Answers To Your Questions About Home Inspections

If you’re not familiar with home inspections, then you might have a lot of questions about what gets inspected, how thorough the inspectors are, why you even need one, and what you can expect if you’re walking with an inspector through the house you’re hoping to buy.

There’s a lot to know about home inspection, and your questions deserve answers. 
Here they are!

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What is a home inspection?

A home inspection is an event that is basically exactly what the name implies: A home inspector walks through the home, looking at specific elements and features of the house, and then provides a report about anything that needs to be repaired.

Why would I want a home inspection?

An inspection is a good idea anytime you want a full rundown on any issues or problems with your house. 

If you’re already living there, it’s a lot less necessary than if you’re buying the home — when you will most definitely want an inspector to check for any potential red flags.

They’ll be your problem after closing, and big issues can sometimes affect the insurability of your house (which, in turn, affects your loan eligibility), so home inspections are most common after an offer is made on a house but before the closing finalizes the deal.

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What does the home inspector look at?

There are six essential parts of an inspection that you can expect every inspector to hit. They are:

  • the roof and attic, 
  • the basement and foundation, 
  • the plumbing, 
  • the electrical setup, 
  • the heating or air conditioning systems, 
  • the interior of the house, 
  • the exterior of the house.

Depending on where you live and what common problems tend to manifest in the homes, you might also want to think about hiring a pest inspector, a sewer line inspector, or even ask about an engineering report to evaluate the home and plot’s structure and stability.

And in areas where radon is prevalent, or where there’s a lot of humidity, you may also want to ask about radon or mold testing (some home inspectors do this as an add-on part of the package).

How much does it cost?

The price of the home inspection is going to depend on the size of the house. You can typically expect to spend around $300 on a home inspection, but smaller properties (less than 1,000 square feet) might cost only $200, whereas larger homes (more than 2,000 square feet) cost upwards of $400 to inspect. Ask an inspector or a real estate agent in your area what they usually cost to get a closer estimate.

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Do you need an inspector for a new house?

It’s always a good idea to get a home inspection — even in a brand-new house. You don’t want to find out there’s a problem after you move in, and an inspection is the best way to figure that out. So follow the “trust, but verify” process with your builder: Trust that they did their very best to get your home in the best condition possible … then verify that they did just that with an official inspection.

Should you attend the inspection?

It’s usually a smart idea for the buyer to attend the inspection in case they have questions for the inspector or want to follow up on any notes the inspector makes. Many inspectors today use new technologies that allow them to include photos of any issues or potential problems, but there’s nothing like being there in person to better understand exactly what’s wrong and how to fix it.

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What happens if a problem is uncovered?

If everything is not in good shape with the home you’re about to buy, there are options. Usually when this happens, the buyers and the sellers start negotiating again — this time, to figure out who’s going to pay for the necessary repairs. 

Buyers might be able to ask for some money to be knocked off the final sales price to accommodate for the problem, or sellers might decide to go ahead and fix it before closing.

If everyone can come to an agreement that suits everybody, then the sale can move forward.

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Caitlyn Weiman

Caitlyn has been running the operations at Lark + Co since fall of 2022. She has also been licensed in real estate sales since 2013, and enjoys working with first-time homebuyers and investors, alike. Caitlyn enjoys running numbers and helping clients find the right rental mix for their properties.

Caitlyn has a Bachelor of Fine Arts from the University of Colorado Denver with an emphasis on Sculpture, but these days art is just for fun when she assists Kristin with furnishing and design. She lives in Brighton with her husband, daughter, cat, and dog. They enjoy going to “the lake” on the weekends in the summer or Sunday movie days in the colder months.

Kim Nicol

Portfolio Manager

Lark is excited to have Kim join our team as our Portfolio Manager. Kim brings her organizational skills and upbeat attitude to help us keep things running smoothly. 

Kim was born in California and moved to Colorado in 2019. She has a background in Early Childhood Education and management.  Kim loves children and has adored her years teaching, nurturing and helping them grow, but was looking for new challenges.

She has always had a passion for Real Estate and is excited to start her path in this career. Kim lives in Brighton with her husband, four kids, two dogs and three lizards. She enjoys being outdoors, spending quality time with her kiddos, and shopping for fun new water tumblers.

Kristin Johnson

(Owner)

Kristin became a licensed Real Estate Agent in 2016 and joined Re/Max Synergy In 2020 in order to help build a property management division. In 2022 in collaboration with her colleagues Kristin decided to open Lark+CO in order to provide an array of Real Estate services to her clients under one roof. These services currently include buying, selling and marketing single family and multi-family homes, property management for single and multi-family furnished and unfurnished rentals as well as design services. In the near future we are excited to add lending and insurance to our portfolio of offerings.

Before getting into Real Estate, Kristin worked in business to business sales where she ran high producing sales teams and developed lasting relationships with vendors, associates and local organizations. Kristin loves meeting and connecting with people – especially potential buyers, business partners, investors and tenants to discuss and understand their specific needs and aspirations. Kristin will find something unique that is tailored to their goals and collaborate on business growth strategies. Kristin successfully sets rents in the Colorado market while helping clients earn their highest potential on their rental properties to achieve financial goals and freedoms.

Kristin adores living in Colorado and enjoys all of the outdoor activities that Colorado has to offer. Her favorite is spending time in the mountains with family and friends, her Bernese Mountain dog Hugo, and Lhasa Poo Lola. Vail holds a special place in her family’s hearts and you can find them relaxing in and fishing by the Gore Creek, riding bikes down the gorgeous bike path to Vail Village, skiing the idyllic snow covered runs or cooking up delicious treats with her children.

Kristin enjoys work to the fullest and is excited for the opportunity to be working with you to find the house of your dreams, managing your rental properties or helping you expand your investment portfolio.