How To Pick A Home Inspector

When you pick a home inspector, you want to make sure to select someone that you can trust to give you an honest and thorough assessment of your home.  Whether you are the seller or the buyer, it is important to know precisely the shape the home is in.  That way, you can properly negotiate any repairs that may be needed. 

When you comb through all of the available home inspectors that are available to you in the Austin area, there are several factors you should look into and many questions you should ask.  Some of these questions include:

• How many years of experience do you have with working as a home inspector?
• How many inspections do you perform each year?
• Is inspecting your only business or do you do it as a side job?
• What will the report contain – will it include suggestions for fixing any problems with the home?
• How long will it take to perform the inspection?
• Do you have any special certifications?
• Do you have Errors and Omissions Insurance?

Ideally, the home inspector you select should have years of experience within the industry.  In addition, working as a home inspector should be his or her only profession.  Further, the inspector should provide you with a written report, but should be willing to sit down with you and explain his or her findings.

Pay special attention to the amount of time the inspector says it will take to complete the inspection.  In most cases, it should take anywhere between two to four hours in order to complete a thorough inspection.  If the inspector says he or she will take less time, you should consider finding another inspector.  Otherwise, you take the risk that the inspection will not be thorough or complete.

Your home inspector should also be certified by the American Society of Home Inspectors (ASHI) and should carry Errors and Omissions insurance.  With Errors and Omissions insurance coverage, the inspector will be covered if he or she makes a mistake with the inspection and report he or she provides you with.  While this covers the inspector, it also provides you with additional protection because you know you can be compensated if a problem should arise later.

The time you take to screen home inspectors will be well worth it.  After all, you are about to make one of the biggest transactions of your life, so you want to make sure you don’t make a single mistake.