The intent of a home inspection is to give the property owner a clear picture of their property’s condition. In particular, a home inspector will typically look for issues that may negatively affect a property’s function and value. When administered accurately, a home inspection should carefully assess the condition of a property. A careful inspection involves the inspection of the property’s plumbing, electrical system, heating and cooling systems, and so on. A qualified home inspector will also check for evidence of fire or water damage, insect infestation, and safety issues.
The home inspection is an important part of buying a rental property because it helps investors determine a property’s fitness for use as a rental home and how much they might need to budget for repairs. Many properties will definitely have minor maintenance or renovation issues. However, if there are major issues that need to be dealt with, you need to know about them ASAP. For example, if the home inspection reveals damage to the foundation, roof, or major system (such as the electrical system), that damage will likely be expensive and difficult to repair. A thorough inspection allows you to see the issues that come with the property, so that, as an investor, you can walk away from a deal that might be bad for you.
Most homes are inspected as part of the purchase process; however, more inspections can be done as needed. This holds true, especially when you are a rental property owner. You can maintain your own property by doing home inspections and discovering developing repair issues before they become an emergency. Any successful investor will advise you to plan ahead of time for those major repairs or renovations. In so doing, you lessen their impact on your cash flows.
A wise thing to do is to determine issues before they become urgent repairs. For instance, plan months or even years ahead of time when you should replace the roof, or update any plumbing or electrical fixtures. In that case, you can not only budget for the cost ahead of time, but also shop around to find a quality service provider willing to do the work for a fair price. From this perspective, anything you spend when hiring a qualified home inspector can save you money down the road.
The most important thing about home inspections is that it truly offers you peace of mind about your rental property. Unexpected repairs will always be part of rental homes. Hence, knowing more about your property’s condition will always be a good thing. If you want to invest more in your property’s present and future, a home inspection is a wise thing to constantly do.
However, scheduling an inspection might take time away from your other investment activities. Instead, why not hire a Hoover property management company that will perform routine property assessments for you? At Real Property Management Victory, we conduct regular property assessments on every rental property we manage, among our other great services. This allows our property owners to protect their valuable investments and plan more effectively for the future. Is this something you’re interested in? Contact us online or call 205-793-0700 today!