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Common Home
Problems
order to identify most
frequently happened problems.
La
Home
Inspection's
internal statistics show that there is congruence between these
surveys and research we have made in Home Inspection industry for
the last few years in the GTA area.
These are 10 most common
problems. Four of them relate to water problems such as moisture,
seepage and leaks. Based on this experience, a professional home
inspector consecrates his attention and emphasizes the following
subjects:
Electricity system:
Many houses that we
inspected, we found significant defects in the electrical wiring.
These include amateur (sometimes even dangerous) wires connections,
inadequate protection and insufficient electrical service.
Overall maintenance:
Insufficient maintenance is
a very common problem for a lot of homeowners. Many houses/condos
have cracks, peelings, crumbling masonry, improvised electricity
wiring and plumbing, broken fixtures and dirty painted surfaces that
all together say a lot about the maintenance quality of the house.
Drainage and improper ground grading:
Many houses, especially
those with basements, suffer from water penetrations that occur when
there is no sufficient ground grading or drainage that lead to water
seepage to the underground walls and leakage into the basement.
Roofs:
A leaking roof is a common
problem. It usually occurs when the shingles are old and cracked or
there is improper drainage. Weather conditions in Toronto area
dictate high maintenance standards to follow with that are usually
neglected.
Heating system:
Many
houses we have inspected, we discovered that the heating system
remains at a very inadequate level we would not expect to find for
the cold climate of the GTA area. Common defects we have discovered
are malfunctioning controls, unsafe exhaust disposal and blocked
ducts.
Exteriors:
Here we can count flaws
such as doors, windows, and wall surfaces. Significant structural
damages are rarely found, but some of the defects might cause
discomfort to the occupants if there are failures such as water or
air penetration.
Structural failures
Here we may occasionally
find severe damages to the foundations and\or walls that become
possible as a result of poor construction or a continuous negligence
by a homeowner.
Plumbing and pips:
Plumbing defects are ranked
high. Many houses we have inspected, especially old ones, we found
incompatible piping materials, amateur connections and installation,
lack of proper insulation and waste lines.
Ventilation:
Proper ventilation helps
saving energy that may prevent condensation, moisture and mold. In
the GTA area, due to the cold climate and the heated home interior,
poor ventilation might causes severe problems.
Internal components:
This category contains all
the interior home components such as flooring, internal walls, doors
etc. Usually there are no major failures to these components.
Regional climate of Toronto
and Ontario, dictates unique maintenance actions to be done by
homeowners in order to prevent accelerated amortization. Homebuyers
should take this factor in consideration to see the overall picture
when he or she decides buying a resold property. For inexperienced
buyers, ONLY a professional home inspector can discover and point to
the factors leading to major property failures. |