Whether you are trying to resell your home or are a real estate professional, a home inspection is a crucial part of the resale process. Estimates by American Society of Home Inspectors (ASHI) show just how critical home inspections are to real estate transactions. These estimates indicate that in the United States and Canada alone, about 77 percent of all homes sold are inspected before purchase. This means that a lacking home inspection report can cause both sellers and home buyers money.

One difficult aspect of home inspections that cause home buyers money is the roof inspection. According to Home Advisors, a renowned home improvement website, it cost on average $6,600 to replace a roof. This is a lot of money. Traditional roof inspections are risky, and the information gathered may not be thorough. However, roof inspection drone technology can ensure fast, accurate and safe home inspections.

What are drones? Drones, also known as UAV, which stands for unmanned aerial vehicles, are flying vehicles/robots which are either remotely piloted or are piloted by an onboard navigation system. Drones are a big part of real estate, whether you are using drones photos and videos to showcase and market a property, or using it to inspect the home. Continual success in the current estate industry requires you to adopt new technologies.

As a home inspector, why should you consider using a UAV, better known as a drone, in the home inspection process?

A Drone Increases The Reach Of A Home Inspector

Regardless of how tall your ladder is or how courageous you are, inspecting roofs the traditional way will always limit you. From awkwardly placed chimneys, icy roofs, loose shingles, there are many conditions that make an exhaustive roof inspection difficult and in some cases impossible. The solution to this problem is UAV aerial photography. With a drone, you easily inspect the roof thoroughly. With that being said, it is important to have a drone with a high-resolution camera. Hardware such as gimbals will ensure the camera does not vibrate, giving you crisp in-depth shots and video footage of the roof. With a drone, holistically scanning the roof, capturing high definition video footage and photos in order to identify problems is simple. With this added information, the final inspection report will be better.

A Drone Will Reduce The Risk Of You Damaging The Roof While Inspecting It

When it comes to traditional inspections, you have to get onto the roof before you can inspect it. Regardless of how careful you are, there is always the risk of damaging the roof. Metal roofs can bent, slate and concrete roof tiles can crack and even break, and when temperatures are high, you can leave footprints on an asphalt shingle roof. Damages will usually lead to serious problems when not treated.

Roof Inspection Drone Enables You To Avoid Dangerous Situations

When inspecting an aging building, there is always the risk that the roof will give way injuring you. Aging rooftops are not the only situation to be wary of. Steep slating roofs, icy roofs, sagging structures all present dangerous inspecting situations. Regardless of how weak and hazardous the roof is, it is important that it is inspected.  A drone will enable you to get a close and personal perspective of the roof without you endangering yourself.

The Bottom Line

With our current technological advances, it will be insane for the home inspection industry to ignore UAV technology when it comes to home inspections. Not only is it safe, photos and videos taken by drones allow for a thorough inspection. The data gathered can be used in three-dimensional modeling of the home, or even for UAV mapping.

With the help of UAV technology, home buyers can have access to in-depth information needed to make a well-informed decision when purchasing a property. Irrespective, of how dangerous it is to inspect the roofs of a home, drones will enable for a thorough risk-free inspection.