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If you’re like most people, the last time you had your home inspected was when you bought the place. Once you moved in, maintenance probably became a reactive practice instead of a proactive one—you wait until something goes wrong or wears out, then you have it repaired or replaced. When my roof started leaking a few years ago, for example, I had it replaced—an expensive and stressful couple of days. A few months later I noticed that one section of flashing was pulling away from my chimney. It wasn’t a huge problem, but it was a good lesson: Just because the work was done correctly and looked good the day of installation doesn’t mean it won’t degrade or hidden problems won’t assert themselves later.
It’s not just the roof—your home is comprised of different systems that work together to keep you safe, comfortable, and protected from the elements. And no matter how recently these systems were upgraded, replaced, or installed, things can go wrong with them. What starts off as a small problem that’s easy to fix (like failed flashing) can develop into an expensive disaster if you’re not aware of it. That’s why you should be doing regular maintenance inspections of your house.
What’s a maintenance inspection?
A “maintenance inspection is similar to the home inspection you probably had done when you bought your house, but it’s performed more regularly and is designed to help you be proactive with your maintenance instead of reactive. In other words, a regular maintenance inspection helps you spot problems before they become expensive and potentially damaging. Catching these problems early can save you money and trouble.
General maintenance inspections should be done regularly; the International Association of Certified Home Inspectors (InterNACHI) recommends that homes have a maintenance inspection annually—12 months of weather can take a toll on the exterior of your house, and 12 months of wear and tear on the internal systems can expose failing components. If your house is newer, however, some professional inspectors believe you can conduct a maintenance inspection every three to five years. Just keep in mind that your house is getting older all the time, and eventually an annual inspection will be a good idea.
But if you’ve had major work done on the house—a new roof, new HVAC system, or new wiring, for example—you should perform a maintenance inspection on the new work about six months after its completion. That’s enough time for defects to emerge—defects that might not impact the integrity and performance of the work immediately, but can become big problems over time. These defects aren’t necessarily the result of poor workmanship—renovations and repairs can fail for a wide variety of reasons, such as:
Defective materials
Unexpected climate conditions
Invasive animals and insects
Natural shrinkage and expansion of materials due to moisture or temperature
Failure of other home systems (Everything in your house is connected. If the foundation is shifting, for example, your chimney may pull away from your roof, opening a seam.)
Who should do the maintenance inspection?
You can hire a professional home inspector to do a maintenance inspection just like you hire one when you buy a house, and the cost is about the same—about $300 to $500 depending on the size and complexity of your house. You can also conduct a DIY inspection if you’re relatively handy and familiar with the basics of your house—or use a mix of both approaches, conducting DIY inspections annually and bringing in a professional every three to five years for a more thorough review of your home’s systems.
Either way, a maintenance inspection of your home should look at the following aspects of the house:
Roof. A visual examination of the roof should be conducted to ensure shingles aren’t missing, flashing looks good, and gutters are in good shape.
Exterior. The exterior of the house should be inspected for damage—for example, cracked siding, crumbling brick or stucco, or cracked or missing caulk or weather stripping.
Windows and doors. The seal around windows and doors should be examined. All windows and doors should operate properly without sticking.
Foundation. The home’s foundation should be examined for cracks or other problems.
Basement, attic, or crawl space. These areas of the house should be checked for moisture, mold, and the integrity of floor joists or the interior roof structure.
HVAC. The home’s heating and cooling systems should be tested and visually inspected for mold, rusting equipment, or other problems.
Electrical. The electrical panel and all outlets should be tested, and all smoke detectors and CO detectors should be tested and have batteries replaced (or be replaced themselves if they are at end of life).
Plumbing. All drains and sinks should be examined for small leaks and potential mold, and drains should be tested to ensure they’re not clogged. Toilets and other fixtures should be inspected to ensure they’re seated properly and not leaking under floors.
Conducting these inspections on a regular basis means you’ll be aware of problems before they become obvious, which means you can get repairs or replacements made before real damage is done. If you discover a leaking second-floor toilet during a maintenance inspection instead of waiting for water damage to become apparent, for example, you might be able to get the problem fixed before the leak rots away the subfloor, ruins the ceiling below, and requires mold mitigation on top of everything else.