home inspections Archives - Page 3 of 13 - Charles Buell Consulting LLC

October 31, 2016 by Charles Buell

I think I will skip the home inspection—but thanks for asking!

Having a home inspection done in the context of a home purchase is pretty common now.

This was not always the case. There is still some resistance to getting them done and the perception they are not necessary is still strong in some cases.

For example, some people see new construction as less risky and forego a home inspection. While this may certainly be truer than it would be for a 100 year old home, the reality is that in the newly constructed homes that I have inspected, I have never not found at least the cost of the inspection in defects.

With new construction the buyer actually has a ghost of a chance of having these defects fixed by the seller/builder. They might just be pissing into the wind when making the same requests on an older home–especially if the home is bank owned or the seller is seriously under water. Even cosmetic issues will usually get fixed on new construction.

Another example of where home inspections are not done is when everyone knows there is going to be multiple offers made on the home.

Sometimes buyers are coached that if they waive inspection they might be held in a more favorable light than the offer that comes in contingent on inspection.

Makes perfect sense!

It makes perfect sense at least on paper. But as is so common with so many things in life, if one is not careful one gets what one wants. I did a “walk-through” inspection the other day for a buyer that wanted me to give the house a quick look-see prior to making an actual offer on the home. The problem is that after the walk-through there were some expensive issues that would need to be addressed and the buyer would not have considered making an offer without an inspection contingency.

In my market there are people willing to just run naked and blind into a deal by waving the inspection. In this case the prevailing buyer was willing to wave inspection. It was a pretty good example of “not knowing what you do not know.” Based on the very superficial walk-through (actually crawl through too–as I still had to take a look at the crawl space), here are a few of the things that a buyer would have to deal with–sooner or later.

1. The listing stated the house was built in 1950: Actually, the first part, was constructed in the early 40’s and completely remodeled at least twice–the latest in the early 60’s. In the context of this remodeling two additions were made to the house resulting in not one but three crawl spaces.

2. No vapor barrier in any of the crawl spaces: The largest crawl space, approximately 16’x30,’ had NO access at all, due to inadequate clearances. None of the crawl spaces had a plastic ground cover.

3. Heating ducts lying on the ground: This was true of all of the crawl space with no access.

4. High moisture levels in the woodwork of accessible crawl spaces: This condition would likely be even worse in the crawl space with no access that also had no foundation vents.

5. A current leak in the corner of the inaccessible crawl space: This leak will not be going away on its own. From the opening I could see where the leak was, but could not get to it due to lack of access. Vegetation growing in the area and obvious decay/rot in the rim joist and sill plate in the area was testament to this leak being long standing. In the following picture–taken by sticking my camera over the ductwork that made the crawl space inaccessible–one can see the wet ground and the wet foundation covered with vegetation in the far right corner.

6. Missing crawl space vents: the original house foundation had two vents open and two covered over. The other two crawl spaces had none.

7. Wood roof needed significant repairs: Not a deal killer but certainly something that needed to be addressed.

8. The flat roof over the attached carport was leaking: Of course the fact that the downspout location had been covered over with roofing materials and forced the roof to drain over the edge was a bit of a problem.

9. Zinsco electric panel: Again not a deal killer but something that needed to be addressed. The fact that all the wiring from the panel to the home was run underground through 12’ of 2″ conduit from the attached carport closet into the crawl space of the home was a significant problem. None of the wiring run through the conduit was rated for installation underground—and of course that many wires should not be bundled together regardless.

10. Rodent infestation in the crawl space: This was a no-brainer given the number of access points noted.

11. Leaking at Master Bath Shower: Somewhere, buried in the shower wall, there was a leak. When the water to the shower was turned on, water poured into the crawl space around the pipe running to the shower. It had been doing this for a LONG time given the amount of “washing” of the crawl space floor.

I am sure there was an even dozen, but I think you can get the picture

This house had GREAT curb appeal, awesome interior, killer yard and overall pretty well built.

Don’t be tempted by the lure of waiving inspection.

It is likely to be a false economy.

By Charles Buell, Real Estate Inspections in Seattle

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July 26, 2016 by Charles Buell

The Walking and Crawling Home Inspector

Home inspectors often have to crawl over, under and inside things in the process of inspecting a home. It is not a job for the claustrophobic, or those that do not possess an irrational sense of adventure, or unrealistic curiosity.

Of course every inspector will have their own line-in-the-sand as to what they will do and won’t do, but generally speaking, as a group, home inspectors tend to do what no one else in their right mind would do.

On a recent inspection, while traversing the attic I had to crawl through an unusual tunnel between two chimneys that had been corbelled together so that they could both pass through the roof at just one location.

