Buying a home built before 1970? Get the electrical system checked.

Any good realtor should tell you to not accept the sellers home inspection report as 100% trustworthy but rather get your own inspection done on a home you're serious about buying. When it comes to the homes electrical system, inspectors will typically test lights, some outlets, look for GFCI safety outlets where they're required by code, inspect the electrical panels (but not necessarily look inside) and pop their head into the attic with a flashlight to see what wires and junction boxes are visible and their condition. This is a basic and quick electrical system check but it will not give you the full story. Inspectors won't open outlet boxes to inspect the condition or workmanship and the wiring connections nor will they open up junction boxes to see the condition of the wiring insulation or if the grounds are bonded (or if there is a ground wire at all) They usually won't look close enough to find if electrical work done over the years was performed by professionals or amateur, DIY homeowners doing shoddy and unsafe work. This can lead to headaches for you after you've moved in and all the outlets in the kitchen stop working. Or if you try to add a window air conditioner only to find out the breaker keeps tripping. Not knowing the condition of a 60, 70 or 80 year old home's electrical can be very risky in terms of cost to repair and bring up to acceptable standards as well as serious fire danger. If you are in negotiations to buy a pre-1975 home, call me to perform a through electrical inspection (beyond what any home inspector would do) and give you a detailed report on the cost to make repairs. This way you may be able to get the seller to lower the asking price, knowing you'll need potentially expensive electrical work done down the road (or ASAP...it all depends on the condition of the house) Call me to schedule a complete home electrical system inspection before you close on escrow!