even decide to try to fix it yourself, only to find that you can’t match the paint color.
This stress and frustration could have been easily avoided just by having them take a few moments to fix this after the inspection.
Protect Your Investment
You are spending a lot on your home, and you should be able to get exactly what you want from the new construction. It’s important to keep in mind that no house will be perfect, but taking care of issues after having a new house inspection is within your rights.
Don’t think that you are going to make the contractor or their employees angry by asking them to fix things. They want you to be happy in your house, so they will be more than willing to make it look exactly the way you want it to. They know that by taking care of these issues now, you’ll give them a good review in the future.
If you don’t say anything, the contractor won’t know what to fix. That’s why it’s in your best interest to get an inspection and have them take care of the problems that the inspector finds.
Finding the Right Inspector
When it comes to new home inspections, you want to work with an inspector that has skills and experience. That’s when you should call Class Home Inspection.
With more than 30 years of experience and an eye for detail, this new home inspector will be able to find the major and minor issues that could impact how you feel about your new home. Schedule an inspection today!