Introduction to Inspecting Built-In Appliances

As a professional home inspector, you’ll observe many appliances in homes. An appliance is a machine or device that completes one or a number of household jobs.
The appliances that are a permanent part of the home, such as cook tops, vent hoods, ovens, trash compactors, dishwashers, and garbage disposals, should be evaluated during a home inspection. Appliances that are portable and are usually moved with the seller when a home is sold are considered personal property and are not usually inspected. Personal property includes any movable item. Such appliances include the clothes washer and dryer, refrigerator, freezers, and portable microwave ovens. Your client agreement or contract should clearly stipulate what is included in the home inspection. 
If, as a part of the sale of a home, the buyer negotiates with the seller to include freestanding items, such as refrigerators or washing machines, you will probably be asked to include these items in the inspection.
In addition, it is important to note that real estate laws in some states stipulate that when a home is sold, the washer, dryer and refrigerator are part of the real estate and must stay with the house. Real estate includes land, and anything permanently attached to the land, including buildings, structures, and, in this case, appliances. If you are inspecting in a state whose laws designate such appliances as real estate, then you are expected to inspect these appliances as well.