Reinspection & Final Walkthrough
Reinspection and final walkthrough are generally the last times you 'll see the house before you own it. Here's what to be looking for during those visits.
REINSPECTION:
The purpose of a reinspection is simply to make sure that the repairs that were negotiated during the home inspection period are completed. It’s your choice whether you want to hire an inspector to evaluate the repairs, or whether you think that you can check them out on your own.
Sometimes a reinspection isn’t even necessary if the work was something that would be hard for you to evaluate like installation of a new electrical panel. It may suffice to get a paid invoice from the seller showing that it was been completed. However, if you had a long list of repairs it is usually worth it to have your inspector come back through to make sure that everything was completed in a “workmanlike manner”.
FINAL WALK THROUGH:
The final walk through is not to evaluate the final condition of the house since the sellers will likely still be moving out, or might not have even started yet. The final walk through is to make sure that major defects haven’t taken place between the last time you saw the house a signing.
The standard for the condition of the house at the time of possession set out in the sale agreement is “FREE OF TRASH AND DEBRIS”. It’s not a very high standard. Some sellers leave their house immaculate, while others basically take the trash out, do a quick sweep and leave it at that. You should be prepared that you’ll probably want to clean the house or hire a cleaner before you actually live there. Sometimes it makes the most sense to clean the house after you’ve moved your furniture and possessions in, since that can be a pretty dirty process itself.