Top Ten Home Inspection Issues
The Ten Ten Most Frequent Home Inspection Issues
Based upon National surveys, here are the ten most frequently encounters home inspection issues. Please note, that these are national. Results, if only surveyed for Summit County, Colorado Real Estate might be ordered slightly different. Items 1-3 accounted for the statistical majority of the problems. The remainder accounted for significantly less problems encountered than the first three. And the common denominator amongst the first three is the effects of water, how water is reacting to the terrain of the property and the possibility of water entering the home. For Summit County Real Estate, Roof Damage would most likely rank as # 1, because of the effects of the snow and long winters. Also, I preface this list be noting that the list pertains to single family homes only. Condos and townhouses have their own unique issues which will be dealt with at a later time.
The Top BIG THREE:
3. Damage to the Roof – Leaks in a roof can lead to water in your home. That can be a costly problem. In Summit County, we have issues regarding ice build-up and ice dams. There are severals ways to combat this build-up. One of them is to design the roof properly in the first place. But unless you are building a new home, this is not feasible. Many people have heaters on their roof or hire someone to shovel their roof when the snow builds up.
2. Electrical Wiring not properly installed – The comments on the survey in regards to this issue included improper connections, not adequate overload protection and insufficient electrical service.
And the drum roll please, the number one problem, the envelope please……
And the winner is:
1. Surface Grading – Surface Grading or lack of it, can lead to improper drainage. Water can enter your home and if water damage is not encountered, there is still the problem of moisture and the mold that comes along with it. If grading is not done properly, snow and rain can breach the foundation and enter your basement or crawl space, causing many problems.
And the remainder of the problems most encountered in the survey are as follows:
Heating Systems, Poor Overall Maintenance, Structural Issues, Plumbing, Exteriors, Poor Ventilation and Miscellaneous.
