Home Inspection in Los Angeles – Why Skipping One For Your New House Could Cost You Big
Do you think that because you are buying a newly built house you can safely skip the home inspection in Los Angeles? What a waste of money it would be, I mean it is a brand new house right? What could go wrong? Oh let me count the ways.
Reason 1. The work just is not complete. Here is the best reason for a home inspection on new construction I have ever heard. Contractors in Los Angeles are often working on several projects at once, dividing their attention. Imagine your new house was built and the builder forgot to complete the connection to the sewer or septic system. It has happened more than once and talk about expensive to fix! Imagine all that yummyness collecting under the house! The house must also comply with all of the new Los Angeles seismic building codes put in place after 1994 where there were more than 1300 leaks and breaks in the gas lines.
Reason 2. Hidden mistakes. Everyone that was involved with the construction of your new house was an energetic perfectionist that thrives on leaving a job wonderfully completed and would never miss anything or see a mistake or imperfection and skip fixing it because “its good enough and won’t cause a problem for at least a couple years.”
Many problems found in old houses were built into them when they were brand new. Weather in Malibu or San Dimas, everyone makes mistakes, but you shouldn’t have to pay for the ones your builder makes just because you decided to save a few hundred by skipping a home inspection by an independent third party.
Reason 3. LA County government will protect me! “Yah, the bank and Los Angeles county codes (found at http://dpw.lacounty.gov/bsd/index.cfm?p=csg) their inspectors and requirements will surely find and correct any issue during construction.” Well the bank is just there to check that the different phases of construction are completed not that they were done correctly. As for the county guys, they are stretched super thin and will not be there to catch everything that can go wrong before problems are hidden from view. They are effected by the local budget cutbacks just like everyone else. Implementation of the LA City Department of Building and Safeties CONSTRUCTION-INSPECTION PARTNERSHIP PROGRAM has attempted to address this issue, but this level of coordination is not used on all projects and is voluntary. Having your own LA County registered, independent inspector visiting regularly during construction is the best and most affordable answer.
That’s it. Three reasons to make sure you are covered. Everyone makes mistakes. Steps are overlooked, equipment can be damaged and the simple truth is that the only person that has nothing to loose by finding errors and mistakes in the construction of your new is an independent home inspector. The best security is to have your home inspection in Los Angeles during construction. If the house is completed already then make sure to have one done before you close escrow.