If you're a Seller, then you should be aware of several things that may make the inspection process more efficient.  Home inspections usually vary in times from two to five hours, depending on the size of the house. 

The following tips will help you be prepared for your home inspection.


1.  Pets and large animals should be leashed up or transferred off site.
2.  The Home inspector will operate almost everything in the house, so make sure they have access.
3.  Make sure the utilities are on: gas, water and electricity.
4.  Make sure the pilot lights are on to gas fired mechanical units, gas water heaters, pool heaters, spas, fireplaces.
5.  Replace any burned out light bulbs.
6.  Test smoke alarms and replace batteries if needed.
7.  Make sure filters and media filters have been changed in HVAC Systems.
8.  Remove any wood, furniture, debris and stored items away from foundation and structural components.
9.  Move any objects around electrical panel so that the panel front can be removed.
10. Make sure nothing is blocking the attic access such as automobiles, storage, etc.
11. Remove any locks from gates, service panels, etc. so a home inspector has access.
12. Move any items, which may restrict observation in the attic and crawl space.
13. Trim overgrown bushes, vegetation, and trees away from the house.
14. Repair or replace items such as damaged gutters, down spouts, knobs, hinges, latches, etc.
15. The swimming pool and hot tub equipment should be operational.
16. Copies of receipts for recent installation, cleaning and/or servicing of any major items such as the roof, HVAC system or other appliances should be provided.

1. New construction – Builders often will not allow an “inspection contingency”. Once you sign a contract to buy the home that they are building, you are usually locked-in to the purchase, except for some instances when you cannot obtain financing. Such contracts are definitely slanted in favor of the builder, but the logic here is pretty easy to understand. Builders will offer limited warranties on their homes and any issues that surface during an inspection will likely be covered by such a warranty. They don’t need to allow a contingency, since they will be obligated to fix the issues anyway. Builders also allow you to do a punch list of final items during their walkthrough, giving the buyer an opportunity to have minor cosmetic issues resolved. Therefore, it is recommended that you use a independent trained Home Inspector to inspect your newly constructed home prior to doing your final walkthrough, as they'll find items that you normally wouldn't think to check, etc.
2. Short sales – In a short sale, the seller is trying to sell the home for less than they owe on their mortgage and doesn’t have money available to cover the balance. They request that they bank take a lower payoff for the mortgage because they cannot afford to sell, yet desperately need to sell. People in this situation are often in financial distress, whether that be from unemployment, an unexpected injury, or looming bankruptcy. If a seller doesn’t have any money to cover their daily living expenses, they also are not going to have money to cover a list of repairs. You will be stuck with an “as-is” purchase in most instances. You need to be comfortable that the purchase price is low enough to take on the list of repairs that will become your problem when you buy the house. So as previously suggested, it is wise for you to use a independent trained Home Inspector to inspect the property to minimize any surprises after purchase.
3. Bank-owned  – When a home is foreclosed by the bank, they will hire brokers to help them sell the home on the open market. They will spend a modest amount of money to clean up the property and make it at least presentable in order to sell. When you negotiate with banks, they will often have strongly worded contracts that insist you are buying the home “as-is”. Most banks will stick to their “as-is” provisions, and they are not in the business of rehabilitating homes. We have seen banks occasionally negotiate or offer to fix very major issues, so you should try to negotiate, but stick to only the really big problems. It is a waste of your time to ask a bank to fix a broken light switch or leaky faucet. They will say no. Again, as we've stated, it is wise for you to use a independent trained Home Inspector to inspect the property to minimize any surprises after purchase.

Despite these realities, a Home Inspector to help you understand what you're getting yourself into and what the potential repairs costs would be, thus enabling you to have the proper information to make a educated decision.

• About 80 to 85% of the energy used for washing clothes is for heating the water. There are two ways to reduce the amount of energy used for washing clothes - use less water and use cooler water. Your clothes will be just as clean as using warm, or hot water and you'll save money by not heating water to wash clothes. Costs are 26¢ per load using hot water and 11¢ per load using warm water.
• Use natural gas for cooking, water heating and drying clothes. Natural gas can save up to 30% more in costs than using electric for these appliances and is better for the environment. GRU has natural gas rebates available.
• Lower the thermostat on your hot water heater to 120°F. For each 10°F reduction in water temperature, you can save between 3% - 5% in energy costs.

