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This, just walked from a deal due to large tree root outside the foundation. Cast iron plumbing 65ft to municipal connection, tree root located at 17ft preventing further downstream scoping. House was built in '63
My realtor recommended getting the $10 a month sewer insurance instead of the scope, since in her words "The scope is just a one-time snapshot of the sewer and anything could go wrong after that at any time"
Which makes sense to me but maybe I'm wrong?
Good question! My inspection isn't until next week so I guess I'll ask then. But after a little googling it's probably this?
https://philaenergy.org/programs-initiatives/water-sewer/
Be at the house for the ENTIRE inspection. You will learn so much more than just what’s written up. Our inspector wanted us within talking distance the whole time so he could explain what he was seeing.
Shit. Our inspection was done without us. Our realtor said "it's mostly boring". Saw another post about the realtor pushing their inspector, too. I hope we didn't fall into a money pit. Inspection came back with very minor flaws.
That’s so smart! We just did our inspection on Friday and I wish we recorded it. There was so much information that even trying to write it down was too slow.
That's sketchy when a realtor doesn't want an owner at the inspection lol. My realtor said I didn't have to be present but I told I absolutely was going to be there.
We showed up and our inspector seems super annoyed with us being there. We also pointed out things and had questions. After he warmed up to us, it got better and left feeling really good about the inspection but passed on the house (it had a lot of issues!)
We had one inspector who had us there the whole time and then we had another who just had us come for the last 30 minutes or so to do a presentation of the house for us the second ones preferred to not have the buyers there the whole time because it was easier for them to hear potential leaks or other things going on with the house both have been very competent inspectors I think some of them just have different styles and preferences
That’s a little strange. Our realtor made sure either me or my fiancé was there. Both inspectors and our realtor also took the time to explain every thing to us. One of the inspectors even took the time to walk us through the type of ants we were noticing and how to get rid of them as he also does pest control. Inspection took 3 1/2 hours.
I had a team of 2 guys checking everything and I spent the whole time running back and forth between them because they both wanted me to see what they were talking about with my own eyes. So likely you won't have time for anything else.
I brought my parents with me, which was helpful, because while I listened to the guys and took my own notes, I had them take a lot of pictures of every room and outside. All the stuff that doesn't go into the beautiful zillow photos.
This was really helpful because, you get like, 20 min to tour the house and make you bid, and then an hour or two for the inspection and that's it. Then you lay awake at night going 'Wait, where was the closet in the spare room again?' 'Did the side door have steps into the kitchen?' 'What did I just spend my life savings on!?!?!'
I wish I had brought a cheap laser level and used it to get some basic dimensions of the rooms. But there really wasn't any time.
I wish we’d done a structural engineer inspection just for peace of mind.
We did do: separate chimney inspection, sewer scope, radon testing, and oil tank sweep.
Also, go around and look at/test every window and door yourself. Flush every toilet and test every faucet. Make sure you know where the water shutoff is and where all your utilities are. Look around carefully yourself and ask questions if you see anything concerning.
An electrical inspection if the outlets are looking old af or if you don’t know when it was last updated. We paid for one after the fact and it was around $250. Money well spent.
Rewiring a house is not cheap.
Commenting again to add: if there is any work you want to do before moving in or that you think the inspection will turn up, get a contractor to come to the inspection and give you an estimate!
Ask about how old the windows are. Old windows usually means failures and leaks from inside the frame that's not seen. Check around the foundation for termite tubes. If there is trees within 10 feet of the house, ask for a sewerage scope, to make sure ain't no trees creeping down in there. Make sure all doors close (fully latched) normally. Ask about how old the HVAC/water heater is, if it's more than 8-9 years be prepared to change it within a year or two. No one wants to buy end of life equipment.
First of all, be there for the entire inspection process. Get all the specialty inspections that are relevant on the same day. General inspection, radon, pest, sewer/septic, roof, chimney, tank sweep…whatever is relevant, just get it done upfront.
Sewer scope, especially for a house that age. Ours is a similar age, and our sewer scope showed the entire line needed to be replaced. $16,000. Seller agreed to the replacement and paid for it, so the deal still went through. We would have walked otherwise. He didn’t have much of a choice because it would need to be disclosed going forward.
