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I bought an older home and had a home inspection done and can say the main considerations I would want to focus on would be the wiring to make sure it's not the old knob and tube wiring or otherwise require a significant investment to replace everything, that there are no significant leaks or plumbing issues, that the foundation is sound, that the roof is in good shape and also get an opinion on the condition of the furnace/water heater. Beyond that, just ask as many questions as you can and if you can get an inspector who will get on the roof or go into the crawlspace, even better. Mine didn't go on the roof or the crawlspace but I am aware that some do. I know a lot of them don't though too but it helps to have someone take a good look at the roof if only because it can be expensive to re-roof a home and it's not the first thing you'll probably want to do when you're moving in.
Also you definitely wanna have the utilities on during the inspection if at all possible. During mine I wasn't able to have the gas on due to a mix-up with the scheduling of the gas company, but the inspector still took a good look at the water heater and the furnace and felt confident that they both were in working order. I ended up taking a little bit of a risk by buying the house without having tested the furnace and the water heater, but because I'd gone along on the inspection and had been able to talk with the inspector who was more knowledgeable about these issues than I was as a first time buyer, it gave me the confidence I needed to buy the house.
I've lived in my older home for more than a year now and I haven't had any significant issues other than a leak in a pipe that I had to replace. Cost a few hundred dollars and wasn't a big deal. There are maintenance issues that are going to come up that won't be expected so make sure to budget appropriately just in case something does come up because your inspector probably won't be able to tell you everything that could go wrong. Also make sure the inspector tests for radon, has a look around for evidence of termites or other pests and also make sure that you go along for the inspection so you can cover everything that concerns you about the home and see what the inspector thinks. Then you can ask about prices if something breaks, get a little advice and alleviate some of your concerns. Buying a house can be a bit nerve wracking so remember that the stuff on the inspection report is not necessarily as scary as it sounds.
When I got my report back I was like . . . OMG, I better run far away from this house and look for something else! Everything sounded like the end of the world to me. lol . . . Once I talked to a few people and got some different perspectives though I realized that I was really sweating the small stuff, and so now I am quite comfortable in my old house.
Good luck with your inspection! Be sure to let us know how it all turned out.
Respectfully, if the OP has a budget of $120K inside Chicago or frankly the whole region, I would strongly recommend against attempting to purchase a free standing home. At that price point they would literally be getting something that is in such a terrible neighborhood / bad shape that it is all but certain that it would be a money losing proposition for someone with no prior home ownership / construction trade experience.
If they instead looked at condo they would be in much better shape.
As to the suggesting that the OP could learn about home repair by volunteering with Habitat for Humanity, this is NOT supported by my experience -- the HforH people do some nice things for folks in tough situations BUT they generally use unskilled labor for very low-level tasks, like sweeping the floors and stacking building material inside for safe keeping. It would take YEARS of training with a construction trade school to really be able to make intelligent decisions about evaluating home repairs! The Chicago climate is such that termites are extremely rare, far bigger issues just getting home that is SUFFICIENTLY INSULATED so that one does not have crushing utilty costs...
is not exactly in Chicago its on the south side suburbs (1hour away). Im looking at houses with 2-3 bedrooms and 1 1/2 bathroom. Nothing huge theirs a lot of houses at that price point depending on the area.
is not exactly in Chicago its on the south side suburbs (1hour away). Im looking at houses with 2-3 bedrooms and 1 1/2 bathroom. Nothing huge theirs a lot of houses at that price point depending on the area.
Thank you for all your help guys!!
If you are seriously talking about towns like Monee or Kankakee then maybe you can find homes in your price bracket that won't themselves be "money pits", but given the terrible financial shape of Illinois and the dramatic loss of jobs in many of the towns in that area I would be VERY reluctant to sink money into a home...
If by "south side suburbs" you mean places like Thornton or South Holland I would look long and hard at the INSANE levels of property tax those towns are choking under AND the miserable schools that are only going to get worse. Really, it is not an exaggeration to say this area is in a death spiral that is unlikely to get better in the foreseeable decades.
If you have a completely secure job in someplace like Bourbonnais MAYBE it makes sense to get a house. The relative peak of construction throughout most of Illinois happened pretty much inline with the migration of veterans after WWII and our harsh weather has forced all but the laziest homeowners to maintain their property so it is rather uncommon to find the really antiquated electrical systems / plumbing / appliance that you might encounter in either more historic areas or places with milder weather.
