Inspection Of Fences, Lawn And Landscaping
Your home inspections should also include the inspection of the fences surrounding the property, the lawn, and the overall landscaping. Fences are put up around houses for a variety of reasons, such as security considerations, reduction of noise, defining the home’s boundary, or as a stylish addition to the home’s landscape. A verdant lawn on any property enhances its value and is always a pleasing sight. A great landscaping adds to the aesthetics of the home.
The home’s exterior is always affected by the weather. The fences could be chipped and have their paint peeled off due to continuous exposure to the sun, the rain, and the thunderstorms. The home inspection you intend to carry out should include checking to see if the fence posts have shifted in the ground, causing them to lean and sag. Are all the posts upright, or have some of them toppled?
Look to see whether the lawn is well maintained or not. A well-maintained lawn will not have any weeds sprouting out of the ground. Look to see whether the overall effect of the landscaping goes well with the exterior of the home. Do you envisage any re-landscaping to be done? Check to see whether the landscaping conforms with the regulations of the community. There may be laws governing the height of trees, shrubs and other foliage.
Check to see the type of sprinkler systems that have been installed for the lawn and the landscaping. Automatic and ‘smart’ sprinklers help to control watering of your lawns. Check to see the condition of the water sprinkler system.
If the home you are considering buying has a swimming pool, check to see whether it is properly fenced. This is highly important to prevent accidents of any kind. Your inspector needs to check the condition of this fence too. Other than to look at the condition of the fence, vis-à-vis chipping and peeling of paint, check to see if there is a gate in good condition, and that the gate has a functional lock. This to prevent accidents and use of the pool by unsupervised children.
Check to see that all the posts of this fence are also in place and not rotten. If the fence around the swimming pool and the general fencing around the property are metallic fences, check to ensure that they are not rusted due to exposure to the vagaries of the weather. Check to see whether the rusting can be taken care of by scraping and a paint job, or more drastic measure are required.
· If the condition of the fences around the home are in a run down condition;
· If the landscaping is not up to the mark, or is contravening the local laws, and may need to be re-planned;
· If the lawn is totally unkempt, and may require a major job to bring it to its full beauty;
. . . you can negotiate to bring the cost down by the amount estimated to bring the fences, the lawn and the landscaping up to standard.
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