You just went under contract to a home in New Jersey and now it’s time to interview NJ home inspectors. What are some of the positive attributes or things that you can look for when trying to narrow your list of prospective home inspectors down. There are over a thousand home inspectors in the state of New Jersey but how do you narrow that down into a workable list so you can make a good decision for yourself and your family?
You should hire a home inspector who has years and years of experience. Experience is everything in the home inspection profession because a home inspector must have a vast amount of experience to know the different problems and defects that are found in homes. There are literally thousands of things that can be wrong in homes. The only way to do this is to have years and years of experience with thousands upon thousands of home inspections performed. A New Jersey home inspector can only acquire a certain knowledge base from book learning. Learning in a classroom is a great start but the only way to really learn this profession and to understand the problems that homes have is to experience them firsthand in the field. In my opinion a person does not get comfortable doing home inspections until they perform about a thousand home inspections. I would say that as a minimum the home inspector should have at least 7 years in the field experience with well over a thousand home inspections performed to have been exposed to the many different problems that homes have. A home inspector with 20+ years of experience is likely to have a greater knowledge base and exposure to home issues than a home inspector that has 3 to 5 years of experience. It is in your best interest as a homebuyer to hire a home inspector with a long track record of experience. There is a very high turnover rate of home inspectors. In fact, only one in 10 make it past three years in the profession. If you have found a home inspector with over 20 years of experience, you know that they are doing the proper job for their clients and have been putting their clients first because the only way to make it in the home inspection business that long is to do the job the right way. So, make sure that you hire a home inspector with years and years of experience and thousands and thousands of successful home inspections performed so you can be confident that that home inspector knows what they are looking for in your home. The more experience a home inspector has the more protection you as a client will obtain.
You should look for a home inspector who is a member of one or both of the largest home inspector associations in the world. These two associations are Inter-NACHI-International association of Certified Home Inspectors and ASHI-American Society of Home Inspectors. Hiring a home inspector who is a member of one or both associations indicates your home inspector has a dedication to continuing their education. Both associations have their individual education requirements. In addition to the New Jersey state educational requirements the home inspector will also have to meet the educational requirements of these individual associations as well. The educational requirements for these associations must be met yearly so when a home inspector is a member of one or both they are actively learning and furthering their home inspection education. When a home inspector has a dedication to continuing their learning journey, that home inspector is likely to have a continuing dedication and focus on their client as well. Look for a home inspector who is a member of one or preferably both major home inspection associations.
Look for a home inspector who takes his or her time when performing a home inspection. A thorough and comprehensive home inspection should take 3 to 4 hours to perform for an average size house. If you’re interviewing home inspectors and they indicate that the home inspection would be 90 minutes to two hours frankly that is just not enough time to thoroughly inspect a home top to bottom including the exterior. There are a lot of systems rooms and components to look at when inspecting a home. A thorough and complete home inspection does take time and you should not settle for a hastily done quick home inspection. A quick home inspection may mean that the home inspector is missing key issues in the home that you are buying causing you problems, heart ache and money. Make sure the home inspector that you hire takes his or her time and that their typical home inspection times is at least 3 to 4 hours for your own protection. Generally speaking, the longer, the home inspection the more comprehensive it will be the more protection you will have as a homebuyer.
You should look for a home inspector who performs one home inspection per day. A home inspector who performs one home inspection per day will take his or her time and is not rushing to get to the next job. Sometimes home inspections take a lot of time and there are systems and components that need longer evaluation in a home. What you don’t want is a home inspector who is rushing trying to get to their next job. The last thing you want is when a home inspector, for example, gets to the attic and they have to rush through the attic inspection because they have to drive an hour to their next appointment. It is always beneficial to hire a home inspector who does one home inspection per day, this way you have the peace of mind in knowing that he or she is not going to rush their job and compromise your protection.
