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Are You Buying A Home With Mold? Get A Home Inspection First!

4 December 2017 by Alexa Armstrong

When you are about to make one of the biggest financial investments of your life, you don't want to have to worry about mold. Unfortunately, mold is a pretty sneaky fungus that isn't exactly easy to detect. Therefore, when purchasing a home, you need to know what to look for, how to get mold issues disclosed by the seller, and how you can negotiate mold problems that come to light.

Keep Your Senses Alive During the Tour

As you are touring the home, you want to keep your eyes wide open and peeled for any signs of mold or areas of potential mold. Look for any standing water and stains on the walls. You also want to keep your nose open for any musty smells. The areas of the most concern are the basement, laundry room, bathroom, kitchen, and any other area where there may be plumbing.

Ask the Home Inspector for Help

When purchasing a new home, it is imperative that you get a home inspection for mold and other problems done. Home inspectors are trained to notice water damage and signs of mold. Keep in mind that this is not their job, though, but the majority of them will inform you if they noticed any signs, especially if you ask them nicely. If they noticed something, ask them if they will include it in their inspection report. They may or may not do this, but, at the very least, they will talk to about what they saw.

Request Disclosures of Problems from the Seller

There are some states that require home sellers to disclose any information that they know about mold. If your state does not require such disclosure, this does not mean that you cannot ask the seller about current mold or potential mold growth in the home. For example, you could ask if there have ever been any plumbing pipes that have burst or if any of the home's windows have leaked – both of which could lead to the growth of mold in the past or in the future.

Add a Mold-Related Contingency to Your Real Estate Offer.

If you are truly interested in the home and don't really want to let go of it, you should consider making the home sale contingent on your ultimate satisfaction with the mold inspection results. If you are not satisfied the contingency will allow you to back out with no consequences. If you are specific enough with your contingency, you can bargain with the seller by asking them to fix the mold problem or reduce the asking price. If neither of those are options, you can always walk away.

The important thing here is that you never try to purchase a home without having it fully inspected first.

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