ASHI: Take advantage of the warm weather and perform a home inspection

With baseball players' return to the diamond and runners transitioning from the treadmill back to their outdoor route, spring has finally sprung around the country. With people enjoying the great outdoors, the warm weather serves as the perfect time to take care of any repairs that may be in order but were put off during the winter because the temperatures were just too cold.

One way homeowners can find out what needs to be fixed is by doing their own home inspection or enlisting the services of a professional house inspection business.

"The spring cleaning list for your home might include fixing a leaky pipe or repairing shingles on the roof that may have occurred during a rough winter," said Bill Jacques, president of the American Society of Home Inspectors. "Winter storms can wreak havoc with heavy snow on rooftops and frozen pipes. And with a long wish list of home repairs, it's a hard to know where to start."

He added that a home inspection can enable property owners to figure out what needs to be addressed first and what can be postponed until a later date.

Winter's toll can be extreme

Jacques indicated that people will often overlook or fail to see signs that their homes have been damaged, not fully appreciating the type of impact bitterly cold temperatures can have on a home's exterior and its utilities. Thus, it's important to closely inspect house bibs as well as water valves and pipes to ensure that there hasn't been any frost damage. Homeowners will also want to take a look at their windows and doors for signs of splitting or cracking.

Depending on the quality of the paint used, even recently coating a home with a fresh stain can result in cracking after three months of cold weather. Give each side of the house a look over to ensure that paint hasn't peeled and whether it's worthwhile to repaint it when the weather gets a bit warmer.

While homeowners are looking, they may also want to take a peek at their roof, seeing if any shingles fell off or are now loose after heavy, cold winds. Additionally, ASHI recommends seeing how the gutters are, as they too may have been impacted by winter's wrath.

Before homeowners know it, spring will have turned to summer and with these even warmer temperatures comes hurricane season. Maintaining the home now will go a long way toward preparing homeowners for potential storms through the summer months and into the early fall.