Might they be important?
Does this sound familiar?
“Hiring a Home Inspector would be a waste of money. This is a brand new house that has been inspected dozens of times by the city/ county Permitting Office. If there were anything wrong, they would have already caught it. Besides, we offer a warranty, so if you find a problem, we’ll fix it.”
This is the type of thing that many builders say to new home buyers in an attempt to talk them out of a home inspection.
New houses are never perfect.
I can go on & on about all of the ways that homes get built improperly and defects get missed. We do several new construction inspections every month and constantly find issues that require correction.
Yes, most builders offer warranties, but …
(1) Wouldn’t you rather know now so that repairs can be made before you move in?
(2) Read the fine print – look at all of the areas that would NOT be covered.
(3) Assuming the problem is covered by the warranty… How long will it take before you notice the issue? Will it take several months for that roof leak or plumbing leak to cause enough damage for you to notice it? Is there now a mold problem too? Will it take an electrical fire or an injury before you recognize an electrical issue?
Don’t skip an inspection just because the house is new.
Finally, when you do decide to get an inspection, don’t hire just anyone. Many inspectors have no idea how to inspect a new house. Obviously we’ll be looking for proper workmanship, proper building materials, finish work, etc. rather than the wear & tear or break-down of the different systems of the home.
This is SUPER IMPORTANT.
Read the earlier post (& comments) about Builder Warranty is not enough.
If you are having a home built, this is a MUST READ!!!