Chances are that you have come across this article and you are looking to buy a home or are in the process of buying a home and you are looking to learn more about home inspections and home appraisals. In this article, we will cover what home inspections and appraisals are, why they are important, and the differences between the two. 

It is important to note that when you are buying a home, appraisals and home inspections are key parts of the home buying process and the larger transaction process. Both appraisals and home inspections fit into the puzzle that makes up buying a home. It is recommended that before you officially close on your home, you have your home inspected by a professional home inspector and appraised by a professional real estate appraiser.

In fact, there are certain contingency clauses in real estate contracts that will allow for a home to appraised by a professional real estate appraiser and inspected by a professional home inspector before you officially close on the sale. The appraisal contingency and home inspection contingency are two incredibly common contingencies in real estate contracts.

Home Appraisals and Home Inspections as Common Contingencies in Real Estate Contracts

In a real estate contract, a contingency clause specifies a condition that needs to be met or an action that needs to happen in order for a real estate contract to become legally binding. In this situation, a contingency clause becomes part of a legally binding sales contract for a real estate transaction when both parties, the buyer and the seller, agreeing to the terms of the contract, sign the contract.

Therefore, if you are signing a real estate contract, whether you are selling or buying property, it is imperative that you understand what a contingency clause is, how a contingency clause might affect you as the seller or the buyer, and why it is important. In other words, a contingency clause in a real estate contract will provide the parties involved, with the right to back out of this transaction under specific circumstances that will be outlined in the contract. The circumstances under which you (as the buyer or seller) will be able to back out of this transaction are something that you and the other party, the buyer(s) or the seller(s) will negotiate.

The Home Inspection or Due Diligence Contingency Clause

One common contingency clause in real estate contracts is the home inspection or due diligence clause. This contingency clause provides the buyer with the right to bring in a professional home inspector to inspect the home within a certain time period that will be specified within the contract. This time period could be five to seven days or longer. 

A home inspection or due diligence contingency clause is meant to protect the buyer if they decide to back out of the transaction based on the home inspector’s report or if a buyer wanted to negotiate with the seller about repairs for deficiencies outlined in the home inspector’s report, to see if the seller will lower the previously agreed-upon sale price to compensate for the cost of repairing defects in the home.

If you have included a cost-of-repair contingency clause in your real estate transaction contract in addition to the home inspection or due diligence contingency clause, this clause will specify the amount of money that will be required to perform necessary repairs. For example, if a home inspector in their report notes that repairs for the home will cost more than a certain dollar amount, the buyer would be allowed to cancel their contract to buy this home. Usually, the cost-of-repair contingency is based on a certain percentage of a home’s sale price, such as 1% to 2% of the home’s sale price.

Depending on how the terms of your home inspection or due diligence contingency clause are written, as the buyer you will have four options for how to proceed when you receive the home inspector’s report:

• You can acknowledge your approval of the home inspector’s report and this real estate transaction will move forward normally assuming nothing else comes up that stops this transaction from moving forward.
• You can acknowledge your disapproval of the home inspector’s report and what the home inspector uncovered, and your earnest money would be returned to you
• You can request for the seller to provide you with additional time to have additional professionals come and perform additional inspections if the first home inspector uncovered something that needs to be further inspected.
• You can submit a request to the seller for them to perform repairs or a concession. A concession is a discount or a benefit a seller might offer a buyer to help cover closing costs, the cost of new appliances, and/or the cost of making repairs for defects in the home that were uncovered by a home inspector. If the seller refuses to honour a buyer’s repair request(s), the buyer would then be able to back out of the transaction and have the earnest money they put down for a deposit returned to them.

Simply put, if your home inspector uncovers something that has soured you to the idea of living in your potential new home, depending on how your offer is written, if certain contingencies are included in your offer, you may be able to back out of the transaction and have the earnest money you put up for a deposit to demonstrate your intention to buy the home returned to you.

You might consider having your home inspected before you bring in a professional real estate appraiser to appraise your home. After receiving the home inspector’s and appraiser’s reports, you would be more comfortable closing on your home. Or you could always have your home professionally appraised and then bring in a home inspector to professionally inspect the home before you close on the home.

The Appraisal Contingency Clause in Real Estate Contracts

The appraisal contingency clause in real estate contracts is meant to protect the buyer because it helps to ensure that a property’s fair market value corresponds to a minimum, a specified amount of money. If a professional appraiser performs an appraisal and, in their report, they note that the property’s fair market value does not correspond with at least the minimum specified amount, the buyer can back out of the transaction.

