Word of The Week – HVAC
It this installment of our Word of The Week, I thought it would be fitting to examine another one of the Real Estate Industry’s famous acronyms: HVAC.
First off, HVAC is an abbreviation for Heating, Ventilating, and Air Conditioning. It’s basically short hand for all your heating and cooling systems in a property. The reason why I chose this for a W.O.W. article is that HVAC is something most home owners don’t think about. But when buying a foreclosed property, which most first time buyers are purchasing nowadays, you need to be aware of these systems because they are essential to your living environment and can be costly to repair or replace.
You should be aware of the type of heating when you purchase your home, since it can affect your utility bills and energy efficiency. Older homes may have inferior types of heating systems such as Gravity or Radiant Heat using boilers to heat water which circulates throughout the home. Newer homes have Forced Air heat which is supposed to be easier to install, replace, more efficient to run.
Forced Air units can also come with ventilation systems which filter the dust and airborne bacteria making the air in your home cleaner and safer for your family.
When it comes to the AC in HVAC, we’re mostly talking about Central Air units which sync up with a Forced Air Heating furnace and cool your home through the duct system. Sure, you could use the old window AC units, but we all know those aren’t most effective at cooling a house in the summer time.
When touring through homes make sure to stop for a second in the basement or wherever the utilities are located and check out the condition and age of the HVAC systems. Replacing these units can range from several hundred dollars to $10,000 or more. So double check the information and have your home inspector give you their own advice on these systems as well.
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Great post. This is often a less understood part of the home.