Do you shovel snow to Inspect?
The short answer is no. A home inspector does not shovel snow as part of the home inspection.
One of the biggest issues with getting a home inspection in the winter is snow. Inspecting your future property can be a difficult task when the snow is covering areas like the driveway, yard, and the roof.
Requestion the seller to shovel the snow prior to the inspection is an important part of making sure you don’t miss any problems that may be hidden in the snow. With so much to look for, it’s important to make sure you are inspecting every inch of your property. Including any areas covered in snow.
With snow covering the roof, yard, driveways, sidewalks, and decks which makes is impossible sometimes to inspect or fully inspect those areas. We do not shovel these areas to inspect them.
Driveways can have compacted snow and ice which could take hours to remove. That is why the home inspector will not shovel the driveway or any part of the yard during the home inspection
Shoveling a roof is dangerous and if you’re not super careful can cause damage to the shingles. Roof shoveling is best left to an expert.
The seller is normally responsible for clearing snow prior to the inspection. They normally have the driveway and sidewalk shoveled but not the roof or yard.
If the buyer chooses to shovel areas covered by snow it will make inspecting them easier. Again this is not something a home inspector does as part of the home inspection.
This makes buying a home in the winter more difficult as you do not get a full view of the property’s condition. You can have those areas inspected in the spring but by that time you already own the home.
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