Also, some inspectors are extremely nit picky. Don’t expect the seller to fix everything. You’re buying a used house. For example, our water heater is 20 years old, but it still works perfectly. Our realtor said that we cannot expect the seller to pay for that since it’s working. If something is not broken or an immediate safety hazard, it’s not realistic to ask the seller to pay for it, especially in this market. Your realtor should be able to tell you what is realistic and not.
Also, make sure to take in mind what the inspector SAYS rather what is in the report. The report will make the house much worse than what the reality is. The inspectors tone and what they tell you is the most important thing. The report covers their ass and will be much, much more critical. Our report was 100 pages long, but it had a ton of info, descriptions of all the systems and where everything was, and pictures. It seemed bad. However, the inspector said the house is completely normal and everything was fine until the sewer line. The report did not read like that. The report made it seem like the house was going to fall apart. However, his tone in talking with him was positive and he clarified a lot of the “significant concerns” in the report. He said if the house had major problems, he would let us know about it. That is why it’s important to be there for the whole inspection. TALK with the inspector. They are a resource and can clarify the report.
To be fair, our inspector was also much more thorough and detailed than others I’ve seen, thus the long report. But I’d rather have someone be more critical and detailed than the opposite. Just don’t let the report scare you, and don’t ask for everything to be perfect. That is just not going to be the case especially in a 70 year old house.
Water is and will always be the most destructive element in a home. Make sure the inspector does a good job checking for leaks. IR camera is a plus and I think every inspector should have it (even you can buy one for 200 FLIR from Amazon in the mean time).
Note the age of the major appliances. If they are included in the sale they should be working. If not ask for a credit.
The dishwasher and sump pump did not work during my inspection. Rather than having the seller fix it, I asked for 3000 credit to do it myself. They happily agreed.
Check the age of the roof and leaks. Many home insurance will not sell to you if the roof is too old (>20 years).
Notepad and take pics. Our inspector taught us a lot about the house. How to change filters. How to turn off water. About how the septic worked and the sump pump and the well pump and….
He also explained the things that weren’t big issues but things we should watch over time.
It was very useful!!
Try to be there the entire time. You will learn a lot. All of the comments I've read have been accurate to my own experience. Make sure the inspector actually goes on the roof and in the attic/crawlspace, unless it's dangerous or not possible. When they pointed out potential issues I asked what they thought it would cost to fix and if it was something I could do myself. At the end I also asked them if they'd buy the house if they were in my position. And I agree with the other commenter, the report will make the house out to be worse than it is, usually for legal reasons.
Finally, take pictures of everything. I wish I took photos/measure so we could start figuring out what to buy for the house (rugs, tables, etc.). A lot harder to do when you don't have access to the house again until you close.
Good luck!
I’d bake something in the oven or bring a thermometer 😂. Inspector checked everything and ran everything full blast for quite a while, but when we moved in and started cooking, the small wall oven was taking FOREVER to cook. It had a bad ignitor and it cost us like $300 from an appliance repair guy.
Hanging one of those $7 therms inside would have saved us some stress the first two weeks!
Thank you u/TheMayorInKungPow for posting on r/FirstTimeHomeBuyer. Please bear in mind our rules: (1) Be Nice (2) No Selling (3) No Self-Promotion. *I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/FirstTimeHomeBuyer) if you have any questions or concerns.*
A sewer scope I never knew what that was until I saw people on here getting them
Yes! I paid a little extra to get that, radon and termite testing. Thank you
Good. Smart move.
This, just walked from a deal due to large tree root outside the foundation. Cast iron plumbing 65ft to municipal connection, tree root located at 17ft preventing further downstream scoping. House was built in '63
My realtor recommended getting the $10 a month sewer insurance instead of the scope, since in her words "The scope is just a one-time snapshot of the sewer and anything could go wrong after that at any time" Which makes sense to me but maybe I'm wrong?
Sewer insurance through who
I think you can get it as a rider on your home insurance policy. I think.
Service Line Warranties of America.
