How to Walk through a Potential Home

By: Martin Lukac
Submitted: 2007-01-17 16:16:14
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When you have found the perfect home for your family, you should give it a thorough walk through.

While your walk through is in no means a substitute for a professional inspection, you can see if things are to your liking. As a potential buyer, you have the right to check out the heating, cooling, plumbing, electricity and water heater.

You should do this to make sure that you are getting what you are about to pay for. For example, on one home purchase, we didn't turn on all the light switches each time we walked through the house, or we would have noticed that 50% of them have shorts in them. If you wiggle them just right, they will stay on for a while. That must be why the seller had all the lights on when we walked through.

There's a lot you need to know about the home you are about to own. There are many different parts that make your life comfortable.

Go through the home from end to end and top to bottom. You might want to carry a notepad, pen and checklist with you. Make notes so that you remember what you see. Do this at least twice, both inside and outside. Sometimes we often are blown away by our dream house, and don't look very closely at a property.

Make sure you go into the basement and attic. There are a lot of working parts in these areas. Make sure that you check the heat, air, water and power.

When it comes to electricity, start with the load center and look at the fuses or circuit breakers. You are looking for age and signs of wear or exposed wires. Make sure there are enough outlets throughout the home and that all light fixtures work.

Check the water pipes and sewer lines for any rusting or leaking. Check the water pressure and volume. Look for clogged drains or dripping faucets. Make sure the hot water comes fairly quickly. Check the water heater for any leakage or rust. Check the capacity, age and general condition.

Look to see what type of heating system the home has. Determine the age and condition. Go ahead and turn it on and see if it works properly.

If the home has air conditioning, turn it on and check it out as well.

Go through the basement looking for any signs of water, dampness, flooding, dry rot or termites. The attic should also be checked for signs of leakage and any rodent or insect issues. Make sure that it is adequately insulated.

Look in the bottoms of closets, along the walls and don't forget to look up at the ceiling. You can be surprised at what you find. We were once told that a home had a minor water issue when a pipe busted. All throughout the home, we found water marks on all of the walls. Apparently the minor water problem was a entire flooding of the home. We didn't see this at first, only upon closer inspection.

It is hard to buy a home. It is easy to fall in love and become blind to all the little things. But the little things can cost you a lot of money. Make sure you walk through and really look at the home. And don't forget to have a professional do so as well.

Martin Lukac represents http://www.RateEmpire.com and http://www.1AmericanFinancial.com, a finance web-company specializing in real estate and mortgage rates. We specialize in daily updates, mortgage news, rate predictions, mortgage rates and more. Find low home loan mortgage interest rates from hundreds of mortgage companies!

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