A home inspection (bedek bayit) is far more than an administrative procedure: its tests are meant to put your mind at ease and save you significant money. Buying real estate calls for careful scrutiny, and buying a home even more so, both because of the size of the investment and because most people buy a home only once, or at least hope to. There is no better way to examine a property than a home inspection carried out by a certified engineer who specializes in this kind of work.
The advantages of a professional home inspection
- It examines the property at both the visible and the hidden level. The right tests, with the right equipment, from a licensed engineer working to the latest standards, reveal far more than the eye can see: discrepancies between the property's plans and the property itself, deep problems in the plumbing or electrical system, faulty waterproofing, mold, illegal additions, undocumented renovations, and the like. Left unaddressed too long, any of these can turn into a very high expense.
- For resale properties, the inspection ends with a detailed defects report that assesses the damage and the repair options. With it, you can go to the contractor or the seller and demand the required repairs, provided you are still within the legal time limit for doing so. If there is disagreement, the same report can serve the buyer in court: signed by a licensed engineer, it is prepared in a way that leaves no doubt and raises no question about its admissibility.
- A professional inspection also lets you estimate the property's value fairly accurately, especially when a real-estate appraiser is involved too. That realistic assessment shows the gap between the property's actual condition and the asking price, so you can judge whether the purchase is worthwhile in fairly concrete terms.
Bottom line: a home inspection, also called a building inspection, is an eye-opener every potential real-estate buyer owes themselves.
The real-estate market is dynamic, fast-moving, and stressful. Buyers often find themselves overwhelmed by requirements, endless bureaucracy, and other matters competing for their attention, and things get forgotten, confused, or muddled along the way.
Ordering a home inspection from a specialist engineer or company takes at least one task off your already full plate.
That engineer will run the tests far better than you could yourself, protecting your interests as a buyer all the way through, whether that means the required repairs get done or financial compensation is paid that matches the severity of the defect.
The engineers of Arad Bedek Bayit, led by building engineer Ron Arad, whom courts appoint as their own expert on construction defects. The company has been inspecting apartments and buildings since 2001. Engineer Ron Arad · More about the company