On the outside, a home may look like it's well built - everything is in tact, the paint is vibrant and even the landscaping is immaculate. However, if you get closer, the home may tell a very different story - a story of shoddy construction, a greedy contractor, or maybe even the get-rich-quick scheme of a bunch of stockholders with a claim in a new housing development. There are a number of factors that you should look for when inspecting a home for its quality. The last thing you want is to invest in a home and then realize six months later that you just bought a fixer upper without even realizing it. Here are five important factors in judging a home's construction quality.
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1. Materials. It may be hard to know exactly what materials were used for a certain home's construction, but if you inspect the walls, the kitchen and bathroom features -along with other visual accouterments - you will certainly be able to get a hint. For instance, what is the kitchen counter made out of? If it is some kind of faux granite, you can bet that the rest of the house was built with the same cheap construction ethic.
2. Sound quality. When you are in a home that was built with quality materials - and care - you will know right away by the way sound carries. For instance, if you can clearly hear traffic and people speaking outside, there is a good chance that the home has poor insulation and the windows are too thin. Not only is this a sign that a home was built with subpar materials, but also that a home will be inefficient and a giant energy waster. A home that was built well will be insulated, quiet and you won't be able to clearly hear traffic and outdoor sounds.
3. Details. High quality homes are often built with attention to detail. Sometimes these details include ornate tiling in the bathroom, or perhaps it is a nice marquetry in the wood floors. You may also notice a trim that is beautifully added as well. However, if you don't notice these details, you may be able to assume that the contractor didn't care about adding them, which means that the contractor may have been trying to cut corners, thus compromising the quality of the entire construction.
4. Age. This is another important factor to consider when trying determining whether or not a home has quality construction or is just a dud. Usually, older homes were built with stronger materials - materials that are too expensive and burdensome to use in today's construction methods - so you'll often get a higher quality home. Newer homes can be a little shoddier - mainly because of the materials used.
5. Appliances. You can also get a good idea of a home's quality by inspecting the appliances used in the home. For instance, you should run the air conditioner and see if you need to replace the whole thing. In some cases, air conditioning refrigerant may be needed, but if it seems like the air conditioner is a cheap brand, you can probably make the educated guess that the home was cheaply built as well.