Your offer was accepted, now what? In competitive markets like Portland’s, getting your offer accepted is a little like winning the lottery. Celebrate, because you’ve worked hard to get to this point but don’t lose sight of what’s to come before closing on your home. Any number of things can happen before then so prepare. This is not to say that every house out there is riddled with problems but almost every house has something that needs a little work. Even brand new homes. Provided you didn’t opt to waive inspections, you’ll need to have your future home inspected (some buyers waive inspections when the going gets rough and multiple offers are on the table but we don’t recommend it). Based on the location, age of the home and several other factors, you’ll have a handful of professionals looking into every corner and system of your future home. This is a good thing.
In Portland proper, you should prepare for these inspections:
-Overal house inspection (covers all the systems in your house and whether they’re safe and sound)
-Sewer scope (inspects the sewer line from your house for cracks and breaks)
-Radon test (Radon levels are high in certain areas of Portland)
-Tank and/or Cesspool locate (depending on the age of the house, there are tanks located above and underground, they can leak if not decommissioned)
You may need other inspections including:
If the overall house inspection uncovers any areas of concern to systems and conditions, you might need to prepare for a few more inspections such as these”
-Roof (looking to see how much life it has)
-HVAC (Depending on the age of the system, looking to see if it’s functioning properly)
-Mold (There is a lot of moisture in the NW causing different types of mold)
-Pest (typically termite damage and if signs of rodent damage or droppings)
This may seem like a lot of inspections but not all homes require all of them. It’s important to know what you’re getting yourself into before you close the deal and move in. The most important thing to note here is that this checklist is meant to inform you not scare you off. We can guide you through the process based on the condition of the home because we’ve seen all kinds of houses needing all manner of inspections. You may be wondering about out of pocket costs. We’ll follow-up in a future post about how much you should set aside for inspections. Stay tuned!