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We were originally planning on flying out the 1st week of February to select a home to purchase, but are now thinking about delaying the trip due to the heavy snow that has fallen recently.
Our primary concern is that the heavier snow cover would cause problems for an inspector to accurately do his/her job in giving us a good idea about the condition of the home. Its our understanding that it might be impossible to locate the well, septic components, etc. This is aside from the snow hiding potential property issues.
What would be your advice on this situation; delay the trip, or just allow some extra time, etc.? We are flexible on our timing. Thank you!
Wait until the snow melts this spring (or summer, or early next fall, whenever the white stuff finally disappears). There is no way a home inspector can do an adequate job of reviewing the exterior aspects of a house with two-three feet of snow and Lord knows how many inches of ice covering everything.
You can ask realtors if anyone else has had an inspection done recently on any property you are interested in. Sometimes people do an inspection then don't buy the property (for whatever reason), and then they will give the inspection report to the realtor to give out. We "donated" a full inspection for one property, when we were looking.
You can ask realtors if anyone else has had an inspection done recently on any property you are interested in. Sometimes people do an inspection then don't buy the property (for whatever reason), and then they will give the inspection report to the realtor to give out. We "donated" a full inspection for one property, when we were looking.
Hey, nice idea! We'll keep that in mind. There is also a good chance that we will need to have a couple/three homes inspected while we return to CA due to timing issues, and we'll be sure to pass along the ones we don't use if that occurs.
As a former inspector. You can have a house inspection in the winter. About the only thing(s) you can't really see well are the roof(s) and the actual property(which really isn't included anyway) That being said I would probably wait until spring or at least until a little warmer weather. Also, since you aren't local, if the home is unoccupied be sure the broker has the power and water on for the inspection.
I have done building inspections (including septic) in 3 feet of snow and a good inspector will do it. If my buyer wants to buy the house, the weather doesn't stop us, it is Maine after all. Also, with virtually every inspection I've done, the inspection company owns the rights to that inspection and it can't be released without their permission (and usually compensation). Something you might want to check into.
If the inspection company has not been paid for the inspection, they do own the inspection. If they have been paid for the inspection, the client who paid for it owns the inspection and is free to share it with whoever he would like to share it with. Bear in mind that the report is dated. Changes could have occurred or been made since that date.
If you hire an artist to do a painting of you, you own the painting. If you hire a sculptor to create a bust of you, you own the statue. You paid for the work. It belongs to you. If somebody has a soil test done for a septic design the owner of the property can provide that soil test to prospective buyers. If you want a copy of a deed, you can go to a lawyer's office and pay big bucks for it or you can go to the Registry of deeds and get a copy for a dollar a page. The registry does not pay the lawyer who drafted the deed again for work he has already done.
If a surveyor surveys a property, and is paid for the survey. You can give or sell that survey to somebody else. If an unrelated party wants a copy of the survey the easiest thing is to go to the Registry of deeds and buy a copy for a couple of bucks. The Registry does not pay the surveyor or the property owner when they sell a copy of the survey.
If you approach a surveyor and want a copy of a survey he has done and been paid for, the surveyor can charge whatever the market will bear for making a copy. I hope this clears things up for the buyer above.
sometimes if you see the property in the so called "worst of times" you get a feel for what it will be like in winter,,,
and you know it will be better in the spring/summer/fall
also, depending on age/condition of house, you can see how insulated the home is..
bring a surface temp laser gun.....check around windows and doors,,the temps - see what heating systems they have ...also back up systems, such as a woodstove..
as the previous posters has said,,,,inspectors do inspections year round,,,
if i were flying in from out of state, id want to see my (potential) new house,,,in the winter time,
seeing houses in the winter,, will give you insight you wont get when seeing a house in the spring or summer..
on a windy day, you can stand in many old maine houses,,and hear the whistle of the wind coming thru doors and windows.....
you will also see firsthand....what and where you will have to shovel the walkways and get to see the driveway- to snowblow, plow?
most folks on here,,have repeatedly said,,,make sure you visit in the winter time.... to come in the summer isnt a fair depiction of year-round,,
so yes, come in the winter, by all means.... you will be glad you did
Sounds like a neat tool! I've never heard of such a thingy, so I looked on Amazon and found this random comment/review of one of the models:
"I LOVE this product where I use it to figure out how much energy my home is losing through its various walls, floors, ceilings, and windows. First I point-and-click to measure the temperature of an article *inside* the room to find out the average room temperature. Then I point-and-click on the various room walls, windows, floors, ceiling etc, to see which one is coldest compared to the average room temperature. The surface which is coldest is the one I need to focus on to increase the insulation value. By doing this I have been able to reduce my home heating costs by a third, saving hundreds of dollars every year!"
sometimes if you see the property in the so called "worst of times" you get a feel for what it will be like in winter,,,
and you know it will be better in the spring/summer/fall
also, depending on age/condition of house, you can see how insulated the home is..
bring a surface temp laser gun.....check around windows and doors,,the temps - see what heating systems they have ...also back up systems, such as a woodstove..
as the previous posters has said,,,,inspectors do inspections year round,,,
if i were flying in from out of state, id want to see my (potential) new house,,,in the winter time,
seeing houses in the winter,, will give you insight you wont get when seeing a house in the spring or summer..
on a windy day, you can stand in many old maine houses,,and hear the whistle of the wind coming thru doors and windows.....
you will also see firsthand....what and where you will have to shovel the walkways and get to see the driveway- to snowblow, plow?
most folks on here,,have repeatedly said,,,make sure you visit in the winter time.... to come in the summer isnt a fair depiction of year-round,,
so yes, come in the winter, by all means.... you will be glad you did
Mainebrokerman makes excellent points, especially the part I bolded.
When we sold one of our homes, the buyers asked to see the utility bills. I had never heard of that before, but with winters like the one we're experiencing this year, I definately understand why.
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