It’s summer in Western New York, and that means it’s a busy home buying season!  You might be actively looking to purchase a home for the first time here in the Buffalo, NY area, or maybe you’re at the beginning of the real estate journey and want to plan ahead. Either way, you’ve got lots of decisions to make when it comes to selecting a real estate agent, a real estate attorney, mortgage broker and insurance company.  But don’t forget about taking the time to research and choose the best home inspector for your needs.   The purpose behind writing this article was to provi ..read more

Hot tubs and saunas are great additions to back yards, patios and decks.  But they have special power requirements and not every home’s electrical system can support them.   The purpose of this article is to outline the electrical requirements for most types of hot tubs available on the market today.  It’s not intended to be an installation guide, but instead you may find it helpful when speaking with your electrician about wiring requirements for your new hot tub. First, let’s explain what exactly a hot tub is. What is a hot tub? A hot tub is a hot cauldron of water, big e ..read more

The housing market has become ridiculously competitive in much of the country, leading to buyers taking extreme steps to make their offers more attractive to sellers.  One of the ways that buyer’s agents are sometimes making offers more enticing is by removing the home inspection contingency.  Is this really a good idea?   There are huge risks to skipping the inspection contingency in most parts of the United States, but particularly in the Northeast and Western New York state.  What is the home inspection contingency, anyway? It’s the mechanism in the home purchase co ..read more

What causes ice dams, and can then be stopped? Ice dams are thick, evil build-ups of ice along a home’s roofline.  They can be problematic in some homes, and in others they’re nothing more than thick glaciers of ice that sit harmlessly until the spring warmth kicks in.   The problem is that ice dams can damage roofing materials and can leak water into a home’s walls and ceilings.  They can cause real monetary damage in some situations.   The purpose of this article is to inform you of what causes ice dams, if they can truly be prevented and how to get rid of them ..read more

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While inspecting a Village of Orchard Park house, we found an abandoned fuel oil tank. The tank was seemly unused for decades. The post Old Fuel Oil Tank in Orchard Park House appeared first on Alto Home Inspection, LLC ..read more

As the owner of a home inspection company that’s based in Western NY’s Southtowns, I’m often asked by home buyers, sellers or their real estate agents to inspect houses in East Aurora.  The purpose of this article is to share a few of the problems that Alto Home Inspection, LLC found during this inspection so that those shopping for homes in the Village of East Aurora can understand what a well-qualified home inspector looks for here in Western NY. The issues described here were found during the inspection of a historic home near Hamlin Park, in November of 2020.  This house was on t ..read more

Earlier this year we inspected a smaller home near Bayview Drive in Hamburg, NY.  Our home inspections are more detailed than many, and as usual we uncovered a number of issues.   The house inspected was a “flip” house, meaning that the owner bought the house with the intention of making upgrades that appeal to the masses, then selling for a profit.  In our experience, flip homes almost always have more problems than others.   Let’s take a look at three important problems that we identified with this home in Hamburg. Chimney Damage The exterior of this chimney rev ..read more

As a home inspector and and indoor air quality professional I’m interested in all things related to residential safety. This article will touch on several points related to carbon monoxide. Nothing here should be taken to be health advice. Consult with your doctor if you think you’ve been affected by carbon monoxide (or anything else, for that matter). What is carbon monoxide? Carbon monoxide is a gas made up of carbon and oxygen.  You can’t smell it or taste it.   It’s produced by the incomplete combustion of fuels that contain carbon, including natural gas, wood, gasoline, fue ..read more