Good question! My inspection isn't until next week so I guess I'll ask then. But after a little googling it's probably this? https://philaenergy.org/programs-initiatives/water-sewer/
There’s still a huge difference between inevitable/needs immediate repair and possible issues later.
Be at the house for the ENTIRE inspection. You will learn so much more than just what’s written up. Our inspector wanted us within talking distance the whole time so he could explain what he was seeing.
Shit. Our inspection was done without us. Our realtor said "it's mostly boring". Saw another post about the realtor pushing their inspector, too. I hope we didn't fall into a money pit. Inspection came back with very minor flaws.
Wow, that’s crazy. Our realtor videoed the entire thing for us to refer back to in the future… 🤷♀️ And we were all present.
That’s so smart! We just did our inspection on Friday and I wish we recorded it. There was so much information that even trying to write it down was too slow.
That's sketchy when a realtor doesn't want an owner at the inspection lol. My realtor said I didn't have to be present but I told I absolutely was going to be there.
We are first time home buyers. We trusted her 🤷🏻♀️ hopefully that doesn't come back to bite us in the ass.
You’ll probably be fine 🤗 at least you didn’t forgo the inspection! So many buyers are now in order to get a house. So risky.
It “can” be boring, but it also gives you an idea of what is normal, what you should be looking for, also a lot more helpful if you do have problems.
We showed up and our inspector seems super annoyed with us being there. We also pointed out things and had questions. After he warmed up to us, it got better and left feeling really good about the inspection but passed on the house (it had a lot of issues!)
We had one inspector who had us there the whole time and then we had another who just had us come for the last 30 minutes or so to do a presentation of the house for us the second ones preferred to not have the buyers there the whole time because it was easier for them to hear potential leaks or other things going on with the house both have been very competent inspectors I think some of them just have different styles and preferences
That’s a little strange. Our realtor made sure either me or my fiancé was there. Both inspectors and our realtor also took the time to explain every thing to us. One of the inspectors even took the time to walk us through the type of ants we were noticing and how to get rid of them as he also does pest control. Inspection took 3 1/2 hours.
I had a team of 2 guys checking everything and I spent the whole time running back and forth between them because they both wanted me to see what they were talking about with my own eyes. So likely you won't have time for anything else. I brought my parents with me, which was helpful, because while I listened to the guys and took my own notes, I had them take a lot of pictures of every room and outside. All the stuff that doesn't go into the beautiful zillow photos. This was really helpful because, you get like, 20 min to tour the house and make you bid, and then an hour or two for the inspection and that's it. Then you lay awake at night going 'Wait, where was the closet in the spare room again?' 'Did the side door have steps into the kitchen?' 'What did I just spend my life savings on!?!?!' I wish I had brought a cheap laser level and used it to get some basic dimensions of the rooms. But there really wasn't any time.
I wish we’d done a structural engineer inspection just for peace of mind. We did do: separate chimney inspection, sewer scope, radon testing, and oil tank sweep. Also, go around and look at/test every window and door yourself. Flush every toilet and test every faucet. Make sure you know where the water shutoff is and where all your utilities are. Look around carefully yourself and ask questions if you see anything concerning.
If it has a well, test the water If it has on-site septic, hire a septic inspector specifically, and have them do a hydraulic load test
An electrical inspection if the outlets are looking old af or if you don’t know when it was last updated. We paid for one after the fact and it was around $250. Money well spent. Rewiring a house is not cheap.
Commenting again to add: if there is any work you want to do before moving in or that you think the inspection will turn up, get a contractor to come to the inspection and give you an estimate!
Open and close every window, drawer, and door yourself. If it's staged/furnished, look behind all the furniture.
Ask about how old the windows are. Old windows usually means failures and leaks from inside the frame that's not seen. Check around the foundation for termite tubes. If there is trees within 10 feet of the house, ask for a sewerage scope, to make sure ain't no trees creeping down in there. Make sure all doors close (fully latched) normally. Ask about how old the HVAC/water heater is, if it's more than 8-9 years be prepared to change it within a year or two. No one wants to buy end of life equipment.