You should look for a NJ home inspector that will encourage you to attend your home inspection. If your home inspector discourages you from attending your home inspection that should be a red flag immediately. A qualified home inspector welcomes the client attending the home inspection. You’re spending a fortune on home you have the right to attend your home inspection, watch the home inspector, and ask questions. It’s a red flag if the home inspector asks you to show up at the end of the home inspection or not show up at all. You are paying likely the same money so why not find a home inspector who has the communication skills to have you attend the home inspection and to answer any of your questions during the inspection process. This is a very important aspect, and you should not take this lightly. Make sure you hire a home inspector who allows their clients to attend the home inspection.
You should look for a home inspector who has a quick report turnaround time. When you buy a home, you are up against a time crunch. There are a limited number of days called an inspection contingency. During which you can have a home inspection and produce a list of requests to the seller. You don’t want to be waiting three or four days to receive your home inspection report. A good turnaround time is 24 hours. More than 24 hours is too long but shorter than 24 hours you have to be on the lookout for a rushed and short home inspection report. This is especially true if you hire a home inspector who creates the report on site. On-site reports are not of the best quality. On-site reports are basically checklist reports where the home inspectors do include photos, but the narratives used in the report are not tailored to your specific home they are what is in the computer software. Having the report completed quickly is excellent but having a report completed quickly that is lacking in detail and comprehensiveness doesn’t do you as a buyer any favors. When you are interviewing a home inspector you should ask him or her to provide at least two sample reports so you can get an idea of what a finished report looks like. Is the report detailed? Comprehensive? has many photos? has a summary? A Summary is important because it helps you narrow down the main issues in the home. The summary page is the main areas of concern found during the home inspection. Of course, you want to read the entire report, however a well put together summary is very useful because it draws your attention to the main areas of concern. Make sure to hire a home inspector who completes the report within 24 hours and creates a very comprehensive home inspection report full of information and not just fluff and nonsense with a useful summary section.
You should hire a home inspector who has hundreds of positive reviews. It is true that most home inspectors are going to have positive reviews, however it is important to read those reviews because you as a buyer of home inspection services can learn a lot about that specific inspector. You should look for keywords like thorough, comprehensive, detailed, punctual, good communication style, didn’t rush, honest, I felt like the home inspector was trying to protect me, quick report turnaround etc. You can learn a lot by reading the reviews from other home inspection clients. Also, you should look for a couple of negative seller reviews. A good experienced, comprehensive home inspector will have a couple or a few negative reviews from sellers. Real estate is an emotional transaction. If a home inspector is doing a thorough and comprehensive job, they are likely to upset a few sellers along the way. Most sellers believe their house doesn’t have significant problems. If you find some negative reviews from sellers that should be a green flag and not a red flag. A few negative reviews from sellers indicate the home inspector is doing his or her job and going the extra mile to protect their client. Make sure to read the home inspectors reviews. You as a buyer can learn a lot about that home inspector.
You should hire a home inspector who is easily accessible after the home inspection is over. This is very important because it is likely that you will have questions or require some clarification on some of the things found during the home inspection. If the home inspector is not available or accessible you will not be able to get clarity on these issues. When you are interviewing home inspectors make sure that you ask them if they are available after the home inspection is over to answer any questions or concerns you have. Ask them how long it takes them to get back to a client. If the answer is less, then or about 24 hours that is reasonable. If the answer is two or three days that is unreasonable, and you should look elsewhere. Having support after the home inspection is over is very important. Make sure you ask this very important question.
When hiring a home inspector in New Jersey is important to understand a few of the important things or characteristics that home inspectors should have. It is useful to use this information to help you narrow down the list of prospective home inspectors that you are interviewing. Home inspection is the most important aspect of a real estate transaction. Having a thorough and complete home inspection can help you save thousands of dollars on the transaction costs of the home as well as prevent untold horrors and problems with the house down the road. Make sure you properly interview and understand who you are hiring to do your home inspection.