The Home Inspection Hurdle

August is the high point for the summer. Unfortunately, it is also the high point for the total number residential listings on the market this year. As of August 1 there were 1344 homes on the market in the Lakes Region towns in this report. That’s up 6% from the 1277 available last month and the 1281 posted last August. Based on the rate of sales for the previous 12 months, we have a 21.5 month supply of homes on the market. The average asking price as of August 1 was $539,186 which is down a bit from the $573,567 recorded last August. The number of homes available under $200,000 rose 5% from 318 last August to 397 this August.

One of the biggest hurdles in purchasing a home today is the home inspection process. I recommend that everyone get a home inspection on the property that they intend to purchase. I guess one exception to the rule could be a newly constructed home that has had oversight by the local building inspector, but I still recommend it anyway. Up until last year, just about anyone with a clip board, a flashlight, and a little bit of building knowledge could be a home inspector in NH. Thankfully, the state passed a licensing law that requires all home inspectors to have completed the National Home Inspectors licensing exam. They also have to successfully complete 80 hours of approved pre-licensing education covering heating and cooling systems, plumbing, electrical, foundations, structural components, roof coverings, exterior and interior components, and site aspects that can affect structures. Continuing education is also required to keep inspectors up to date.

Hopefully, a well maintained home will not have any significant issues and the buyer can move one step closer toward owning the home. But many times issues do come up that need to be addressed and the home inspection then becomes another point of negotiations between the buyer and the seller. The buyer has a right to ask that any undisclosed significant issues or defects be repaired or remedied by the seller. If the seller does not want to repair the defect, another remedy is to negotiate a dollar amount off the price of the property so that the buyer can have the issue corrected at a later date. If the seller refuses to fix the defect or compensate the buyer in any way, the buyer can declare the deal null and void and get his deposit back so he can look for another home. Hopefully, it doesn’t come to that but it does happen fairly frequently. Sometimes small issues and related repair costs become overblown and buyers and sellers lose sight of the real goal which is to buy and sell a house.



Every home will have maintenance issues that will need to be addressed so bear that in mind if you are a buyer. No home is 100% perfect, so don’t sweat the small stuff too much! Be more concerned about the big things like the roof, the foundation, septic system, heating, cooling, and electrical. Make sure you get a Home Depot or Lowes charge card because they are essential in the home owning experience. These cavernous warehouses of household pieces and parts are places for you to go to strategically avoid actually doing a necessary repair…at least for a while. If you are selling a home, try and remember that even though you have gotten along for the past ten years with the overhead door not working correctly and the bricks ready to fall off the top of your chimney, the buyer really does expect most things to be in good repair. Having your home in tip top shape when you place it on the market can alleviate a lot of stress down the sales process and will actually bring you a higher sales price. Imagine that, now go to Home Depot.

Your REALTOR® can provide you with a list of home inspector’s names and their company brochures to compare services and pricing for the different types of inspections. You are also free to pick any home inspector you want. Check the yellow pages. Inspectors may complete and provide their report to you right there at the time of the inspections. Others may provide it by email within a day or so. As a buyer, you should be there for the home inspection process so that you can watch, ask questions, and learn about the home that you are about to purchase and be responsible for maintaining. It also gives your wife time to measure for curtains and determine which closet you might be able to use for your clothes…