In Chicago condominiums are abundant, we often have occasion to speak with buyers who are anguishing over whether they need an inspection or not. Just like buyers who are purchasing a newly built home, condominium purchasers often feel that it’s not necessary to get a home inspection. The main reason for condos is that new buyers often believe that anything wrong with the unit is the responsibility of someone else - namely the condo association.

In Chicago, condos run the gamut from high rises with hundreds of unit owners to 2-unit condos; big associations with monthly dues and accrual funds, to duplex owners with no monthly dues who split their expenses when they need a new roof or when their siding blows off. Regardless of the size of a condo association, there are reasons upon reasons why buyers need a home inspection:

• Windows - Every condo has windows. And older condos have windows that are leaky, have failed thermal seals between the glass panes, don't operate or have broken locks, or are the source of leaks into the unit. Who repairs defective windows? You do, that's who. And because most condo associations require that you install replacement windows of a specific design and manufacturer, the cost to replace defective windows can be surprisingly high. A condo inspection will uncover window defects that could cost you out-of-pocket hundreds of dollars, or more.
• Electrical Panels - Hidden inside a panel could contain wiring defects had been working for years and not up to code or worst and problem waiting to happen.
• Decks – Can be an unbudgeted expense, like replacing 10 decks at a cost of $5,000+ each, is usually taken care of with a special assessment - of $5,000+ per unit owner! The unknowing buyer would inherit a costly problem. An inspection can flush out these kind of things.
• General Items - 2-section sliding patio door with a bad section of thermal glass and broken handles to a defective garbage disposal to frozen casement windows to broken electric outlets.
• Water heaters – In some condo’s they are located in the unit, if they are old they could be leaking or not heating efficiently. Thus if not found, would be a cost incurred the by new buyer later.

Of course, we have inspected condos that were relatively "clean" of defects. However, at least 80% of the inspections we do uncover one or more problems that exceed the cost of our inspection. Thus going without a condo inspection leaves most buyers exposed to unanticipated expenses.

Studies show that in the US, an verageousehold spends 5-10% of its energy budget on lighting. This shows that there is a potential of saving money by achieving higher efficiency lighting. Here are some useful tips on achieving energy efficient lighting and reducing your next electricity bill.

Tip #1 - Replace Lamps and Fixtures

Compact Fluorescent Lighting (CFL) is identified as a good energy efficient lighting option. Begin by replacing your lamps from incandescent to CFL. You can do it by stages. Change the ones you use most often first. That way you will not have to spend a lot of money on bulbs at the same time. Check your local home store for CFL options.

Tip #2 - Controlling Lighting

A lot of times, electricity is wasted by having lighting on where it is not being used. Various methods can be used to regulate the use of lighting. One very common method is by using dimmers to reduce the lighting output. Some other methods to use timers and occupancy sensors. Outdoor lighting can be motion activated. Also lighting that is sensitive to the outdoor lighting conditions can be used. These will turn on when daylight is low, for example at dusk. Most of these are simple to install and can be bought at local home stores.

Tip #3 - Free Lighting

Whenever possible, daylight should be utilized. This is a free resource and using it can save us a lot of money. Blinds, curtains etc can be used to avoid glare. North lighting has good quality of light that is glare free. Various types of glazing materials can also provide desired benefits and lighting levels.

Tip #4 - Maintenance

Usually we forget that even the lights in our house need maintenance. Cleaning the bulbs and fixtures regularly can greatly increase lighting efficiency. Please be careful while cleaning bulbs. Never clean them while they are hot. Replacing old fixtures and lamps with new more efficient ones is also a good idea.

The less demand you put on a system, the less energy you’ll utilize and the longer your unit will last. There are several ways to do this:

• Avoid overcooling. Unfortunately, many buildings are far chillier than necessary. For most people, 78°F. degrees is perfectly comfortable. Yet many homes and businesses crank the temperature down as far as 65°. You can save a lot of money–and fight global warming–by the simple act of setting your temperature higher. Going upward a single degree, in fact, can reduce your air conditioning bill by 3% to 5%. If you are not going to be home, raise the temperature to 85° or 90°. You can use a timer to automatically bring the temperature down to 78° just before you come back.
  
