No matter what type of house, how old it is, or where it is built, I follow a specific procedure in order to be extremely thorough and maximize the time spent at the inspection. Here is a list of items I inspect during a typical inspection.

Exterior, Lots & Grounds

The exterior section of the report is where most inspections will start. In this category, I look at the overall condition of the exterior ground level systems. This is one of the most important categories because the exterior systems protect your home from the elements. What I look at includes the following:

Foundations, Basement, and Crawlspaces

A house’s foundation is the base for the whole home. I do everything I can to find any foundation issues or potential issues with the home. This includes visual inspections of the exterior foundation wall, basement or crawlspace foundations, concrete slab defects, and cracking or settling. Foundation problems can be one of the most expensive repairs so it is important that a good overview is performed. I look at the following categories:

Roofing, Attic, and Ventilation

Everything above the house is just as important as below. The roof and attic are some of the most asked about items during an inspection. The roofing material is visually examined during an inspection. This also includes the ventilation of the attic and all the flues and chimneys that penetrate the roofing material. Here is what I look for:

Plumbing Systems

Next on my home inspection checklist is the plumbing. During an inspection, we test every fixture, faucet, and drain line in the home. We look for leaks, pressure issues, and known problematic piping material. Water damage is a huge concern when buying a home, so it is important to get a full overview. This also includes the hot water heater systems. Here are the plumbing items we look for.

Electrical Systems

From the main panel to every outlet in the home, electrical is a big component of the home inspection checklist. There are many different facets of a home’s electrical, and we have run into many different scenarios. Here are the items we inspect:

Heating and Cooling Systems

An HVAC system inspection is a major part our home inspection process. I go through both systems, run full operational tests, and do visual inspections of the units themselves.  I also look at the thermostat and control devices. Here are a few of the items I look at during a HVAC overview:

Interior Inspection

A home inspection is mostly concerned with bigger ticket items and major systems, but during our inspections, we also note the cosmetic condition of the interior of the home. This would include holes in walls, general flooring issues, or harmful wall covers. This is all documented in our interior section:

Built-In Appliances

All of the permanent appliances in the home are tested during our home inspection. This is a limited evaluation where we run the units look for proper functionality. Below are the appliances we test:

Garage

In a garage, we are looking for settling issues and garage door operations. Here are the categories:

Our Home Inspection Checklist Summarized:

As you can see, by following this simple home inspection checklist, I can be confident that no items were missed during my inspection. This allows me to be thorough, but also efficient when it comes to your next home purchase. There are also many add-ons that you can get during your home inspection that are not listed including: Radon Testing, Sewer Scope Testing, and Mold and Air Sample Test. These will help you get a better understand of issues that cannot be visually seen.

If you choose to have me inspect your future home, you will receive an electronic report on the same day. This will help you and your realtor easily understand and break down the issues that are found.

If you are interested in having me preform your pre-purchase home inspection, you can try our very simple to use online scheduler. You can pick a time that works for you online, and we will call to confirm all the information.