Was 25 and super nervous, so when the realtor was like “oh yeah they just check for basic stuff, but I looked around and it looks great” I was like “Oh okay, this is so astronomically expensive every penny saved is good…”
Everything has been great as far as I can tell. House was built like 40 years ago but super well maintained it seemed and I’ve been super happy. But just curious if maybe I should hire someone to make sure there was nothing outstanding from back then, and no major issues have popped up in the last couple years like leaks/foundation issues, the like.
Is that crazy? Is it weird to call and be like “I’m not selling, I just wanna make sure there are no issues I need to address before they get worse”
Is there a certain type of inspector I should get? I know some inspectors are notoriously lazy.
Also I moved in 2 weeks before covid lock downs happened for time line stuff.
I’m not trying to give you shit here OP, you did what you did 4 years ago and you’re thinking of doing something about it now so it’s all good, but:
this is so astronomically expensive every penny saved is good…”
This is so astronomically expensive that I can’t imagine caring about 300 bucks to see if anything is horrifically wrong with it. Seriously folks, get an inspection if you’re buying a house! This would be like, I dunno, taking a job without talking to a single person who works there, except at least with the job you can quit without wasting thousands of dollars! The inspection could save your life!
I might have cancer but it’s so expensive to actually find out. I’d rather just ride it out and wait until the damage becomes irreversible…
Get the inspection!!
That’s actually my strategy.
Hey man I didn’t say it was smart!
And it was one of those things where it’s like I had X amount of money, and afterwards I was going to have not much money at all. So spending $300 more of that tiny remaining money was uncomfortable.
The costs of home maintenance are pretty crazy if you aren’t prepared. The cost of an inspection is basically nothing compared to furnace, a/c, roof, windows, siding, flooring, or structural repair. Most appliances cost the same or more than an inspection as well.
Uhhhhhh. You paid for a house without getting it inspected? I’m shocked you were able to get homeowners insurance without one.
The entire point of getting an inspection done is to save yourself money. Find someone local who’s thorough and have them go over the house and look for any issues, it’ll be cheaper to fix them now rather than after something fails and there’s major damage.
The housing market was silly for awhile. Lots of homes basically had a clause of “If inspection done, no sale”
Yeah, that’s a trap. We signed a letter of intent on one place and had an inspector run through it before we committed to an offer - it’s fortunate that we did too, there was serious water damage to the house that the owners were trying not to disclose.
The shit thing about the market for a couple of years is that properties were marked up by 40-50% over about 5y and many of them had next to no work done, or they got the Lowe’s sale flipper special and looked terrible after.
I was looking during that rush, and did my own inspections. Every single place, I asked questions that resulted in a “NEXT!” from the seller. Never even got to the point where I’d have called in an outside party. Looked at around 30 houses.
Ended up buying a new build instead; still had things the inspectors missed, but nothing huge.
Depends on where you live.
The bank will often send an inspector for a loan, but it’s literally him just walking around and validating there is a house and it’s not in shambles. He’ll look at things like the roof from the outside and when it was redone, but isn’t going to hop into your crawlspace to look for signs of water damage.
Then you have the “private” inspection company that you can pay to check your home for yourself. These companies are know to cost a lot of money, often detailing things they can’t be sure are “risks”. They’ll go in the crawlspace and note all sorts of things.
On my house the expensive private inspection said “the roof here is kinda saggin and there’s a bump there, it could be anything”. In the same report he accidentally shows a picture from under the roof where you can see there was a repair and some extra framing, causing the small “bump” that is purely aesthetic. Didn’t mention that part.
Getting someone to look at it post purchase is likely going to be much cheaper, and I’m definitely not recommending people don’t get inspections when buying houses if they don’t know what they’re doing.
For my first house, the bank’s inspector literally stopped his van in the middle of the road, took some pictures with his cell phone through the driver’s window, and drove off. He never even left his vehicle.
When you buy a used car through a private party, you have a mechanic check it over for two reasons:
- You want to make sure you aren’t overpaying (because repairs are needed)
- You want to make sure it’s safe and doesn’t need immediate maintenance
It’s the same for a house. The first one is moot: you already bought it and can’t go back. But the second one still applies - it would be good to get it looked over.
that realtor did you dirty. “I looked around and it was fine”?? please don’t use them ever again. that’s sketchy and dishonest. no reputable realtor without something to hide would say that. I would report them to the state realtor board.
get the inspection. and when it’s time to sell, get another one.
I mean 30 year old me recognizes that was a super weird thing to say.
25 year old me felt super over his head anyway.
But I’m getting an inspector! Don’t you fret!
It’s not crazy. You should get one every so often just in case. Better to find a small problem now than a big problem later.
I’m more shocked that you could buy the house without an inspection. My bank required one to give me a loan.
Lol yeah surprised inspection wasn’t required.
“Realtor said it’s cool” would be a red flag to most financial institutions and buyers. Like, now I’m suspicious as hell that OP got sold a lemon and just hadn’t realized it yet.
Well even the land itself is worth more than I paid, and 5 years of no problems is a great start. But will find a good inspector and see if I really did get that lucky!
We did an inspection before we bought.
They found a gas leak in the attic.
They also found that while radon mitigation equipment was installed, it was never connected to power.
The roof was 20 years old and only had a 20 year lifespan. No leaks… but… yeah.
As I understand it, about 20 years ago, my [US] state started requiring all new basement work (including additions) to have radon piping provisions, but they didn’t have to be connected.
Get it inspected. It’s better and cheaper to fix any issues sooner rather than later.
when I heard people were buying without inspections during the property rush I was agog and I hadn’t bought a house.
I just bought a house and the inspection was very useful as a first time buyer.
