How long does a home inspection take? It’s like asking your obstetrician how long labor will last. Hard to say.
The truth is there are many factors which affect the time it takes for a home inspection. But it’s mostly dictated by four things: TYPE of home, SIZE of home, CONDITION of home, and AGE of home.
The Type of Home
The shortest inspection would be a condo unit. Condos don’t normally have very much exterior to inspect, and never the roof because it’s part of the shared buildilng. Next in line is the townhouse. These vary somewhat, depending on whether it’s an end unit, or if there is a garage. The longest inspection is usually a single family home, mainly because of the extensive time required to do a full exterior inspection and to climb up on the roof – and I do get on the roof 95% of my inspections – most inspectors do not – they look with binoculars which I think is very poor.
The Size of the Home
More square footage means more inspection time, it’s as simple as that. Don’t forget, physical size isn’t just more area, it is more outlets, more sinks and toilets, sometimes multiple furnaces, even multiple electrical panels.
The Condition of the Home
The condition of the home is the biggest factor in determining the time it takes to inspect a home and it is usually related to age. An abused home or a ugly foreclosure, for example, typically has a lot of problems and deficiencies which means more reporting effort and time spent on the inspection.
The Age of the Home
Older homes take longer to inspect. Why? It’s partially to do with the fact that older homes have history: there have been repairs which require special attention, there are room additions that need special structural assessments, basements tend to have more cracks that need to be inspected, floors sometimes squeek or are uneven, and sometimes there are multiple types of plumbing and electrical wiring, and insulation, all which need to be looked at and reported. All things being equal, a well-cared-for home that is 30 years old versus a well-cared-for home that is 60 years old might mean one more hour of inspection for the older home.
So, how does all this equate to actual hours of inspection time…well, as an engineer I am very thorough so expect from 2 to 4 hours for an inspection, but that doesn’t mean I won’t stay for 5 hours if needed to get the inspection done.
