When you think of home inspections, you typical think of new home purchases. As you go through the buying process and work with a lender, there are several inspections that need to be done. Home inspections in Syracuse are important to the overall purchase of the property.

But, longtime homeowners need home inspections as well. This may come as a surprise, but no matter how well you maintain your home, there can be issues that you don’t see. Time, weather, wear and tear, all contribute to the structural and internal systems of your home. The longer you’ve owned your property, the more important it is to contact your Syracuse home inspector to come out an evaluate your home.

What Types of Things Do Home Inspections Include?

Contrary to myth, home inspections do not see every little thing that could be wrong with a house. A Syracuse home inspector is required to observe and inspect the visible structural aspects of a home and the internal operating systems such as plumbing, heating and electric service.

Home inspection services in Syracuse are available through DiRaddo’s Home Inspection Services serving Syracuse and the surrounding area. You can be assured that your home will be properly inspected by a licensed and certified home inspector with an extensive construction background. This is very important when considering who to hire to review your property for possible issues.

What Are Visible Structural Points?

A home inspector is not able to open up walls to view interior areas. They are not able to pull down ceiling tiles to determine exactly where water damage might be coming from. They will not test any portion of your utilities, but an inspector can note obvious and visible damage.

What a Syracuse home inspector can do is view the roof for obvious damage, the soffits and eaves for rot, the foundation for cracks and/or leaks. Home inspections include the evaluation of exterior structures like porches, patios, and decks, as well as a garage or similar attached structure.

Interior wise, the home inspections include visual notations of roof rafters in the attic space (if accessible), floors (looking for unusual discrepancies in the levelness), wall stability, basement and foundation for cracks, or water damage.

These structural issues, if not repaired in time, can result in significant damage and deterioration to the property. Your home inspections services in Syracuse will provide you with a complete report on the visible portions of your home for your review. It’s then up to you to determine what needs to be done. The home inspector cannot provide repair suggestions or estimates. You must obtain your own contractor to provide those to you.

In House Utilities

The utility systems in your home do, indeed, age and deteriorate over time. A Syracuse home inspection will include a review of your plumbing, heating and electrical utilities. Again, only on visible components. Home inspections do not attempt to see if the system works. They are merely looking at obvious damage or potential issues.

The plumbing is observed for proper pipe material (older homes may still have old piping that may need to be replaced for health reasons), leaking joints, missing valve handles and any other obvious issues.

The electrical system is inspected to ascertain it is up to code, proper wiring is in place, no bare wires or open junction boxes, and the circuit breaker box will be inspected for possible water damage and/or rust.

The heating system is primarily checked to see that the furnace or boiler is in good operating condition. That there are no signs of rust in areas that could potentially cause damage, and that there are no leaks around the boiler and/or oil storage tank.

Know Your Home

Home inspections are equally valuable to current homeowners and buyers alike. It is important to ascertain the current condition of your property in order that appropriate steps may be taken to prevent further damage or possible property loss from faulty utilities.

Take the time this spring to contact DiRaddo’s Home Inspection Services for your full, complete and experienced home inspection report.