When you are buying a home, you have certain milestones to hit. Pre-approval. Accepted offer. Inspection. Appraisal. And finally, the FINAL WALKTHROUGH. This is the last time for you to inspect the home and determine if the place is up to snuff, according to your contract. Did they finish the repairs you requested? Are any appliances that are supposed to stay missing? Is there a giant gross spot on the carpet that was covered by a couch before? Don’t stress. Here’s how to handle the final walkthrough on your new home.
Have a Game Plan
When you first walk in, you can be overwhelmed by what you need to check and miss something. Don’t let this happen. You’ve been there before, you know the layout. Make up a game plan on what you need to check.
There’s no hard and fast rules about your walkthrough. This is your home, your purchase, your money. You need to make sure that you are comfortable with everything. Check out your hot spots first. If you know that they were required to put in a new water heater, go look at it. If they needed to replace a cracked countertop, to check on that. Make sure that the big stuff that could bust up the sale is taken care of first, before you start nitpicking.
Don’t Go Nuts on the Little Things
If you see some scratches or dings, don’t let it bother you. You are likely to do worse during the move-in. You can fix a scratch on the hardwood easily, or repaint a section of the wall with a touch-up. You’ll probably already be doing it after you move in.
If the floors aren’t scrubbed, or the carpet isn’t vacuumed, that’s not the end of the world either. Most contracts stipulate a “broom clean” to the house. That means that you will be doing the hard work of the deep clean anyway.
Check Out the Hard to Reach Spots
Look at the places that don’t get a lot of love. Check the corners of the basement. Look for little things that may have broken since you were last in the house. Check the appliances. Run the shower, tubs, and sink faucets. Do all of the things that seem crazy to you. That’s where you find the real problems.
Look HARD for water damage that may have been hidden by a big rug or a piece of furniture. Check the basement for mold that may have been obscured by other stuff during the previous check-ups.
Missing or Swapped Stuff
Does your contract say that you get to keep the fridge? Make sure that it’s the same one in your kitchen. Some unscrupulous sellers may take the items anyway, or try to substitute the appliance with a subpar or even non-functional replacement. Don’t lose what you put in the deal!
Call The Home Loan Expert Team at 800-991-6494. You can always apply online at www.thehomeloanexpert.com, and we’re also open on Saturdays and will come to you to help close your loan. We work hard to make it easy on you. Nobody gets lower rates on better loans than The Home Loan Expert, Ryan Kelley, why go anywhere else?
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