Depending on how your contract is written, frequently the buyer will receive a refund for the earnest money they put up as a deposit to demonstrate to the seller that they are serious about buying the seller’s home.

However, an appraisal contingency might include language permitting the buyer to proceed with the transaction even if the property’s appraised value is below the specified amount, this usually happens within a certain amount of days after a buyer receives the appraiser’s report with their appraised value for the home.

The contract usually will specify a release date, a date on or before which the buyer will need to notify the seller if there are any issues with the appraisal. If there are no problems with this contingency, the buyer will be deemed satisfied with this contingency and the buyer will not be allowed to back out of this transaction.

Home Inspections

What is a home inspection?

A general home inspection is the home inspection you would have done before you close on your new home, you would have this done either before or after having your home professionally appraised.

The American Society of Home Inspectors defines a general home inspection as, “an objective visual examination of the physical structure and systems of a house, from the roof to the foundation.” To learn more about why home inspections are important you can read our article detailing the importance of home inspections [The Importance of Doing a Home Inspection].

When would you have a home inspection done?

You would usually have your home inspected before you officially sign the documents to close on the sale of your home, either before or after your appraisal. However, in some cases it might make sense to have your home inspected before you list your home for sale so you can learn about any major defects with your home before putting on the market and will have the opportunity to fix them before listing your home for sale or can decide to let the buyers handle these repairs.

If you have your home inspected before you list it for sale you will be better prepared to negotiate with potential buyers when they receive a home inspector’s report since you will have already gained some insight into what defects your home has.

Why are home inspections important?

While your home might appear to be in great shape, you should always have a home inspection because no home is perfect. Therefore, chances are that you will find that your home has defects or things that need to be repaired.

Having your home inspected before you close on your home and move in because a home inspection is meant to help learn about potentially previously unknown issues. Having a home inspection done is meant to help you avoid encountering any nasty surprises once you have moved in that could end up costing you a lot of money.

A great home inspector can help you to learn more about your home and teach you how to maintain your home if you are a first time home buyer. You are better spending the money now to hire an experienced, professional home inspector to come to inspect your home, so you will learn about any deficiencies your potential new home might have so you can ideally avoid having to spend thousands of dollars later for repairing things a home inspector would have uncovered.

Additionally, if the home inspector’s report indicates the presence of major deficiencies in your home, it is recommended that you negotiate with the seller to see if they will fix these deficiencies or provide you with a discount that will be equal to the cost of fixing these deficiencies before closing on your home and moving in.

Whether you are buying a newly built home or a home that is 300 years old or anywhere in between, you should always have a professional home inspector come and perform a general home inspection before closing on your home. We cannot emphasize enough the importance of home inspections and how important they are as a preventative measure and tool to help you learn about your potential new home.

You might not be able to negotiate with the sellers to have them discount your home’s sale price to cover the cost of having these repairs done. However, depending on the contingency clauses in your contract, you might be able to back out of a deal and have your deposit returned if you learn that you might be potentially buying a money pit. To learn more about why home inspections are important and why you should always have your home inspected, you can read our article which provides an overview of what home inspections are and why they are important [The Importance of Doing a Home Inspection].

Additionally, to learn more about what home inspectors are looking for when they are performing home inspections, you can read our article which provides a home inspection checklist and explanation of what home inspectors are looking for when they are inspecting homes [Inspection Checklist when buying a home in Toronto].

What is included in your standard, general home inspection?

A general home inspector will be looking at a home’s exterior condition, it’s structural integrity, whether or not the appliances work, and whether or not the Heating, Ventilation and Air Conditioning (HVAC) systems work and what condition they are in since they will be tested depending on the time of year and temperature. 

A general home inspector will also be checking the interior plumbing, the home’s electrical systems, the roof, attic and visible insulation, ceilings, walls, floors, windows, and doors, the foundation, basement, crawl spaces, interior and exterior drainage, structural, and safety components. And a general home inspector’s report should include a home inspector’s observations for all of these things.

