A thorough home inspection of a medium-sized family home shouldn’t take more than two to three hours. However, there’s no concrete answer to how long should a home inspection take.
Since no two homes are built alike, the time taken to inspect them may vary. And here are some factors which are responsible for it.
Size of the property
It’s a no-brainer that inspecting a mansion will take more time as compared to a condo or studio apartment. However, with less clutter and convenient access to areas that need to be inspected, the overall duration of the inspection can be reduced drastically.
Number of components to be inspected
Inspecting a fully furnished home will take more time than inspecting a new construction. So when you are buying a pre-owned property, you can expect a higher turnaround time and a bit higher cost as well.
How old is the property?
It’s acceptable to overlook certain areas when it comes to inspecting newly constructed properties. But in case of older properties, every nook and corner is taken under consideration so that nothing falls through the cracks only to cause you more trouble later.
Weather Condition
Harsh weather can slow down your home inspector. If certain areas are hidden under the snow blanket, the extra time taken to remove the snow will add up to the overall inspection time.
Your location
Home inspection standards vary from place to place. In some states, inspecting certain areas is imperative, whereas some states keep it as an option. Depending on that, the inspection time varies.
If your home inspector happens to wind up the comprehensive inspection in under one hour, perhaps, he has left some areas untouched or has been too quick to jump to conclusions. Either way, you are not getting the best value for money.
A home inspection is one of the stepping stones to your home buying decision, which is why it needs to be thorough and accurate so that you don’t end up buying a problematic home.
Alpha Building Inspections LLC is one of the reputed service providers in the Seacoast Area NH, with over 1000 inspections performed every year to customers’ satisfaction. We encourage customers to attend their home inspection, and in case they don’t find the quality of home inspection to their satisfaction, we’ll either fix it or it’s free.