"Rehabbed" doesn't mean "fixed"

We've talked about the importance of having a newly constructed house inspected before you buy and the importance of having a condo inspected before you buy. The same is true for a house that has just been rehabbed. It's easy to think, since many aspects of the house have been changed, fixed, and updated in a rehab project, that you don't need to have it inspected. Think again.

Recently, my client was buying an "as is" property that had just been rehabbed. She hired me to find out just how "as is" it was. And she is very happy to have made that decision. The new granite kitchen counter tops looked great. But the brand new dishwasher underneath them wasn't connected to either water or power. And the dishwasher's power cord wasn't going to reach the under-the-sink outlet some four feet away. The brand new kitchen range, still showing most of its packing material, was plugged into a circuit that arced when turned on at the breaker panel. And the crawl space, an area you probably wouldn't visit when you're looking at a house, had drooping wires hanging down everywhere. And, a plumbing pipe that should be supported every four feet had, instead, one support in the middle of its nearly thirty-foot run.

So, though the house you're looking at may have been recently rehabbed, the work wasn't necessarily done by skilled professionals. Find out what shape the property is in before you buy. It could be the best you investment you make when buying a home.

Whole house inspections, condo inspections, radon testing, mold testing, and more, we do it all for you. Call or E-mail today to schedule your Complete Home Inspection, 913-268-0222, www.completehomeinspectionkc.com.