A general home inspector will be looking at the following areas when they are performing an inspection:

Exterior Inspection (a home inspector will be looking at these areas)

• Exterior Walls
• Foundation
• Grading
• Garage or carport (if applicable)
• Roof, attic, and chimney(s) (if applicable)
• Exterior water drainage and water disbursement
• Waste systems as applicable (an inspector will be looking at septic systems if your home is located in a rural area or if you have an older home)
• Porches, decks, and patios
• Yard/Garden (as applicable)
• Wall Coverings

Interior Inspection (a home inspector will be looking at these areas)

• Plumbing
• Electrical system
• Heating, Ventilation, and Air Conditioning systems (HVAC)
• Kitchen appliances
• Fire safety
• Bathrooms
• Lead paint
• Interior water drainage and water disbursement
• Flooring quality
• Noxious gases
• Windows and doors
• Asbestos
• Basements and crawl spaces
• Ceilings

To see a more detailed home inspector’s checklist, which details exactly what a home inspector is looking for when they are doing home inspections and to learn more about home inspections you can read our article, which provides an overview and in-depth checklist of what home inspectors are looking for when they are performing home inspections Inspection Checklist when buying a home in Toronto.

It is important to remember that the majority of general home inspectors will not be checking for things such as for asbestos, radon, methane, radiation, wood-destroying organisms, mould, mildew and fungi, pests, rodents, or lead paint. 

Also, if you are looking to learn more about your roof and the condition it is in or if you are looking to obtain a roof certification from a roofing company or a guarantee about the condition the roof is in, this will be something separate from your standard, general home inspection. Therefore, you will be paying more to have a roof inspection done to learn more about the condition your roof is in. 

Furthermore, it is important to note that most general home inspectors will not inspect sewer systems, septic systems, or waste systems. In other words, if you are looking to have someone do a plumbing system, sewage, and/or septic system inspection at your home you will need to hire a separate professional to do this.

For a more in-depth analysis of general home inspections in Toronto, and in-depth examination of what general home inspectors will be looking for when they are performing a general home inspection, you can check out our article, Home inspection checklist when you are buying a home in Toronto [Inspection Checklist when buying a home in Toronto].

To learn more about the different types of home inspections and when you might have them done, you can check out our article that describes and explains the different types of home inspections and when you might need to have them done [Different Types of Home Inspections].

What should you be looking for in a home inspector when you are hiring a home inspector?

If you are looking to hire a home inspector, ideally, you would be looking to hire a certified or licensed home inspector in the region, state(s), and/or province(s) they are working in if such certification or license is available. However, the only provinces in Canada requiring home inspectors to be certified are British Columbia and Alberta. Therefore, depending on where you are located there might not be mandatory certification standards for home inspectors.

If no such certification is available for home inspectors wherever you are located, you should be on the lookout for a home inspector who is a member of the local or national home inspector’s trade association. Do not despair because there are some home inspectors who have elected to be certified by the Canadian Association of Housing and Property Inspectors (CAPHI). So, if you are in Ontario, you should be looking for a home inspector that at the minimum has a certification from the Canadian Association of Housing and Property Inspectors.

How much can you expect to pay for a general home inspection in Ontario?

A home inspection should take at least three hours and the cost of a general home inspection in Ontario might range from anywhere from $350 to $600 or more. The amount you will end up paying to have a general home inspector perform a general home inspection will depend on a few factors.

For example, the type of home (apartment, condo, semi-detached house, townhouse, single-family home), where the home is located, the home’s size (the larger a home is, the more you can expect to pay to have it inspected), the home’s age (the older the home is, the more it will cost to inspect.

Additionally, depending on what your general home inspection uncovers, you might end up paying, even more, to have additional home inspections performed and to bring in additional specialists to examine different areas of your home.

Home Appraisals

What is an appraisal?

A home or property appraisal consists of an independent, third-party, unbiased professional’s real estate appraiser’s assessment of a home and property’s fair market value. A real estate appraiser’s report and assessment of a home and property’s fair market value will be based on a variety of factors including the size and age of a home, the condition a home is in, the condition a property is in, the home’s features and amenities, the home or property’s previous sale price, the comparable final sale prices for other comparable homes in the area that have recently sold, and more. 

It is important to note that a home’s appraised fair market value is usually different from a home’s sale price. The appraised fair market value for a home can influence different things such as real estate transactions, your ability to get a mortgage to buy said home, how much you can expect to pay for a home, and your ability to refinance your mortgage. A real estate appraiser is usually a licensed professional that has completed specialized training and has experience with determining the fair market value for a property. 