Some electrics needed upgrading, the attic insulation had worn thin, there was evidence of old squirrel nests up there too, the crawlspace needed a vapor barrier, some tree branches were close to a power line… nothing major but all stuff that needed fixing.
We came to a compromise with the sellers that we’d split the cost of everything that came back in the report 50/50.
It certainly gives peace of mind to know there’s no sword of damocles waiting to fall
when I heard people were buying without inspections during the property rush I was agog and I hadn’t bought a house.
Reminds me of all the people buying homes to flip on their Starbucks income with variable rate mortgages back in 2006/2007
Always make the sale contingent on an inspection (and also on the sale of your current house,)
A full inspection covers all sorts of things, many of which are regulated and mandated in specific locations. Here’s a basic article on it
It’s not weird to get one if you haven’t before, and it’s a good idea. They can also point out code violations (and I’m not sure how expensive that can get… they may mandate you fix it. It may just be a reconditioned you fix it.)(and if you ever need to get a permit, the mandatory inspection that frequently happens with that is a bad time to find out.)
Not from Los Angeles are ya?
Or most of the west coast, or pretty much any major city st this point it seems.
Houses built in the 40’s, earthquake country, listed for over a million dollars and “no contingencies”. Sounds like the bargain of the century!
They can also point out code violations (and I’m not sure how expensive that can get… they may mandate you fix it
That’s a reason not to get it tho…
My Mom sold without an inspection because of little things like putting a ceiling fan on a dimmer to control the speed of the fan.
Everything was done by licensed contractors, just small town bullshit where people do what they want. Especially when a house hasn’t been sold for 50 years, small stuff like that adds up until a sale happens.
Could she have updated everything that was like that before the sale? Sure, but it would have been a huge hassle and in today’s market she could just sell “as is” with no hit to price.
Now, as a buyer would I trust a seller I didn’t know?
Fuck no.
But I grew up in that house, I know what happened.
Everything was done by licensed contractors, just small town bullshit where people do what they want. Especially when a house hasn’t been sold for 50 years, small stuff like that adds up until a sale happens.
Could she have updated everything that was like that before the sale? Sure, but it would have been a huge hassle and in today’s market she could just sell “as is” with no hit to price.
First off… depending on how the dimmer switch controls speed, that could be a great way to burn out a fan- most switches are for lights and adjust voltage. Fan motors expect a certain voltage and instead use amperage to adjust speed.
That’s why typical dimmer switches violate code.
It’s not something virtually any inspector is going to gig you harshly on (compared to say a severe gas leak.)
It’d also something you’re going to want to know about if you ever have to remodel or potentially sell.
As a seller, there are usually mandatory disclosure laws. Failing to disclose something that’s found after they move in- even in “as is”‘contracts can potentially lead to massive legal costs. The kind that, even if you win, you still lose.
But the OP’s perspective is as a buyer, not a seller and the games you’re talking about playing… yeah. That’s exactly why buyers should always make it contingent on inspection.
But the OP’s perspective is as a buyer,
You didn’t even make it all the way thru my comment before deciding to weigh in, did you?
Now, as a buyer would I trust a seller I didn’t know?
Fuck no.
This isn’t the first time I’ve seen your account do this stupid shit, but it’s the last time I’ll ever see you do anything.
It’s funny. You skipped to the end without reading the bit about legal liability on a seller…a point I wouldn’t have made if I didn’t read your comment.
Yet here you are pissed enough to block me…. /sigh.
Get it inspected. And next time you buy a house, try to get the seller to pay for the inspection as part of closing. They probably will.
I bought during the height of the housing frenzy in Canada in 2021. Putting any condition on the sale meant that you wouldn’t get the house. I found a few issues but took the chance anyways. As soon as the sale went through, I got an inspector in to check out everything I found. I got lucky for the most part, but there were a few things that he found that I didn’t. It’s better to know these things and plan for them than to be oblivious.
Get the inspection. It’s not weird at all. They are all aware of the current situation.
our inspection saved us money. they found a crack in the outdoor tiling sealant that was retaining water. we spent $200 on their services, but their report helped us regotiate $5000 off our initial offer, which we had repaired for ~$500. for anybody tossing it up, it’s a no-brainer.
I saved 50k on my house because some private company was hired to do an inspection and they noted a 40 page report with all sorts of shit that wasn’t really important.
Nobody wanted to buy it after that. Luckily I build houses so I know what to look for and cut him a deal to get rid of it. Aside from having an electrician come in to double check all the aluminum wiring connections (and making plans to replace the aluminium wires), not one thing in those 40 pages should have affected the price of the house.
Who convinced you? The owner? F that, always always ALWAYS get an independent inspection.
My realtor :(
I was 25 and very overwhelmed by it all.
I love my house, it seems perfect still several years later and I’ve only had to do some minor repairs.
But I’ll get one to make sure no dangers are lurking where me and my handy man can’t see!
If nothing is wrong, it’ll be good for the peace of mind, if something is wrong, it’s good to be aware of it beforehand and have a chance at fixing it, rather than being in the middle of something broken down and causing additional problems. Houses are complicated systems and the more aware you are of their problems, the better chance you have of fixing it before it becomes worse.
Be sure you get the inspector to state which things they believe must be 5 years or older and share the report on the Realtors Facebook page.
There are at-least 2 good books on house-inspecting.
( looking … dayum, there’s zillions of books on it, now… )
https://www.amazon.com/Inspecting-House-Pros-Rex-Cauldwell/dp/1561584622/
is the one I invested-in, years ago ( not to do house-inspection, just to learn the competence of it )
Please invest in that book, or an equivalent to it, and make your own inspection of the house, 1st.
Then you’ll have much better understanding of the entire subject.
_ /\ _
