The Walls of Protection
Your home’s exterior protects you and everything within your house. A professional home inspection ensures that all the structures are in good shape and able to keep out inclement weather. Defects and hazards hidden from a quick look are revealed to protect the safety and longevity of your structure.
Your inspector checks
- Siding, flashing and trim.
- All exterior doors.
- Attached or adjacent decks, balconies, stoops, steps, porches, and their associated railings.
- Eaves, soffits, and fascia where accessible from the ground level.
- Vegetation, grading, surface drainage, and retaining walls that are likely to adversely affect the building.
- Adjacent or entryway walkways, patios, and driveways.
- Surface grade directly adjacent to the buildings.
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Overall, your home inspector is looking to identify material defects and any outside influences like tree branches rubbing on your home that could materially damage the exterior. A defect may be a repair, maintenance or improvement consideration with or without a safety association.
During the inspection. your inspector will note any grading issues that could impact your home by water runoff during storms.
The Exterior Report
Your written report records findings including a full description of the condition of the siding, elements under the roof, and especially impactful surface grade to keep water away from your foundation and walls.
If you require additional system inspections such as for a swimming pool or retaining wall, your inspector may be able to refer you to a local professional.
The Exterior Reflects The Interior
An exterior inspection of your home is part of your professional home inspection. The inspection summarizes your exterior’s ability to preserve your home. Take a look at the other 101 introductions to learn what else your home inspector sees when he takes a professional look at your property.
As thorough as this inspection seems, your home inspector is not required to check fixtures and systems outside the exterior:
- Screening, shutters, awnings, and similar seasonal accessories.
- Fences.
- Automated door or gate openers or their safety devices
- Geological and/or soil conditions.
- Recreational facilities.
- Outbuildings other than garages and carports.
- Seawalls, break-walls, and docks.
- Erosion control and earth stabilization measures.
In addition, your inspector is not required to use a ladder to inspect systems or components.