A professional property or real estate appraiser has an important job since they can help home buyers find out before they buy a home whether or not they are paying the fair market value for the home they wish to purchase. A professional appraiser’s opinion also helps lenders to decide how much money they are willing to provide their customers who are taking out mortgages to buy homes. A home appraiser’s report also has the potential to influence whether or not if you will be able to get a mortgage to refinance your home. 

Lenders put a lot of stock in the opinion of an appraiser because of their experience, expertise, knowledge, and training in areas related to property valuation and calculating a property’s market value. This means that when you are working with an appraiser, you will want to find one who is licensed to do appraisals in your area and who has an in-depth understanding of your area and neighbourhood, the local economy and the real estate market wherever you are located.

With real estate transactions, appraisals are meant to help ensure that the buyer is paying a fair price for a home and the lender is not giving them too much money to buy a given home or property. Buyers in most real estate transactions who are working with lenders will need a home appraisal done before proceeding with a sale. Even all-cash buyers will probably want a home and/or a property appraisal done to ensure that they are paying the fair market value for a home and are not overpaying for a home.

What to expect from a home appraisal?

The visit where a professional real estate appraiser is conducting their appraiser should last anywhere from fifteen to twenty minutes to a few hours. You might be able to expect to receive a report from the appraiser anywhere from a few days and up to two weeks after they have visited the property and made notes on what they saw while visiting your home. 

What is an appraiser looking for?

An appraiser will be looking at and assessing the value of your home and property, without your personal effects. Appraisers do not care about your custom furniture or your other belongings that you might be taking with you or have no impact on a home’s value. 

An appraiser will be taking into consideration different things such as the quality and workmanship that built your home and your home’s “bones”, and they will be making observations about what condition your home is in for a home’s interior and exterior. 

Other factors they will be taking into consideration is a home’s size, how many rooms a home has, how an updated home is, how functional a home’s floor plan is, any amenities a home has, and the size of the lot the home is on. They are also looking at the sale prices for comparable homes in the neighbourhood and the surrounding area. They will be doing a complete visual inspection of the home’s exterior and interior, making any notes of anything that could potentially decrease a property’s value such as anything that needs to be repaired.

When considering a home’s fair market value, a home’s fair market value will be influenced by the recent sales of similar properties and current market trends, i.e. whether or not homes in the surrounding area being sold for more than asking price, etc. 

Appraisers will be combining this information and observations with information on comparable sale prices and property values in the area. Here is a link to a common residential appraisal report that is used in the United States for single-family homes that can help you to get an idea of what an appraisal report might look like. 

An appraiser’s report usually will include a street map that shows the property being appraised and comparable sales used to calculate the home’s value, as well as a sketch of the building’s exterior, a note explaining how they calculated the property’s size in square feet or square meters. An appraiser’s report might include photographs of the front, back, and street scene in front of a home, the front exterior of a home and photos of the comparable properties used. An appraiser’s report will also include any other relevant information. 

Relevant information an appraiser might have used when crafting their report might include market sales data for the area where a home is located, public land records, and public sales records that they could use to determine a property’s fair market value. Below is the process an appraiser will follow when they visit your home and are doing the appraisal.

What an appraiser is looking for a home’s exterior

A good appraiser will make sure to measure and verify the size of a lot. They will also make note of a home’s curb appeal and whether or not everything for a home’s exterior is in good condition and in good working order. They will be looking at the condition of a home’s exterior, how the landscaping looks, whether or not the paint is peeling, the quality of the siding and the condition of your home’s foundation.

They will also be taking into account the condition of the paint, the quality of the paint that was used and the foundation for anything outside. They are looking at whether or not the home has many amenities such as a yard, garden, swimming pool, sprinkler system, any landscaping, a patio, etc.

What an appraiser is looking for a home’s interior 

When a real estate appraiser is doing an interior inspection of a home, they will be going room-by-room assessing and making notes on their observations. They will be looking at the material, quality, and condition of all fixtures used in a home. They will also be making notes about the appliances, plumbing, flooring, and anything else that might be left behind when the seller, owner, or current occupant moves out, that includes is not limited to:

• Plumbing fixtures (toilets, showers, tubs, faucets, etc.)
• Light fixtures
• Quality of the interior paint
• Flooring
• Appliances
• Windows/Doors
• Furnace
• Air Conditioning Unit(s)
• Heating and Air Conditioning (HVAC)
• Cabinetry
• Countertops
• Electrical system
• Whether or not the basement is finished
• Fireplaces if applicable
• Security system

When would you have your home appraised?

