Home Buyer Inspections in Newtown, CT

Home Buyer Inspections in Newtown, CT  Home inspections are an important part of purchasing a home.  Inspections are usually completed after you have an accepted offer and you typicaly have 7-10 days to complete them.  As the buyer, you either hire one company to complete all the inspections or you hire separate companies that specialize in the different components of the inspection.

So, what is checked during a typical home inspection?  Here's a list:

1. General Building Inspection - the inspector checks the foundation, the siding, the roof, the porch, the deck, the electrical panel, the appliances passing with the house, the plumbing, the doors, the windows, attic and basement.
2. Septic Inspection - If the house is connected to the sewer system, this is not necessary.  If the house has a septic system, we recommend that you use a septic company to inspect the septic system.  Some companies will hire a septic company to do this - some will not.  Some inspection companies just flush a blue die down the toilet and then check the yard to see if they can see the die.  We recommend that the septic company open up the septic and check the components of the tank, check the distribution boxes ("D" box) and the leaching fields (fields).  
3. Water Testing - If the house you are buying is hooked up to public water, testing the water is not necessary.  The public water has to meet State of CT standards.  If the house has a well, we suggest that water tests be taken.  Chemical, bacteria, arsenic and uranium should all be checked.
4. Radon in Water Testing - Radon in water is done when a home has a well.  This is an additional test.
5. Radon in Air Testing - A radon is air test is set by the inspector.  It is to be set up in the lowest living area in the house.  The testing period is generally 48 hours - sometimes, they are a day or two longer.
6. Pest Inspections - The inspector checks the house for pest and distructive bugs.

Don't be afraid of inspections on your new home.  They bring to light issues with a home - many of which are fixable.  Most of the issues that come up on home inspections are items that we see often.  We advise our clients to keep in mind that in most cases you are not buying a brand new home and that the home you are buying doesn't have to meet today's building codes.