San Francisco is one of the few places in the country were seller inspections are more common than buyer inspections. However, very few prepare their house for an inspection. With a little bit of effort you can prevent those nagging comments from common building defects.
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Clean House with No Clutter
The fewer items in a house the better. Not only does it allow the inspector to see everything he need to, but allows for a quicker inspection. Less searching for electrical panels or shut-off valves. If possible, the best possible is right before staging the home.
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Make sure there is Access to all Appliances
The inspector should always inspect the major appliances. However, if personal items are blocking access, it may not be possible. Make sure the inspector not only has access to, but can see around the backside of the appliance.
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Having Access to all Areas
We can’t inspect what we don’t have access to. Make sure you have keys for all the locked areas of the building including: locked rooms, closets, cabinets, utility rooms, and utility casings.
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No Pets
If you’ve ever had to run after a pet down the street, you’ll know why this is on the list. If at all possible, have pets out of the house or in a crate during the inspection.
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Gather paper work on Maintenance, Repairs and Inspections
The more information the better for an inspector. Home Inspectors don’t like to guess so any insight into the history of the home, the better. It could be warranties on repairs and/or appliances, receipts on repairs, manuals on appliances, or information about past contractors that have worked on the property. Even a short narrative on some of the possible unusual or odd conditions helps tremendously.
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Check all Lights
Light bulbs are typically easy to replace and it prevents the inspector from guessing about the reason the light doesn’t work. Is it the light bulb or the light fixture?
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Replace Filters
Most furnaces have air filters that need to be periodically cleaned or replaced. It’s an $8 item that shows you’ve been keeping up with the routine maintenance of the property (even if it’s not true).
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Slow Drains
It is inevitable that drains will get clogged over time, especially bathroom sink drains. A little Drano can go a long way.
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Clean Gutters
It is probably the most often item I see and it can be surprising easy to take care of with routine maintenance. Whether you do it yourself or hire a handyman, it’s usually pretty quick and easy to check off the list.
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Clear Vegetation from House
We all love seeing the ivy on the side of our historic buildings. But ivy and other plants growing close to the house can cause a lot of costly problems. Once again, an inspector can only inspect what we can see and that pretty ivy may be hiding a very costly repair.
Click Below to Download a Pre-Inspection Checklist.