There are three instances when you will probably work with a professional real estate appraiser. You will probably work with a home appraiser whenever you are selling or buying a home, or if you are looking to refinance your existing mortgage. You will work with a professional appraiser who works for an insurance company, who will be appraising the value of your home and the value of all of the contents inside of your home for insurance purposes when you are getting a new homeowner’s insurance policy.

Why are home appraisals important?

Professional real estate appraisers play an important role in real estate transactions and dealings with lenders, banks and financial institutions. While insurance appraisers play an important role in dealings with insurance companies because they work with homeowners and insurers to help create policies that will ensure homeowners’ belongings and homes will be sufficiently protected in case of damage.

A professional real estate appraiser can work with a seller to help them to sell their home by helping them determine what an appropriate price would be when they are listing their home on the market for sale. Real estate appraisers also help to ensure that buyers are paying the correct and fair price for a home instead of a price that is much greater than a home’s actual fair market value. Additionally, lenders in part rely on the opinion of real estate appraisers to decide whether or not a person would be a good candidate to have their mortgage refinanced.

Why are home appraisals important for real estate transactions?

If you are looking to buy a home, it is recommended that you include contingency clauses in your contract for home inspection/due diligence, cost-of-repair contingency, and an appraisal. If you have these contingency clauses included in your contract that if your home inspector uncovers some nasty surprises, you might be able to back out of the transaction or have the seller cover some of the cost of repairing these deficiencies.

Or if the appraisal comes out to be much lower than the previously agreed-upon sale price, you might be able to back out of this transaction. This appraisal is designed to help ensure that sellers know they are getting a fair price for their home and for buyers to know that they are paying a fair price for their home.

Why are home appraisals important for lenders?

Lenders use the report from an appraiser to help ensure that their customers are not over-borrowing when they are purchasing a home and qualifying for a mortgage or refinancing an existing mortgage. Lenders use appraisals to help them to determine how much money they should be lending when giving mortgages and loans because the home or property will serve as collateral for a mortgage or a loan.

Given that the home will be used as collateral for a mortgage if a borrower defaults on their mortgage and ends up going into foreclosure, the bank or financial institution giving out this loan wants to ensure that they will be able to sell the home as a way to recoup the money they lent the borrower to buy the home and recoup their losses. 

In this scenario, we can think of an appraisal as a tool that lenders use to help protect themselves against over-lending and needing to recoup additional losses if a homeowner’s home goes into foreclosure. An appraisal is helpful for lenders because it can help them to gauge approximately how much a property is worth and help them decide how much money they should be lending out to borrowers.

An appraisal is meant to help banks mitigate some of the risks that are a part of lending and mortgages by helping to ensure that they are not loaning more money than a home is actually worth.

Why are home appraisals important for insurance purposes?

Home appraisals are important for insurance purposes because they can help you to work with your insurance company to create a policy that is best suited for you and your needs. An insurance appraisal is not meant to determine your home’s fair market value.

An insurance appraisal is intended to help your insurance company create a fair premium schedule that you can pay for a policy that will be designed to cover your home and all of your belongings in the event they are damaged, and they need to be replaced. 

How much will a home appraisal cost in Ontario?

If you are having your home appraised in Ontario, you can expect to pay anywhere from $375 to $750 or more to have a real estate appraiser come and perform an appraisal of your home and property. How much your appraisal will end up costing you will depend on a variety of factors such as the size and type of home, where your home is located geographically, and whether or not you have a regular or luxury home. 

The size of your home and the type of home (apartment, condo, semi-detached house, townhouse, single-family home, etc.) because larger homes and homes with multiple units usually will be more expensive to appraise than a single unit or smaller homes. Additionally, your geographic location will help determine how much you pay. While if you have a home that is considered to be more expensive or a luxury home, be prepared to pay more for an appraisal. [Differences Between a Home Appraisal and a Current Market Assessment in Ontario] 

How to find a professional real estate appraiser to appraise your home

Chances are that if you are working with a lender or insurance company that they will be able to recommend an appraiser they prefer working with and trust to perform your appraisal. However, if you still are not sure where to look to find a professional or need to find an appraiser by yourself there are some things you should keep in mind.

