Hello I’m Marcie Billen with Rüya Team Realty and Keller Williams Mulinix here in Norman, Oklahoma and welcome to our YouTube channel! Today I’m going to cover some common repair requests after you get a home inspection. Here are some of my other videos for buyers: Home Buying Steps, How to Cancel a Real Estate Contract.
You just got a home inspection done. What repairs are common to ask for? A good thing to remember is that it’s really best to be fair when you’re asking for repairs from a home seller, and a knowledgeable real estate agent will be able to help guide you through this process. A home inspection is to highlight different parts of the home and to check out the systems in the home to make sure that they’re working. Common systems that the home inspector is checking out are like the HVAC and the roof, and electrical and plumbing; things like that.
There’s always a balance for repairs between the buyer and seller, right? Are you asking for too much from the seller after a home inspection? Or are you asking too little? So if you’re wondering if you’re asking too much, put yourself in the seller’s shoes. Would you be offended if someone asked you to change a light bulb that had just gone out in your house before you moved out, so that the new buyers can have a brand new light bulb? Would that offend you? If so, then don’t ask for it. Make sure you keep that in mind – you have to think about the seller’s emotions as they’re either moving out of their house, or just selling a property that they have.
Of course, you need some things fixed in the house – the home inspection is meant to bring things in need of repair to your attention. And at the same time, it’s really important that you keep their emotions in mind. Because they’ve lived in that house for a while, or they’ve owned it for a while, and you want to make sure that you get the things that you actually want fixed, and you don’t ask for petty stuff that will cost you ten dollars and ten minutes in an afternoon to actually fix. There are some common repairs that buyers do ask for after a home inspection.
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1. Roofs
So honestly, I think you should not only get a home inspection, but also a roof inspection at the same time. Every single home that I either sell or put under contract for a buyer, I go ahead and get a roof inspection because honestly, roofs here in Oklahoma just don’t last very long.
I’ve talked about this in other videos too, they just don’t last because we have harsh seasons, and hail, and high winds. If the roof comes up as an item on a home inspection, is it common to ask for roof repairs or total roof replacements? Yes. It’s totally common and I focus on this for buyers because if you don’t have a great roof, then it can be really hard to get great home insurance. So, in addition to getting a home inspection, roof inspections are important as well.
2. Safety Issues
Some other things that come up during a home inspection are safety issues. You want to feel safe in your brand-new or new-to-you house, right? So you want to make sure safety issues are fixed. Some common safety issues that we see are improper dryer vents, like clothes dryer vents – those things can be pretty dangerous. And also a lack of GFCIs, which is a type of electrical plug that will keep you safe in wet areas and also outside. The home inspection will make sure that those GFCIs are in place and functioning.
3. HVAC
Another big repair that may come up during a home inspection may be that the inspector suggests to have a licensed HVAC professional come out and look at your furnace and air conditioner or your heat pump, or whatever you have on your new house. This can be really helpful, especially if you’re getting a home warranty. You want to make sure that the temperature is correct on the output and everything that’s working properly so that you can have an efficient system. During the home inspection, you’ll be able to find out if it’s within those parameters or not.
4. Foundation
The final thing that we may see come up during a home inspection are foundation repairs. So what the home inspector will do, if he sees anything or if she sees anything, on a home inspection that may indicate there could be some foundation issues; we’ll call out a foundation specialist or you can also call out a structural engineer to see what’s going on with the house.
Some common reasons why foundation issues happen here, in Oklahoma include: different parts of the house may drop because of the dirt that we have, and the amount of dry season versus wet season.
So just something that that you need to think about as you’re thinking about purchasing your new home and as the home inspector takes a look at everything. And if there’s an issue, typically the home inspector will say “hey, like you should probably have a foundation repair guy come out and take a look at this or a structural engineer and see what’s going on”. If there’s a foundation issue on the house, and we know about it, and we get it checked out, that’s one thing that we typically want to focus on in order to get fixed from the seller because it can be pretty expensive.
Of course, there are other things that can come along in a home inspection; those are just four of the really common things that we typically see come up during a home inspection. So if you’re thinking about purchasing a home or you’re in the process of doing that now and have more questions about this, feel free to reach out!
Marcie Billen: [email protected] | 918.691.8982
