If you are looking into buying a home in the near future, there is already a laundry list of items that you have to be concerned about before making a purchase. One item that may not be on your list would be an automatic standby generator. If you do not live in a home that is prone to outages, you may not be familiar with owning an automatic standby generator. Along with all of your other mechanical equipment, you should have a professional come along with you for a visit to the home to inspect the generator. They should be looking for the date of installation, warranty information, if there are any replacement parts, complete a full test run, and make sure that it has been taken care of properly. Like a car, a generator has to have a maintenance completed on a routine basis. A homeowner can expect to pay anywhere from $300.00 to $400.00 per maintenance and this should be completed yearly depending on how often the generator runs due to outages. There are other expenses such as battery replacement, parts replacement (if the unit is out of warranty), and oil check/change depending on how often the unit runs. As long as the generator is in good shape and installed according to all current codes, the presence of one should not deter your interest in the home. If you have any questions feel free to contact Brian Millman Electric at 215.355.6189.