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Home inspection
Home Inspection in Silver Spring, MD
Whether it is a high-rise or a Woodside bungalow, Silver Spring gets a licensed Maryland inspector who checks every major system and writes a clear, photographed account of the property.
Read client reviews Licensed and insured inspectors Serving Silver Spring and all of Montgomery County
What we check in a Silver Spring home
The inspection follows the same 12 areas, from the roof down to the grounds, within the agreed scope and safe access available. It is visual and non-invasive: finishes are not removed, and personal belongings are not moved. Select an area to see what is checked.
- Range, oven and wall oven run normally
- Dishwasher, disposer and microwave run
- Kitchen exhaust fan and the dryer vent exit
- Service entrance, meter and main disconnect
- Panels, breakers, grounding and bonding
- Sampled outlets and switches; GFCI, AFCI, smoke and CO detectors
- Siding, flashing, trim, eaves, soffits and fascia
- Every exterior door and a sample of windows
- Walkways, driveway, stoops, porches, decks and railings
- Foundation walls, slabs and the basement
- Any accessible crawlspace
- Signs of movement, water penetration and wood touching soil
- Vehicle door and opener on their normal controls
- Auto reverse and photo eye safety sensors
- Walls, ceiling, floor and the fire door into the house
- Grading and drainage at the foundation
- Retaining walls and vegetation against the house
- Downspout discharge, walkways, driveway and steps
- Heating and cooling run on their normal controls
- Energy source, method and thermostat location noted
- Visible ducts, filter, condensate drainage and equipment condition
- Floors, walls, ceilings, stairs and railings
- A sample of doors and windows opened and closed
- Accessible attic: insulation depth, ventilation and framing; fireplace and damper
- Sink, faucet, drain and disposer run
- Dishwasher connection checked for leaks
- Cabinets, drawers, counters, floors, walls, ceiling and exhaust fan
- Main water and fuel shut-offs located
- Water heater, its venting and TPR valve; pipe materials
- Every toilet flushed; every sink, tub and shower run
- Coverings, flashing, vents, skylights and chimney
- Gutters, downspouts, eaves and rake
- Roof structure from inside the attic where accessible
- Visible framing, beams, posts and joists
- Masonry walls and the chimney structure
- Settlement signs: cracks, out of square openings, unlevel floors
Every inspection follows a written standard of practice. Need additional testing? Explore radon testing, termite inspection, mold testing and water testing, then confirm your selected services and timing when booking.
Add a package to the inspection
Three packages built around the home inspection. Package prices are for the add-on services only and are added to the inspection price. The savings are against booking the same services one by one.
Home Essentials
The perfect starting point
Home Advantage
Most popular for homebuyers
Home Enhanced
The ultimate peace of mind
Warranties must be requested when you book, not after the inspection. Radon and thermal imaging can also be added on their own. Read more about each package.
What a home inspection actually involves
No jargon, no surprises. Here is the whole visit, start to finish, so you know what you are booking before you book it.
You book, we confirm
Online or by phone, in a few minutes. Your agent can book for you. Add radon, termite or a package at the same time, and we confirm the appointment with you before the visit.
The walk-around
Roof, siding, grading, decks, the garage and the grounds first. The inspector photographs what they find as they go, so the report shows you exactly where each item is.
Systems and accessible spaces
The inspector checks accessible electrical, plumbing, heating and cooling components and operates equipment with normal controls when conditions allow. The report identifies areas that could not be inspected and any recommended follow-up.
The walkthrough and the report
You see the main findings in the house itself. The written report follows online with photos, priorities and what to do about each item.
Streetcar suburb to downtown towers
Silver Spring grew from railroad and streetcar development into a downtown reshaped by later redevelopment, so a booking might be for a Woodside bungalow, a basement apartment or a unit inside a downtown tower. Those are different structures with different systems, so the inspection starts by confirming which one applies and how its foundation, electrical and mechanical systems were built or updated.
High-rise units, their own systems
A downtown Silver Spring condominium or apartment is inspected on its own systems: the electrical panel or subpanel serving the unit, plumbing fixtures, heating and cooling equipment run on normal controls, and accessible doors and a representative number of windows. Access through building management is often required, so confirm that before booking. The roof, elevators, lobby and other elements the building owns as a whole sit outside a single-unit inspection, and the report separates what belongs to your unit from what belongs to the building.
Montgomery County's Department of Permitting Services runs an online eServices system searchable by address, letting a Silver Spring buyer check permit and inspection history for a downtown unit or an older house before booking.
Older houses, added-on lower levels
Woodside and Four Corners hold older houses where a basement or in-law suite has often been finished into separate living space since the house was built. The inspection checks the foundation walls and crawlspace for signs of moisture, follows the roof covering and gutters to where they discharge, and looks at grading around the house, since a yard that will not shed water is a common source of a damp lower level. The electrical panel and any added subpanel serving the lower level are checked along with the rest of the house.
Maryland's SDAT real property database lets a buyer search ownership and assessment history for any Silver Spring address by street address or account number, useful context before making an offer on an older Woodside or Four Corners house.
Home inspections around Silver Spring
Silver Spring sits in Montgomery County, and the same inspectors cover the whole county. Every place below has its own page.
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Silver Spring home inspection basics
Answers Silver Spring buyers want before booking, whether downtown or in an older house.
Silver Spring is not incorporated. Where do permit records come from?
Since Silver Spring has no separate town government, Montgomery County's Department of Permitting Services keeps the permit and inspection history for the address through its online eServices system, and Maryland's SDAT covers ownership and assessment records the same way it does statewide. Between the two, most of what a buyer wants to check about a specific Silver Spring property is available before you ever call the county.
Does an older Silver Spring house need a different inspection than a newer downtown unit?
The scope stays the same: roof, foundation, electrical panel, plumbing, and heating and cooling on normal controls. Where they differ is emphasis. An older house near Woodside or Four Corners often has a finished basement or an addition worth tracing to its original framing, while a downtown unit is inspected on its own systems within the building, with building access arranged separately through management.
What is outside the scope when inspecting a Silver Spring condominium?
The building's roof, elevators, lobby, hallways and other shared elements belong to the condominium association, not to any single unit, so they fall outside the inspection. What is covered is your unit and what serves it directly: electrical, plumbing, heating and cooling, windows, doors and finishes, plus any shared element the unit depends on, like a hallway panel. Ask your agent whether the association has recent reserve study or engineering reports available.
Does Montgomery County's point-of-sale radon law reach a Silver Spring house sale?
For most single-family homes and townhomes, yes, since county law has required a radon test before closing since October 2016, unless the property is a condominium, a co-op, or located in Barnesville, Kensington or Poolesville. A home inspection does not test for radon itself; that testing is a separate step, and it can be scheduled for the same visit as the inspection if you want both done together.
Should I plan to attend my Silver Spring inspection?
It is optional, but useful. Showing up for the final walkthrough lets you see what the inspector found in the actual space, ask about anything the report does not fully explain, and learn the location of the main shutoffs and the electrical panel. Building access rules may limit how many people can join for a downtown unit, so confirm that with management ahead of time.
What should I prepare for a home inspection in Silver Spring?
For a downtown unit, identify management-controlled spaces. For a house in an adjacent neighborhood, point out additions and any finished lower level.
Explore Our Inspection Reports
- HD Photography
- Commentary & Recommendations
- Grading Scale
- Repair, Safety & Maintenance