Premier Home Inspection Service - home inspections in Salem Oregon, certified home inspector

The Premier Home Inspection

With over fourteen years as a professional, certified home inspector and
over ten years in the home remodeling industry, we bring knowledge
and hands-on experience to each inspection.

Oregon Contractors Board number 173566, OCHI #029.

---

Home Inspection Articles

Helping to Make Homes Financeable For Oregon Home Buyers

Inspector, Joe Zink is now a HUD 203K certified consultant (# S0737). This means that Premier can assist home buyers with the purchase of homes that might not otherwise be financeable

1. 1. Premier creates the renovation/repair plan that will allow the home buyer to receive financing.
2. 2. Premier acts as intermediary between buyer and lender for the release of finances during construction.
3. 3. Premier assists in getting the necessary building permits.
4. If you would like more information about this program please email
   or call 503-606-9891.

---

Kitchen Remodeling: Get the Most Bang for Your Buck

---

Must-do Repairs: Don't Avoid These

---

How to use your garbage disposal the right way

---

Adding Beauty Without Adding Problems

With spring coming, so is additional work in the yard. Adding fresh bark dust or mulch is an effective way for homeowners to add beauty to a landscape. To minimize moisture damage and help prevent a wood destroying insect infestation, please remind your clients to maintain a 6” clearance between the mulch and foundation of the house. Advise your clients that bark dust and other soil amendments count the same as soil, when against or near the siding or other wood components of a house, which can be a factor when trying to sell their home.

---

How to Choose a Home Inspector

Like any purchase, you should try to get the most for your money spent.  Do not look for the cheapest price, because there is a very good chance that you will receive the cheapest service for your money.  Beginning inspectors will commonly set there prices low, trying to attract business.

A personal reference is almost always a good lead to a good inspector.  Does the inspection service stand behind their inspections, in case any thing is missed, or if you have questions later?

Premier Home Inspection Service, Inc. does stand behind their work.  Based on years of remodeling experience, they even offer their service as your home consultant for as long as you own the house they inspected.  Premier also includes a 90 day warranty of the house and all built in appliances, including termite and carpenter ants and an appliance recall check.  We have access to a data base that has all recalls of home appliances built since 1974.  To our knowledge, we are the only inspection service in the Willamette Valley that offers any of these additional services, let alone all three.

All of these benefits are included in every home inspection that Premier Home Inspection Service, Inc. does.  That in addition to a very thorough inspection that is documented on an easy to read computerized checklist format report that has comments as well as photos includes.

---

The Most Overlooked Items by Home Inspectors

Most home inspectors will do a thorough inspection.  However, there is always the temptation to short cut in various places, depending on the individual.

The more common weakness of some home inspectors is the presentation of the information to the client.  The client should be well informed, but not unduly alarmed by making a major issue of something that is either not significant or can be repaired reasonably. 

The crawl space and the attic are the most difficult places to travel in.  The attic has an additional risk of slipping off a joist and sticking a foot through the ceiling.  Most home inspectors will place a comment about the restrictions of visibility and whether they actually traveled the attic, or observed it from the attic access.

It can be difficult to unfeasible to travel some parts of the crawl space under the house.  Ridged heat ducts and plumbing frequently block passage.  A conscientious inspector will make all reasonable attempts to get around such blockages.  If they cannot get around them, they are to describe the area that cannot be observed.

---

What happens after the inspection?

After the home inspection, both the buyer and the seller have decisions to make.
The report belongs to the client of the inspector, so they have the first move.  The potential buyer has the option of taking the house as is or backing out of the offer and start looking again, or most commonly reaching an agreement some place in between those two extremes. 

After reviewing the report with their real estate broker, they will decide what they want repaired and maybe prioritize that list, in case the seller does not agree.  The broker will then do the negotiating for the client.  An agreement will usually be reached, the repairs completed and the transaction closed and you can move in.

---

How an Inspection can Affect a Purchase

A home inspection is not designed nor meant to change or affect the transaction, but often does have that end result.  A home inspection is a source of information for the buyer of the physical condition of the home. 

Some buyers may try to get a lower price, based on the findings stated in the report.  Most people will negotiate at least some of the repairs to be completed by the seller, at their expense.  Some buyers just want to get an idea of what it will cost them to fix the home to their standards, or if the house is even livable.

Occasionally the inspection will provide the buyer such information that they withdraw their offer to purchase the home. 

---

The Importance of Having a Home Inspection

(Why should I spend the money for a home inspection?) 

Be the informed buyer.  You do your due diligence when purchasing a home by using a licensed realtor, a credible mortgage lender, an appraiser to verify the value and a title company to make sure the history of the property is clear and that all of the paper work is in proper order.  It is also a very good idea to have a professional determine what condition the house is in.

A good home inspector can and will look for and at things that you may not even know exist, especially in places you don’t really want to go, such as the crawl space or attic.

A new roof can cost more than $4,000.00 for an average size house and a new furnace will start at about $2,000.00 and go up quickly. Is it worth spending  $350.00-$385.00 for most houses, to be informed of these problems before you make the final commitment to buy the house?

Premier Home Inspection Service, Inc. will provide you with a comprehensive easy to read report, with photographs set in the text, so you can be as informed as possible.

---

What can a Home Inspector tell me that I won’t see myself?

Is that crack in the wall or foundation cosmetic or does it indicate movement or settling?  Some cracks do indicate movement, but most are cosmetic.

Is the siding or roofing installed properly?  Clearances are necessary between siding products and other surfaces.  Visible nails are to be set properly and sealed if appropriate.

Are you going into the crawl space to check for insect damage, fungal rot, cellulose debris, plumbing leaks, properly supported heat ducts etc.?

Is the electrical wiring safe?  While most of the wiring should be out of sight, we have equipment to check for proper wiring and know what to look for in the areas where it is visible.

Is the furnace working properly or does it have a cracked heat exchanger or is it emitting carbon monoxide into the house?  A home Inspector has the ability to do basic testing for safety and proper operation.