Do I Need To Get A Home Inspection on a New Construction Home?

Your newly built home is likely to have all of the latest energy-saving features and comforts that you could ever want. It’s brand new so why would you need to get it inspected? Is a home inspection really necessary for a newly-built home?

It’s ALWAYS a good idea to get a home inspection, even on a newly constructed home.

You may be wondering why this is the case for a newly constructed home. A new home should be in perfect shape, right? Not always. Here are two major reasons you should always get a new home inspected.
1. There may be undisclosed issues or shoddy workmanship

Just because a home is brand-new doesn’t necessarily mean that it’s been built with the highest workmanship standards in mind. The plumbing could have serious issues, the roof may be installed incorrectly, there may be issues with the chimney, and so forth.

Just like a regular home inspection, you won’t know about these problems unless the home is inspected. You’re not going to be able to recognize them on your own, and chances are that the homebuilders and realtors aren’t going to point them out.

If you buy a new home without an inspection, you could be on the hook for expensive repairs if something goes wrong.

Even a single careless contractor or a tiny mistake made when building the home can snowball – and cause serious damage. Home inspectors can recognize these issues.

2. It’s possible the home may only be up to minimum standards

County building inspectors have to sign off on the construction of a new home, and make sure that it’s up to code. But the fact is that they only check to make sure that it adheres to the bare minimum building standards.

These inspectors don’t work for you – they work for the county. So if the house is in okay shape and doesn’t violate any building codes, they’ll sign off on it. They’re not going to check whether the drywall is installed properly, take a deep look at the attic ventilation systems, or check the crawl spaces for leaks.

For a truly deep look at your home’s systems, you need to hire a home inspector. If you don’t, you’re taking an unnecessary risk.

For these two reasons, you should always get a new home inspected.

What About My Home Warranty?

Most newly-built homes have warranty protection built-in for the first year of home ownership. During the first year, the home builder will typically fix just about any and every problem that you come across. HVAC, plumbing, and electrical systems are usually covered by up to 2 years, and “Major Structural Components” are also usually covered for up to 10 years.

So, you may think you can just skip a home inspection, and your home warranty will cover you if you have any issues. Don’t make this mistake. Your home warranty is useful, but filing a warranty claim can be time-consuming and costly, and it may be rejected if it’s for a non-covered item, or you’re out of your warranty. Your warranty will likely cover most major issues with your home – but it’s best to get these out of the way first, before you close on the purchase of a new home. You don’t want to purchase a home with major structural flaws.

That’s why it’s so important to have a pre-purchase home inspection, and to have a home inspection contingency built into your contract, to allow you to back out of the purchase process if the home is revealed to have major structural flaws. If you’ve recently purchased a new construction home, it’s a good idea to get an 11-month inspection to catch any issues before the warranty is up.

Think of it this way. Your home inspection is your first line of defense, to eliminate obvious problems. Your warranty is your last line of defense. You should only need to use it if a problem occurs that was not revealed by the initial inspection.

Make Sure Your New Home Is Inspected – And Safeguard Your Purchase

New homes are not always in tip-top shape. Shoddy construction is often a concern – and the sheer number of contractors and subcontractors involved in building a home can mean it has some problems, even if the developers dotted their “i’s” and crossed their “t’s” during construction. So never neglect a pre-purchase home inspection, even for a brand new home.