You may think that a home inspection is only needed when you’re buying a home. It’s a very important time to have a property inspected, but you also need this kind of investigation before beginning a home renovation in Toronto. Even a limited kitchen or bathroom renovation often reveals serious issues with other parts of the home, including the electrical system, plumbing, or foundation.
A thorough home inspection timed before your renovation projects will keep everything on track, helping you budget for and plan around any necessary repairs and updates from the start. This can prevent your project from rising in costs and extending the original timeline, which is why most renovation companies recommend it. Learn what your inspector might discover in your Toronto home so you aren’t shocked by the results of your next pre-construction inspection.
What is a Home Inspection and Why Does It Matter?
A home inspection is a thorough visual check of the entire structure. It’s completed by a trained professional who knows the warning signs of damage to major systems like the roof, foundation, electrical and plumbing, and more. Most home inspections in Toronto take place before a home sale, but they’re available at any other time, including before a renovation.
If an inspection brings up any concerns, they’re usually followed up on with targeted inspections that are more invasive. Removing sections of flooring or wall may seem excessive, but it’s often the only way to pinpoint what needs to be repaired. We’ll discover these issues anyway during your home or condo renovation, so finding them ahead of time only saves time and money by avoiding changes to the remodeling plans.
Most Common Home Inspection Issues
There are a few common issues found during home inspection, especially in the Toronto area. While many of these issues require repairs before you can move on to the renovation, it’s better to invest in a safe, modern home than to go on without any awareness of the risks. This is especially true if you’re preparing to sell your home since the buyer’s inspection will discover issues even if you don’t know about them.
Foundation and Structural Issues
Home additions are a great way to add an entire room for a growing family or extend essential spaces like kitchens and bathrooms. But are you sure your home’s foundation can handle the extra weight on it?
Toronto homes often develop foundation problems over the years because of the expansive clay soils found in many areas, extensive freeze-thaw cycles each winter, and heavy rainfall that can occur in the spring and early summer. Even if your home’s foundation was cleared as stable when you bought it, there’s a chance damage has occurred since then. A fresh inspection will also verify that your overall structure is in good shape with no sagging beams, uneven settling, or non-permitted modifications over the years. It’s an essential step before you invest in a major project like a total basement renovation.
Roofing Problems
Roof leaks, missing shingles, and a lack of ventilation are three of the most common home inspection issues involving the roof. You’re likely to notice major damage or sagging when you admire your home from the outside, but minor issues are harder to spot without experience and a thorough inspection from inside the attic.
Catching leaks and damage to skylights at an early stage will prevent rot from spreading throughout the rest of the structure. An intact roof is also required to maintain healthy indoor air quality for you and your family. Roof issues lead to mold and mildew that is hard to spot and treat, such as inside of wall cavities and above ceilings. A routine roof inspection can prevent all of this and more.
Plumbing Issues
In the Greater Toronto area, many homes still rely on lead supply pipes for the main municipal connection. Not only do they cause you to ingest lead, but they also flake up and clog over time, reducing the flow coming into your home. A quick inspection that involves water testing or locating the water mains will reveal if this is an issue for your home.
Even if your plumbing isn’t leaking or dealing with lead contamination issues, it just may not supply the pressure needed for your new appliances. Before undertaking a kitchen renovation in Toronto, have the plumbing inspected for leaks, sufficient supply, and water quality concerns.
Electrical System Deficiencies
Outdated electrical systems are discovered in many area homes, especially knob and tube wiring that is seen throughout Toronto in homes built before or in the 1950s. Not all outdated wiring immediately poses a hazard to your home, but missing insulation and undersized wiring is a safety risk.
Upgrading your electrical system allows you to add your favorite appliances and embrace modern kitchen design trends. Your home inspector can verify the load capacity of individual outlets, verify the gauge of wire supplying appliances and circuits, and check for signs of arcing or sparking that could lead to a fire.
HVAC and Heating Problems
Issues with heating and cooling aren’t really emergencies like foundation and structural issues, unless it’s the dead of winter. But an inefficient HVAC layout leads to rising costs and lower levels of comfort. That means it’s worth upgrading while you’re working on other renovations.
If you’re not sure what can be changed to improve your experience year-round, your home inspector can determine what kind of issues are affecting your furnace, air conditioner, and ducting. In homes with little to no existing central HVAC, the inspection can reveal areas where ducts or heat pump lines are easily added to give you the heating and cooling you want.
Insulation and Ventilation Issues
Your home inspector is all too likely to discover at least one spot in your home where insulation is lacking. You may have fiberglass or blow-in insulation that has shifted, collapsed, or gotten wet, all of which ruin the R-value of the material. Or perhaps there was no insulation installed in certain areas from the start.
Either way, installing new insulation as part of your renovation can provide a more comfortable and stable indoor environment. And you’ll likely save money on your energy costs as well. It’s important to choose an experienced home inspector to rule out the potential of hazardous insulation materials like asbestos as well. Ask for a ventilation and air exchange evaluation as well. This can include air quality monitor use, along with tests to see how your attic and return air vents are working.
Windows and Doors
Worn-out windows and doors won’t prevent you from renovating your home. Yet they do require attention as part of the project if they’re sticking, showing drafty gaps around the edges, or starting to show their age. Your inspector may recommend replacing individual units that are wasting your heating and cooling efforts, or they may discover that a sticking door actually indicates a more serious structural issue.
Even if your inspector passes all of your windows and doors, you may want to update them to give your interior design a refresh. When you want to keep the same windows but get a new look, you have options like resurfacing with new materials, painting, or changing the trim.
Home Inspection Major Issues vs Minor Issues
Roof, foundation, and electrical issues tend to cost the most to repair, making them home inspection major issues. Depending on the home, problems with insulation, ventilation, plumbing, HVAC systems, and windows/doors are all usually minor issues that are affordable to fix. Either way, even minor issues can lead to major repairs if they’re not discovered promptly and repaired by professionals.
SOSNA has the skills and expertise to help you address all of the most common home inspection problems in Toronto. Whether you’re ready for a renovation or have discovered issues that you were unaware of before the inspection, all it takes is one call to our team. Discuss your options for a home or kitchen reno in the Toronto and GTA area today.
