From a buyer’s perspective, a home inspection can be nerve-wracking. It can feel like the inspector is picking apart what might be the home of your dreams, finding every little thing wrong with it and adding burden after burden to what can already be the extremely stressful process of buying a home. It may even seem as if the inspector is determined to find fault with the home, adding future expense or even misgivings about the purchase.
According to Bill Downey of Downey Home Inspections, though, that simply isn’t the case. “Your home inspector is working for you,” he says. “It’s a third-party representative who’s looking out for your best interests.” The inspector provides an unbiased view of the property, ensuring that what might be the biggest purchase of your life is in a safe condition for you and your family. There will always be small issues that come up on an inspection, but, generally speaking, the inspector is just trying to make you aware of what you need to know about the home moving forward.
To that end, Downey and many other home inspectors will not only provide a comprehensive report of their findings to the prospective homebuyer but will also sit down with them and go through everything. Downey likes to cover both small issues that are normal in any home as well as larger issues that may need to be budgeted for and addressed in the near future. Other inspectors may not offer this personalized level of review, but should always provide a summary of their report that outlines the most critical information contained therein.
Downey stresses that, regardless of the outcome, the home inspection is a critical element of the home buying process and one that neither buyers nor sellers should skip. The inspection, after all, is all about safety – when Downey inspects a home, he considers whether he would feel comfortable allowing a small child to live in the home, or whether he would feel safe living there if it was his own home. In the end, his job is to protect the buyer and ensure that, when they move in, they are both safe and happy in their new home.
To learn more about the home inspection process and Downey Home Inspections, visit www.DowneyHomeInspections.com or follow Bill Downey on Instagram @inspector_downey!