I guess finding this in the attic I should have been prepared for what it would take to get from one side of the crawl space to the other. I wish I could have filmed myself crawling under this duct.

Laying on one’s back, it was possible to slither under the duct–but it was a little disconcerting having no way to really know what was on the other side until I got there.

Of course it was well worth the trip, as there was extensive water damage in the crawl space on the other side.

It is my business model to do what it takes to provide the best information I can–sometimes it just is not possible and I have to recommend that proper access be made and that I be called back for further evaluation. I don’t like it when I am forced to become one of the things that keep the process from moving along.

Plus, the more difficult the access, the more likely nobody else has been willing to go in there either, and the more likely there will be things that need to be discovered.

By Charles Buell, Real Estate Inspections in Seattle

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November 1, 2015 by Charles Buell

What is a home inspection? Are you hanging 10 or afraid of the water?

You can ask 100 different inspectors and 100 different agents and get 200 different answers. Each will be just as confident that their answer is the correct one. Most are some version of: “a visual, non invasive, look at a home, including a written report, that is performed according to the Standards of Practice of a particular State or Association.”

To me it doesn’t matter that there are so many different opinions as to what a home inspection is as it does that the buyer may not be taken care of as a result.

I think that consumer expectations and real estate agent expectations of Home Inspectors varies around the country as well. After we peel away all the rhetoric around which association is better, who is the best trained and who has the most stringent qualifications for entry into the field, we are left with quite polarized approaches to home inspections.

I find this polarization a little baffling in light of the fact that nearly everyone in the industry attests to the importance of having inspections done.

I frequently get into conversations with other inspectors over this dilemma. I inspect in a very large metropolitan area with a very large number of agents and inspectors. No matter what approach an inspector takes to providing service there will be agents and a buying public to support their business model.

As we move into smaller markets, the tolerance for “different” approaches can be affected to the point that a good inspector might not even be able to work if their business model varies too much from what is “expected.” They become victims to a type of “old boy’s & girl’s network” that has rigidly defined a home inspection as “XYZ” and anything different from that is marginalized–of not outright “black-listed.”

The Internet has greatly improved, or at least provides a way around, this rigid thinking.

Inspectors that want to provide a different level of service to the buying public can now, through developing an Internet presence, bring awareness to the buying public. In this way they can by-pass the normal referral process traditionally held in a stranglehold by real estate agents. In the end, whether agents are recommending these “different” inspectors or not they find themselves having to deal with them regardless–whether they are the buyer’s agent or the seller’s agent.

So let’s talk about these two camps of agents and inspectors. In my experience there do appear to be two more or less distinct camps.

CAMP #1: Inspections are to be quick, specific to the Standards of Practice, with reports as short as possible and discussing only defects.

CAMP #2: Inspections take whatever time they take, they meet and often exceed the Standards of Practice, with reports that are long and full of all kinds of useful information about the house–not just defects.

Whether you are an agent, an inspector, which approach do you want if you are buying a home for yourself. If you answer “CAMP #2” why would your business model to the buying public be something different?

I think part of the answer to that question lies in the presumption that too much information is a bad thing. It is the notion that if a nervous buyer is overwhelmed by too much information they may be scared away from the deal–thus making the “deal” more important than “taking care of the buyer.” So let’s for a moment assume that this is true–even though I do not think it is true or has to be true. Now another question must be answered:

Who is to decide what information is not important to the buyer?

I, for one, would not presume to know my buyer that well. That leaves me with providing as much information as I can about the home based on the short time I am there. Additional information can be provided that is pertinent to any home of that age and type of construction that would be deemed necessary for the buyer to properly maintain or live in the structure.

I think that if the report is clear, well written, and accurately describes the concern, what the implications of the concern are, and then explains what should be done about it and by whom, most buyers are smart enough to wade through the information. If they are not, perhaps they are making the correct move by being scared away, and are not yet really ready to become a home owner.

Of course equally important in all of this is the guidance that agents can provide to the process of wading through the information. A really good Summary of Significant Concerns is very important–and is the place for the significant safety issues and deal breaker type issues. An 80 page report with a 2 page summary is less intimidating to anyone than an 80 page report with no summary.

Sure summaries can be risky if there is something the buyer thinks should be on the summary that is not. But this is why they must be strongly reminded to read the entire report.

At the end of the day, “information” is the wave of the future. Whether you are an inspector or an agent, it is time to get on the surf board. Buyers are already surfing–and they are getting pretty good at it–their expectations are increasing.

By Charles Buell, Real Estate Inspections in Seattle

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