Not sure how to word the question but what i'm basically looking for is a checklist of what I should look for in buying a new home as in condition of furnace, windows, roof and any other things that I should know about the house before I buy. the most important and expensive things that might have to come outta my pocket.
You definately need to get an inspection done. They are not too much money and many lenders require one. E-Mail me and I will send you tons of information on the homebuying process.
An inspector will be able to walk you through it. Sure, you may have to shell out a few hundred dollars, but in the long run it will be worth it. They are going to check all the imprtant things like the heaters, AC, pipes, plumbing, vents, major appliances, ect ect. Those are the things that can be very costly. They will be able to provide you with a list of things they think need repair and possibly an estimate of what the will cost to repair. Then you can ask the owners to fix the problems. Normally they will, or at least they will give you a credit towards fixing them. Trying to do all this yourself is risky unless you are very skilled with home maintenence, which few people are.
Using a home inspector helps because they can see things that go beyond eye sight. Sometimes a good coat of paint can cover a huge deficiency. The inspector will put on coveralls and go thru the crawlspace and on the roof to insure it's condition. A heating and air specialist will tell you roughly the condition of the furnace. If you're determined to do it on your own and the Seller has not presented a Residential Property Disclosure, then you may wind up with either a Diamond or a Lemon.
if you go to hud and take a look at their buying a home link, many of the properties listed there have home inspections attached as .pdf files. I would read through a few of them to see what the inspector looks for. You can save yourself the time and hassle of making an offer on a house that will not pass inspection if you can look at some of these items before making an offer.