It is important to realize that there are folks that are well trained and capable of doing an excellent job, but just as many bozos that will gladly take your money and leave with a confusing report that they take no time to explain. The best advice is to find an inspector that others have learned from / trusted -- that usually comes from referrals you might get from a co-worker, real estate professional, neighbor, etc...
is not exactly in Chicago its on the south side suburbs (1hour away). Im looking at houses with 2-3 bedrooms and 1 1/2 bathroom. Nothing huge theirs a lot of houses at that price point depending on the area.
Thank you for all your help guys!!
Even if your home passes an inspection, it doesn't mean issues won't come up. We just bought a home last year and are now having to replace our sewer line and sewer vent pipe costing us $7000+. These problems weren't caught on the inspection and we did not foresee them. When my parents bought their house, it too passed inspection. The first year they lived there the roof started leaking and they found out that the whole roof had to be replaced. Something else expensive happened too. I think it was that the furnace quit working in the middle of their first winter there. My advice to you here is that you make sure you have a large emergency fund in case an unexpected repair comes up, because there is almost always some maintenance or repair expense when you own a home.
Def do your homework when it comes to an inspector. I got one that was terrible and barely looked at anything. I was so unimpressed with his work that I didn't even bother to read his report.
Being a former contractor, I basically did my own home inspection anyway.
Make sure he's a top notch inspector and crawls into the attic, climbs on the roof, and isn't afraid to get dirty. If you're in Chicago, I used Domicile Consulting three times!! They're awesome. They also test for radon which I think is really important if purchasing there. This company saved me hundreds of thousands of dollars because they found deal breakers.
Also ask to see if there are signs of water damage, especially in the basement.
Good advice. I'd learn a little about what to look for so you can eliminate the obvious before investing in a home inspector. Foundation (for cracks, shifting, settling) Roof (for straight even lines and flat surfaces, and of course leaks) Don't forget the basics like electrical (look inside the breaker box - hopefully there's a breaker box and not a fuse box) We're in a house where you can't run the microwave and toaster at the same time, which we will fix with the rest of the electrical nightmare here. And plumbing. And HVAC.
Don't count on your RA to point out reasons not to buy.
I'm not familiar with Chicago but can you even get a home in this price range ?
My thoughts exactly. I live in TX, one of the cheapest places in the US to live, and we can't even touch a habitable home for $120K here, and I thought Chicago was much pricier than here.
OP, here, you have to hire a separate termite and/or mold inspector, as well as others if you want radon and septic. General home inspectors are not usually also certified for mold, termite, and the others. But that may not be the case in IL, so check with your state. You've received some very good suggestions, Inspectors cannot tell you when a system will break. However, systems will eventually fail, no matter what they are. Your car will break down, your roof will eventually break down and leak, and you will break down. I agree with the realtors that an inspector should physically climb on the roof and in the attic. Any inspector who merely visually inspects from below is being lazy and should not be hired.
There are several questions you need to ask that are not necessarily related to what he/she will actually be inspecting: How long have you been in business, how many inspections have you performed, what are your credentials (contractor, engineer, worked at a 7/11), do you have insurance, etc. What differentiates you from other inspectors. What an inspector is required to do varies significantly from state to state and some states still have no license requirements. ASHI standards for an inpspection would be the bare minimum in my opinion.
By the way, if your first question is about the price of the service, you are on the wrong track. This is a big investment, get the best inspector that you can. That $25 or $50 difference you spend on a better inspector can really make a difference in the long run.
There are several questions you need to ask that are not necessarily related to what he/she will actually be inspecting: How long have you been in business, how many inspections have you performed, what are your credentials (contractor, engineer, worked at a 7/11), do you have insurance, etc. What differentiates you from other inspectors. What an inspector is required to do varies significantly from state to state and some states still have no license requirements. ASHI standards for an inpspection would be the bare minimum in my opinion.
By the way, if your first question is about the price of the service, you are on the wrong track. This is a big investment, get the best inspector that you can. That $25 or $50 difference you spend on a better inspector can really make a difference in the long run.
Amen~ You get what you pay for!!!
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An HOUR away? That ain't a suburb...