•  Insulate and tighten up your house. No matter how efficient an air conditioning system is, it can’t perform well in a house with insufficient insulation and poor sealing. Checking for leaky ducts is particularly important. A huge amount of energy–well over $100 a year–can be wasted if they leak. Speaking of leakage, keep doors and windows closed when your air conditioner is on.
  
• Cool with fans. By circulating air, fans make us feel cooler, yet they use only a fraction of the energy required by air conditioners. Unless it is very humid where you live, a large fan that vents to the outside in the top-floor ceiling may radically reduce your need for air conditioning. Even a good attic fan can cut air conditioning costs up to 30%. Using your bathroom fan can cut your home’s humidity–another way to make you feel cooler.
  
•  Don’t cool unoccupied rooms. If you have room air conditioners, shut them off and shut the doors. With central air conditioning, shut off registers in some of the rooms you are not using. But, be careful. If the thermostat is in the room you have closed off, the system will continue running long after the rest of the home is cool.
  
•  Keep your AC clean. If you have a room air conditioner, remove and rinse off its filter (usually behind the inlet grill) every month. If you have a central air conditioner, have the condenser unit professionally cleaned at least every other year. Clean all registers and air inlets and outlets. This is important not only for efficiency, but to prevent buildup of dust and mold than can harm your respiratory system. Every three years, have a technician add a tune-up and inspection to the cleaning. Among other tasks, the technician will check your refrigerant level. If it’s low, you’re wasting as much as 20% of your air conditioner’s energy. Proper airflow is also critical.
  
•  Buy energy-efficient appliances. All electrical devices give off heat, so consider replacing old refrigerators and incandescent light bulbs. Unplug electronic equipment when it’s not in use.
  
• When you paint or re-roof, consider “cool” exterior finishes. Light-colored or other “cool” roofing and siding products can reduce peak cooling demand by 10% to 15%.
  
• Be aware of windows. Close drapes and shutters on windows on the sunny side of the house. If it’s time to replace your windows, get the double-glazed type with a coating that reduces heat coming in from the sun.

1. Potential health effects and symptoms associated with mold exposures include allergic reactions, asthma, and other respiratory complaints. 
   
2. There is no practical way to eliminate all mold and mold spores in the indoor environment; the way to control indoor mold growth is to control moisture.
   
3. If mold is a problem in your home or school, you must clean up the mold and eliminate sources of moisture.
   
4. Fix the source of the water problem or leak to prevent mold growth.
   
5. Reduce indoor humidity (to 30-60% ) to decrease mold growth by: venting bathrooms, dryers, and other moisture-generating sources to the outside; using air conditioners and de-humidifiers; increasing ventilation; and using exhaust fans whenever cooking, dishwashing, and cleaning.
   
6. Clean and dry any damp or wet building materials and furnishings within 24-48 hours to prevent mold growth.
   
7. Clean mold off hard surfaces with water and detergent, and dry completely. Absorbent materials such as ceiling tiles, that are moldy, may need to be replaced.
   
8. Prevent condensation: Reduce the potential for condensation on cold surfaces (i.e., windows, piping, exterior walls, roof, or floors) by adding insulation.
   
9. In areas where there is a perpetual moisture problem, do not install carpeting (i.e., by drinking fountains, by classroom sinks, or on concrete floors with leaks or frequent condensation).
   
10. Molds can be found almost anywhere; they can grow on virtually any substance, providing moisture is present. There are molds that can grow on wood, paper, carpet, and foods.

A home energy audit is the first step to assess how much energy your home consumes and to evaluate what measures you can take to make your home more energy efficient. An audit will show you problems that may, when corrected, save you significant amounts of money over time. During the audit, you can pinpoint where your house is losing energy. Audits also determine the efficiency of your home's heating and cooling systems. An audit may also show you ways to conserve hot water and electricity. You can perform a simple energy audit yourself, or have a professional energy auditor carry out a more thorough audit.

A professional auditor uses a variety of techniques and equipment to determine the energy efficiency of a structure. Thorough audits often use equipment such as blower doors, which measure the extent of leaks in the building envelope, and infrared cameras, which reveal hard-to-detect areas of air infiltration and missing insulation.