I've represented several buyers in the last few months that purchased new constructions. I always make it a point to tell them about home inspections and the benefits of it. Some of them are reluctant to pay for an inspection since the house they're buying is brand new, (what could be wrong?) and most of them have a minimum 1 year builder's written warranty so they think that will cover everythin!. That is great but I got news for any "would be buyers" out there.
Two months ago one of my clients agreed to pay for a home inspection and among the things the inspector found incomplete were both attic space and crawl space had partial insulation done. Part of the crawl space was missing the insulation under the floor, and part of the attic had insufficient insulation. And this was a new construction!
Last month I had another client that purchased a new construction and I had a hard time dealing with the builder. The inspector found among other things that the yard was graded wrong, so the the rain water was going toward the house instead of away from the house. The builder refused to fix it claiming it was fine the way it was. I wanted to make sure that my buyer was protected so I advised him to put a specific clause in the builder's warranty that if at anytime during the next 12 months there was standing water in the yard or water was coming in the crawl space, the builder would have to come and correct that! And this too was a new construction!
So, new or not, always get an inspection. When buyer does his or her walk thru and check the house out, they think that is enough. However, there are many things that you cannot see with the naked eye or without knowing what to look for or where to look (Would your buyer crawl under the house? or climb in the attic? or check out the electric system or plumbing? - most likely NO) The small investement of a few hundred dollars upfront, would save you a lot of money in the long run and a lot of headaches too!