First, you should hire a professional real estate appraiser who is licensed or certified in your area, who ideally is a member of a professional association of home appraisers and regularly participates in professional development for real estate appraisers. If you have any doubts or concerns, you can ask to see their license or certification documents before hiring them.

You can also use search engines like Google or websites like Angie’sList.com, to find an appraiser in your area. The following are a few suggestions for professional associations of appraisers, which have online directories for real estate appraisal professionals so you can find professionals in your area.

The Appraisal Institute

The Appraisal Institute is a global professional association of real estate appraisers based in the United States. The Appraisal Institute has almost 18,000 professional members working in nearly 50 countries around the world. They aim to advance professionalism, ethics, global standards, methodologies, and practices with professional development for people working in property economics worldwide.

Home Appraisal Institute of Canada (AIC)

The Home Appraisal Institute of Canada (AIC) purports to be Canada’s leading association for property valuation, with more than 5,400 members working across Canada and the globe. For the past 80 years, the AIC has worked with its 10 affiliated provincial associations in Canada to grant the Accredited Appraiser Canadian Institute (AACI™) and Canadian Residential Appraiser (CRA™) designations. Here is a link to their Ontario page.

Canadian National Institute of Real Estate Appraisers (CNAREA)

The Canadian National Association of Real Estate Appraisers is a national, non-profit, independent, professional association that licenses, certifies, and regulates the real estate and property appraisers working in Canada. You can use their directory of affiliated appraisers to find a professional working in your area.

The Key Differences Between Home Inspections and Home Appraisals

Key Points for Home Inspections

When you would have your home inspected, things to consider with home inspections, and the purpose of a home inspection

• You will usually you have a home inspection before usually closing on a home
• A home inspection is meant to help you learn about the condition that your home is in and any major defects your home might have before you close on your home
• You might have your home inspected before you list your home for sale to learn about any major issues, so you will be better prepared when it comes time to negotiate with potential buyers
• Home inspections are not meant to uncover everything, meant to help you ensure that you are buying a safe home without major structural issues, safety issues, health hazards, etc.
• When you (the buyer) are submitting repair requests to the seller after receiving your home inspector’s report, it is important to remember that these repair requests are not meant to repair every single defect that a home inspector encountered. 
• As a buyer, you should be judicious when you are making repair requests after receiving a home inspector’s report and be deliberate with what you are asking for the seller to repair, or asking for the seller give you a discount to repair the major defects

Who performs home inspections?

Ideally, a licensed or certified professional home inspector will be performing a home inspection

What is a home inspector tasked with doing?

A home inspector is tasked with providing an objective visual examination and their observations on a home’s physical structures and systems, from the roof of a home down to a home’s foundation.

Key Points for Home Appraisals

When you might have an appraisal done and the purpose of an appraisal

There are three instances when you might have your home appraised.

• You might have your home appraised for a real estate transaction if you are looking to refinance your mortgage and/or for insurance purposes
• Appraisals are usually for a real estate transaction or for lenders when you are trying to qualify for a mortgage. In this scenario, an appraisal is meant to help with determining a home’s fair market value.
• If you are having your home appraised before closing on the home, an appraisal is meant to help you from overpaying when buying a home and to ensure that if you are receiving the financing that you are not overborrowing
• An appraisal for insurance purposes is important because it can help ensure that you are getting the coverage you need to ensure your home and all of the contents inside your home.

Who performs appraisals?

Appraisals are performed for professional real estate appraisers or by professional insurance appraisers depending on who you are having the appraisal done for

What is an appraiser tasked with doing when they are performing an appraisal?

A real estate appraiser is tasked with looking at and assessing the value of a property, a home and its fair market value without the occupant’s personal effects. Their assessment of a home’s value is in part based on: the size of the home, the quality and workmanship that built a home a home’s “bones,” the condition the home’s interior and exterior are in, how many rooms a home has, how functional a home is, any amenities, and the size of the lot the home is on. They will also be looking at the sale prices for recent sales of comparable homes in the neighbourhood and area, and current market trends.

Conclusion

Hopefully, after reading this article, you will have gained greater insight into the importance of home inspections and appraisals. You should now clearly understand in what instances you can expect to have your home appraised and in what instances you can expect to hire a home inspector, have a greater idea of how much you might be able to expect to pay to have your home inspected in Ontario and how much you can expect to pay to have your home inspected in Ontario. And you will now understand the key differences between home inspections and appraisals.