Home inspectors don't have to check appliances in Indiana. The state's rule for home inspections says an inspector is not required to inspect the household appliances, so the one coming Friday to the house you're buying in Greenwood may never open the oven.
So a clean report doesn't prove the dishwasher runs. Maybe nobody tried it. You can test most of them yourself before you close, and it's better to find a dead oven now than the week after you move in.
Find your situation:
- Fridge, range, dishwasher, washer or dryer: the rule doesn't make the inspector check any of them.
- Washer hookups: left out by name. The inspector isn't required to look at them.
- Central vacuum: not required.
- Furnace, air conditioner and water heater: these are on the inspector's list, if they're installed.
- Carbon monoxide, radon and mold: the report has to say it doesn't cover them.
- Your inspector offers to test the appliances: that's allowed. The rule lets an inspector add more.
- A brand-new house: see what a builder's warranty covers on appliances.
Are appliances checked during a home inspection?
Only if your inspector chooses to. It's easy to miss until the report comes back with no word on the oven. 878 IAC 1-2-1 is the state rule that sets the least a licensed Indiana home inspector has to do. We read it on Cornell's law site.
Its part on the inside of the house has two lists. The first is what an inspector shall inspect: the walls, floors and stairs, the counters, and a sample of the cabinets, doors and windows. The second is what an inspector is not required to inspect, and that's where the household appliances sit.
Read the exact wording
"(2) Licensees are not required to inspect: (A) the paint, wallpaper, and other finish treatments; (B) the carpeting; (C) the window treatments; (D) the central vacuum systems; (E) the household appliances; or (F) recreational facilities."
It goes further than that. The rule never names a range, a dishwasher, a fridge, a washer or a dryer as something that must be checked. The closest things on the must-do list are what the rule calls the mechanical ventilation systems, along with the installed heating, cooling and water heating gear.
Can an inspector check them anyway?
Yes. The rule is a floor, not a ceiling. It says its lists aren't meant to stop an inspector from adding other services or parts of the house.
Read the exact wording
"(2) These minimum standards of competent performance are not intended to limit licensees from: (A) including other inspection services, systems, or components in addition to those required by these minimum standards of competent performance;"
So ask first. Which appliances will you run, and will the results be in the report? Get the answer in writing.
What is typically not checked during a home inspection?
Appliances, central vacuums, finishes and washer hookups, by Indiana's rule. Here's what Indiana's rule says an inspector is not required to inspect inside the house:
- Finishes: the paint, the wallpaper and the carpet.
- Window treatments: blinds, shades and the like.
- Central vacuum systems.
- Household appliances.
- Recreational facilities.
- Washer hookups: the plumbing part of the rule leaves out the clothes washing machine connections.
That isn't the whole list. The rule runs long. It also adds a catch-all, which says an inspector doesn't have to do anything the rule doesn't spell out, unless another law requires it.
Read the exact wording
"(1) Licensees are not required to perform any action or make any determination unless specifically stated in these minimum standards of competent performance, except as may be required by lawful authority."
Hazards the report leaves out
State law adds one more gap. Under Indiana Code 25-20.2-2-7, the report has to carry a line that says it doesn't deal with hazards in the home's air and materials. The law's list has radon, mold, lead-based paint, asbestos and carbon monoxide on it, along with pests and a few more.
Gas appliances are why carbon monoxide matters here, and the inspection report won't tell you about it. Our guide on heating a house with a gas oven covers carbon monoxide.
Read the exact wording
"(5) A statement that the report does not address environmental hazards, including: (A) lead-based paint; (B) radon; (C) asbestos; (D) cockroaches; (E) rodents; (F) pesticides; (G) treated lumber; (H) mold; (I) mercury; (J) carbon monoxide; or (K) other similar environmental hazards."
How can you check the appliances yourself before closing?
Start with the seller's paperwork. Then try each machine, one at a time, with the seller's okay and your agent in the loop.
Read the seller's disclosure form first
On the revision we read (R8 / 7-25), Indiana's seller disclosure form, State Form 46234, has a block for appliances. It lists the dishwasher, range, oven, fridge, clothes washer, clothes dryer, microwave, hood, disposal and more. Each one gets a mark in one of four columns: "Not Applicable / Rented", "Defective", "Not Defective" or "Unknown".
Look for two marks. "Unknown" is the box for a seller who truly doesn't know. "Not Applicable / Rented" is the box for a thing the house doesn't have, or one that's rented.
The state has adopted a newer revision since. We haven't been able to read it, so go by the boxes on the copy you're given.
Don't lean on the form alone, though. Indiana Code 32-21-5-9 says it isn't a warranty. It can't stand in for an inspection, either. Our guide on whether a seller has to disclose a broken appliance covers the form in full.
Read the exact wording
"A disclosure form is not a warranty by the owner or the owner's agent, if any, and the disclosure form may not be used as a substitute for any inspections or warranties that the prospective buyer or owner may later obtain."
Then try each one
Ask your agent when you can get into the house, and whether your purchase agreement gives you a walk-through before closing. First find out which machines are part of the deal, because a plug-in fridge, washer or dryer may not stay with the house unless the agreement names it. Bring a notepad.
One safety note first. If you smell gas at the range, stop. Get everyone out of the house without switching anything on or off, and call the gas company once you're outside. The full steps are in what to do if you smell gas near your stove.
- Fridge: open both doors. The fridge side should feel cold and the freezer should hold hard ice.
- Range: turn on each burner, one at a time. Then set the oven to bake and wait to feel real heat.
- Dishwasher: start a short cycle. Listen for it to fill, then look for water on the floor and check that it drains at the end.
- Washer: run a small cycle with nothing in it. Watch it fill, spin and drain, and look at the hoses behind it for drips.
- Dryer: let it run a few minutes. The drum should turn and the air inside should get warm.
- Every machine: write down the brand and the model number from the tag, and take a photo of it.
If something doesn't work
Write it down. Tell your agent that day. What you can ask the seller to do about it depends on your purchase agreement and its dates. That's a call for your real-estate agent or a lawyer, not for us.