Buying a home in Tampa Bay? Here is why a home inspection is so important!

The Connors Team has helped hundreds of clients buy a home in Tampa Bay over the past 10+ years.  When you work with The Connors Team, we not only help you find your dream home, but we then walk you through step-by-step contract to close.  Alison Connors with RE/MAX Action First focuses on protecting her buyers and getting them the best possible deal when buying in Tampa Bay.  One very important step is the inspection period – today I am going to discuss why getting an inspection is so important when buying a home.  We offer full concierge service, providing recommended inspectors or you can choose anyone you know to do the inspection.  We can even schedule it for you if you prefer.  We try to make it as easy as possible for your family when buying and/or selling with The Connors Team RE/MAX Action First.

Home inspections are an essential step in the process of buying a home.  It is a full overview of the condition of the property, and most importantly the major systems & components.  The most important being the 4pt portion of the property which checks the roof, HVAC, plumbing and electrical.   This is needed to obtain insurance depending on the age of your home.  Most sellers understand the importance of passing this part of this inspection and will be more willing to negotiate to help get these items to pass the 4pt inspection.

The inspection is important because it helps identify potential issues that may not have been immediately visible during the showing.  The inspector helps find roof damage, leaks, damage to the structure, electrical box issues, plumbing issues, checks the temperature of cooling and water, etc.  The inspector will try to ensure that the home is safe by identifying any safety hazards like faulty wiring, unsafe conditions of HVAC, and fire alarms.

Negotiations - During the inspection we try to avoid focusing on cosmetic items and pinpoint any functionality issues of the home.  Once the home inspector completes his report, we go through all inspection items and determine if you want to move forward with the home.  Typically, if there are minor repairs most buyers move forward with asking for minor repairs or a credit to repair after closing.  Sometimes issues can be larger than expected and at this point a buyer may decide this isn’t the right home – if we are still in the inspection period, we would be able to cancel in most scenarios (depends on contract in place) if this is what you determine is best and find a better home.  We also can try to renegotiate the price of the home or seller credits given to help offset some future costs due to unforeseen issues that were immediately visible nor disclosed to us.

Another reason to get a home inspection – our recommended home inspectors give great advice about home maintenance.  They are always available to chat after the inspection about any home questions you have regarding maintenance and how to care for the systems of your home.  The inspectors have an abundance of information regarding homes.

If you are thinking about buying, I would love the opportunity to sit down with you and discuss how we can help.  Consider the inspection one of your first investments into your new home and potentially one of the most important investments to determine if it’s going to be your new home.  This investment will identify potential issues, repairs needed, ensure safety, allow us to negotiate items of repair, and help you plan for future maintenance.  As a top Tampa Realtor, we’ve helped hundreds of families through the buying process and look forward to helping you too! We help minimize the stress with our systems and look forward to helping you find your dream home.  There is no joy like seeing our clients find a home they love (it’s one of my favorite parts of my job).  If you are thinking about selling in Tampa Bay, please give me a call 813-758-3063.  Also, if you are not local to Tampa but would like some advice, I'm happy to chat and can potentially help team you up with one of my RE/MAX trusted referral partners in your area.

Alison Connors - RE/MAX Action First 813-758-3063