To Inspect Or Not To Inspect – THAT Is The Question

Recently, I was showing condos to an investor in Blacksburg and he was gung ho to buy something.  He had cash in his pocket and could afford to buy 2 or 3 income-producing properties at the time – he was ready to go, and I was ready to help him!

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It was easy to get caught up in his enthusiasm, but would I be representing him well by suggesting he forgo a home inspection?  In my opinion I would not, and so I made the recommendation he consider the idea.  I’m glad he did – in one of these particular buildings, a water leak subsequently damaged several units resulting in thousands of dollars worth of damage.  One of the purposes of the home inspection is to determine that the plumbing system is in safe working order … I can’t say for certain that an inspection of this property would have uncovered a problem, but it’s likely it would have – the failure occurred at a common area the inspector would have checked. 

If you’re working with me or anyone else on my team, you’ll know that we always recommend a home inspection … we have several we work with exclusively because they’re the best in the business!  It’s an upfront charge of a couple of hundred dollars, paid to the inspector, that can have the potential of saving you thousands.  And in the end – if you decide it’s something you’ll want to bypass, at least consider putting a home warranty on the property.   You don’t buy a car without having it insured – why would you do that to such a significant investment as real estate?

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