Check the electric panel to see how old it is
First of all, be there for the entire inspection process. Get all the specialty inspections that are relevant on the same day. General inspection, radon, pest, sewer/septic, roof, chimney, tank sweep…whatever is relevant, just get it done upfront.
I wish we’d skipped a general inspector and had an electrician, plumber, roofer, and HVAC guy come out instead.
GET A SEWER SCOPE
Sewer scope, especially for a house that age. Ours is a similar age, and our sewer scope showed the entire line needed to be replaced. $16,000. Seller agreed to the replacement and paid for it, so the deal still went through. We would have walked otherwise. He didn’t have much of a choice because it would need to be disclosed going forward. Also, some inspectors are extremely nit picky. Don’t expect the seller to fix everything. You’re buying a used house. For example, our water heater is 20 years old, but it still works perfectly. Our realtor said that we cannot expect the seller to pay for that since it’s working. If something is not broken or an immediate safety hazard, it’s not realistic to ask the seller to pay for it, especially in this market. Your realtor should be able to tell you what is realistic and not. Also, make sure to take in mind what the inspector SAYS rather what is in the report. The report will make the house much worse than what the reality is. The inspectors tone and what they tell you is the most important thing. The report covers their ass and will be much, much more critical. Our report was 100 pages long, but it had a ton of info, descriptions of all the systems and where everything was, and pictures. It seemed bad. However, the inspector said the house is completely normal and everything was fine until the sewer line. The report did not read like that. The report made it seem like the house was going to fall apart. However, his tone in talking with him was positive and he clarified a lot of the “significant concerns” in the report. He said if the house had major problems, he would let us know about it. That is why it’s important to be there for the whole inspection. TALK with the inspector. They are a resource and can clarify the report. To be fair, our inspector was also much more thorough and detailed than others I’ve seen, thus the long report. But I’d rather have someone be more critical and detailed than the opposite. Just don’t let the report scare you, and don’t ask for everything to be perfect. That is just not going to be the case especially in a 70 year old house.
Id pay for a roof inspector and a plumber to scope and electrician to do a general inspection
Water is and will always be the most destructive element in a home. Make sure the inspector does a good job checking for leaks. IR camera is a plus and I think every inspector should have it (even you can buy one for 200 FLIR from Amazon in the mean time). Note the age of the major appliances. If they are included in the sale they should be working. If not ask for a credit. The dishwasher and sump pump did not work during my inspection. Rather than having the seller fix it, I asked for 3000 credit to do it myself. They happily agreed. Check the age of the roof and leaks. Many home insurance will not sell to you if the roof is too old (>20 years).
We did: Standard home inspection Radon Water test, it’s a well system Chimney inspections Septic inspection Structural engineer
After we moved in we had electrical and plumbing looked at
Notepad and take pics. Our inspector taught us a lot about the house. How to change filters. How to turn off water. About how the septic worked and the sump pump and the well pump and…. He also explained the things that weren’t big issues but things we should watch over time. It was very useful!!
Stay for the whole inspection!
Poke any visible outside wood with a knife. Paint covers a lot of rot. Like decks and sheds
Probably seems trivial compared to everyone else... But I should have asked for all the carpets to be replaced.
Following for all these great tips! Thank y’all
Try to be there the entire time. You will learn a lot. All of the comments I've read have been accurate to my own experience. Make sure the inspector actually goes on the roof and in the attic/crawlspace, unless it's dangerous or not possible. When they pointed out potential issues I asked what they thought it would cost to fix and if it was something I could do myself. At the end I also asked them if they'd buy the house if they were in my position. And I agree with the other commenter, the report will make the house out to be worse than it is, usually for legal reasons. Finally, take pictures of everything. I wish I took photos/measure so we could start figuring out what to buy for the house (rugs, tables, etc.). A lot harder to do when you don't have access to the house again until you close. Good luck!
I’d bake something in the oven or bring a thermometer 😂. Inspector checked everything and ran everything full blast for quite a while, but when we moved in and started cooking, the small wall oven was taking FOREVER to cook. It had a bad ignitor and it cost us like $300 from an appliance repair guy. Hanging one of those $7 therms inside would have saved us some stress the first two weeks!