Inspections and Insurance
Understanding Inspection
A home's physical condition greatly affects its value. You'd feel horrible if you paid top dollar for a home that you thought was in great shape and then discovered after you bought it that the house was riddled with expensive defects.
Why Properties Should be Inspected
It does not matter whether you're buying a new house, used house, condo, townhouse or co-op, All properties should be inspected, period. Here are the reasons why each type deserves an inspection prior to purchase.
Types of Inspections
Which type of inspections you need depends on what area of the country you live in, how the building in question is constructed, and what you plan to do to the property after buying it. Here are the three most common ones.
Optimizing Inspections
Prepurchase property inspections are intended to give you a factual basis for negotiating the correction of big-ticket defects. Here are guidelines for getting the biggest bang out of the bucks that you invest in a prepurchase property inspection.
Homeowner's Insurance
When you buy a home, most lenders require that you purchase homeowner's insurance. This covers the types of insurance protection, why they are important to consider and what to look for in a policy.
Title Insurance
Title insurance assures homeowners and mortgage lenders that a property has a valid title. This section covers both major kinds of owners title insurance as well as who pays for it.
Title Risks
All the irregularities that exist in a property's past ownership can affect a property's title. Learn about some the causes of these hidden risks to titles.
