Once a contract has been accepted, schedule a home inspection asap. Our assistant Jillian will send you an email with a list of inspectors that buyers have used and enjoyed in the past.
Ideally, the inspection should occur within the next 2-3 days; however, during the busy summer months, inspectors may be booked out up to a week or more in advance. It’s important that the home inspection occur quickly, as it often takes the inspector 1-2 days to write the report after the inspection. Once the report is written, we still need some time to review the report and ask the seller for any credits or repairs before the inspection period ends, which is typically 7-10 business days in Iowa.
Plan to attend the inspection, which will take approximately 2 hours for a single-family home. Inspectors usually only work Mon – Fri and do not work evenings or weekends, so you will probably need to arrange to be off work for the inspection. You do not have to be at the inspection, but there is a ton of information that you can learn from them. Wear comfortable clothes that can get dirty, as the inspector may want to show you something outside or in the basement, etc.
The inspector does have lockbox access to get into the home.
Legally, we are not supposed to schedule the home inspection for you, so this is something you need to do. Make sure to ask the inspector about a sewer scope and radon if this is something you are interested in adding.
Once the inspection is scheduled, email Jillian back so she can confirm that the day and time will work with the seller’s Realtor. Plan to bring your checkbook or credit card to the inspection to pay the inspector.
