A Closer Look at the 2021 Housing Inventory Shortage

If you are in the market to buy or sell a house, you have probably heard about the housing inventory shortage that is happening across the country. As a home inspector in the central Maryland and South-Central Pennsylvania regions, I literally see hundreds of homes and it allows me to see the trends in the Real Estate markets here. Many of my recent clients have described extreme experiences with the purchase of their new homes, with quite a few Buyers and their Agents having to have gone to literally dozens and dozens of showings and submitting multiple offers before getting…

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Home Improvement Projects with the Highest ROI

When people decide to sell their home, most do so with an understanding that they will need to do at least some renovating in order to make sure that their house is competitive in the real estate arena. Apart from the many components of the home that should be addressed in anticipation for fairing well on a home inspection, tackling projects that can increase the overall value of your home is also a popular thing to do and can help make your home stand out in the market. However, not all home improvement projects produce the same level of benefits,…

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Importance of Testing for Radon Before Buying a New Home

Radon Could be Lurking in any Home With the Environmental Protection Agency estimating that nearly 1 out of every 15 homes in the U.S. has elevated radon levels, you may have heard about radon testing for homes. If you have not, do not fret - we will explain in this article the basics of radon in residential homes and what you need to know about it. Reading this statistic might make you a little nervous about buying a home, but do not fear! Information is the best antidote for fear, which is part of why having a radon test done before…

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January Is National Radon Action Month

You may have heard of Radon on the news or from a friend or family member, or maybe you are familiar with it personally, or maybe you have never heard of it before now. What is Radon, you may ask? Radon is a radioactive gas that occurs naturally deep under the earth's surface and it, unfortunately, enters our homes and buildings where it can build up to harmful levels. By now I am sure that you have heard that smoking causes lung cancer, but did you know that Radon is the second-leading cause of lung cancer in the United States?…

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4 Potential Health Hazards in Your Home and How to Protect Yourself

Your home should be a safe and healthy refuge for the entire family. While you may be diligent about minimizing your exposure to household chemicals, there may be other substances causing health threats throughout your home. To protect yourself and your loved ones, beware of the following home health hazards that may be present in your home here in the Maryland/Pennsylvania area: 1. Radon What is radon? Radon - Radioactive Gas You cannot see, smell or taste Radon… but it may be a problem in your Maryland or Pennsylvania area home without you even knowing it!   Radon is a naturally occurring, radioactive…

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Fall Home Maintenance Tips

Here in the Central Maryland and South-Central Pennsylvania area, Autumn is in full swing now. The colors of the leaves are rapidly changing and many of the trees have already lost their foliage and are preparing for the forthcoming winter season. Temperatures have dropped dramatically here in the last week and are forecasted to drop further into the coming weeks. We have experienced several frosts already and we have even dipped below the freezing mark. Along with the gorgeous scenery Fall brings us, it also brings with it some crazy weather shifts and some strong winds, especially in November. Although…

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Make Your Home More Energy-Efficient!

As a home inspector in the Central Maryland and Pennsylvania region, I come across a lot of different homes and I see a lot of ways homes can improve energy efficiency. Inspecting everything from new construction homes to both original-condition and renovated older homes from multiple generations of home-building technologies gives us home inspectors a unique view into home energy efficiency (or lack thereof). We get to see construction and building and insulation materials that often span a hundred years or more worth of building science and technology! Here in the Central Maryland and Pennsylvania area, we are still in…

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Summer Cooling – What You Need to Know About R22

The dog days of summer are most certainly in full swing here in the Maryland and Pennsylvania areas, and right about now, we are grateful for our Air-Conditioning (A/C) systems. We rely on these systems to not only cool our homes during the heat of the summer season, but they also help to dehumidify the air inside our homes as an added benefit. Lately, we have been informing our home inspection clients when they have Air-Conditioning systems that use a particular and very common chemical as the refrigerant, often known as R22. R twenty-what, you ask? What the heck is…

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Homeowner Safety Tips for Summer Travel

It is here - SUMMER officially begins in just a few short days and we are starting to feel the heat and humidity here in the Westminster area and surrounding Maryland and Pennsylvania towns!  Schools are finishing up their final days of the year and the kids (and Teachers!) are excited for a hard-earned Summer break. With Summer breaks comes the Vacation season, and with some preparation and prevention, we can truly rest easy as we travel away from Home Sweet Home on our adventures. Even us Home Inspectors tend to take some time off during the summer months to…

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Home Inspection FAQ for Home Buyers & Sellers

What is a home inspection?  We hear this question A LOT! Home Inspections can vary from State to State depending on whether a State regulates Home Inspections or not, but in general, most home inspections have evolved to follow a fairly standard definition. Like most States, a Maryland home inspection is a visual examination of the home's major structure, systems and components that are both visible and safely accessible.  The inspector should substantially adhere to a Standards of Practice that outlines what will be covered during a general home inspection, as well as what is excluded. Some inspectors may strictly…

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