A Standard Inspection

A Standard Inspection

 

All my students can attest to the drumbeat of my voice telling them over and over the importance of making the home inspection process a routine.  “Establish a system and follow it the same way every time!  Even though every house is different and new situations arise with every inspection, a routine will guide you through the surprises and help ensure that nothing is overlooked.” This is one of the key lessons I try to pass on as a teacher, but it never seems to truly sink-in until it saves their behind.

I received a phone call last week from one of my graduates telling me about a recent ‘situation’.  He had done an inspection three months prior and found no significant issues to report at this house.  However, almost immediately after the client had moved into his new house, a problem with the plumbing appeared.  When the new home owners did their first load of laundry the drain was blocked and the water backed up into the sinks and bathtub.  Of course the client was upset. He called their attorney. He called their realtor.  He called their home inspector.

 

My former student, the new inspector, wasn’t worried about the situation because of one fact; when he did the inspection he had gone through his usual steps.  He had filled the bathtub and sinks with water, and at the end of the inspection (with the help of the realtor and the client) he drained them all at the same time.  This process stresses the drain system and indicates whether this system is working properly at the time of the inspection.  He always does this at his inspections.  As he said to me, “…it is a part of my routine.”

 

If this had been an intermittent step, and only done during some inspections, his attitude toward the problem may have been much different.  If he was unsure if the drain test had been done it would have given cause for fear and doubt about his thoroughness and possibly being open to a lawsuit. 

 

[Even if he had not performed this test, his legal liability would be non-existent due to the limited scope and nature of a home inspection.] 

 

His thoroughness as a home inspector had been called into question; and stating that this test is “…not required in my inspection.” would be a less than satisfactory explanation.  Because he was certain he had done this test, and the client had witnessed the procedure, there was no reasonable possibility of any further action toward the inspector.

 

As it turns out, they found out from the city that the previous owner had regularly reported problems with the drain, but did not reveal this on his disclosure form.  My former student thanked me and said that being certain that he had thoroughly tested the drains, within the limitations of a non-invasive visual inspection, was peace-of–mind that was priceless.

 

By repeatedly emphasizing to my students the importance of developing a standard routine and performing it religiously, I hope to put them into situations where they too can be confident that they have performed their job completely when a complaint arises.  No matter how many houses they inspect in the interim, they will not have to tax their memory about what was, or was not done at any individual house. Because each inspection is done in the same manner, they can rest easy.

 

The importance of using a routine to do a thorough standard home inspection cannot be overstated.

Interview Your Client

Interview Your Client

 

Prior to every home inspection it has been my practice, for many years now, to ask home inspection clients a few questions about themselves.  Have they owned a home before? Where do they live now?  Do they have, or plan to have children?  Etc.  It gives me a feel for them, it tells me if they are experienced homeowners or don’t have a clue.  It allows an opportunity to get to know them better, so I understand how I need to report what I find to them as individuals.

If my client is an experienced contractor, I will report in a manner which is comfortable to someone who is familiar with ‘tradesman’ terminology.  For an inexperienced client I need to tailor my report and inspection language so that it can be easily understood by any layman. 

The home inspection is the same; but the information about what I find during an inspection is presented in a way that suits the client. In my opinion this is the most important part of our job; reporting in a way that is clear and useful to each client as an individual.

Technical terminology is only a small example of suiting a report to a client.  Being sure to emphasize what issues and defects are most important and serious, and what issues you are just pointing out as areas in need of repair is critical and often challenging.  A horizontal, displaced crack in a foundation wall should be reported as a possibly serious problem that should have immediate further investigation before any more moves (purchases) are made. Reporting this to a tradesman will likely mean just pointing it out and writing it up in the report, for they will be aware of what that type of crack can mean.  A new homeowner should be walked through what a crack like this could mean and the importance of getting further evaluation in no uncertain terms.

Likewise, as inspectors, we cannot be so eager to find that ‘home-run defect’ that we overstate something that may be minor.  Efflorescence found on a basement wall should be reported as a sign of water infiltration, but the inspector cannot yell, “Wet basement! Get out of this deal with your lives!”  It may be a clogged gutter causing the problem. You don’t want to chase people away from a house that may be perfect for them by over-reporting any issue.

 

We are not overdramatizing things or hitting any panic buttons, but we are calmly, and with all due seriousness, reporting our findings. 

 

Even though we are not panic stricken and madly waving red flags does not mean we are cavalier about serious defects either.  Not reporting in a tone that properly alerts the client to action is more problematic and unprofessional than ‘blowing up’ a deal over a minor defect.  Presumably no one will die from getting out of a deal on a house; no matter how well suited that house might have been.  However, if there is a safety issue that you, as a professional home inspector, do not report with the proper amount of serious concern, there can be grave consequences. 

 

You know that your client loves a neighborhood because of the schools, and is blinded to the problems in the house, like the lack of egress in the finished basement. This means you have to work extra hard to get them to really see the problem.  If they do nothing, despite your report, and later someone is trapped in that basement during a fire, you want to be sure you did everything you could to inform them of that danger.

 

At the site prior to the start of the inspection, part of my conversation with the client is to ask them, “How many times have they been to the house?” and if they, “…have seen anything that causes them alarm, or that they are concerned about?”  I always ask these questions, and I ask for one reason - and one reason only; I want to find out what their ‘hot button’ is.  Most people will tell you what they think about the house if you ask.  As they give their take on the house they will tell you what they are most concerned about or what is on their mind.  Some may have heard about the dangers of mold, or what the condition of the roof is, others want enough water pressure.  No matter how big or small or totally irrelevant the concern, I need to put it on my priority list to address what is important to them.

 

It doesn’t matter if I address their issue right away, or whether I address it as I get to that section of my inspection.  What matters is that I address it directly and thoroughly.  If I don’t, they will always have some lingering doubts about that issue and probably my entire inspection. If anything goes wrong in the future you will hear from them immediately. 

 

On one occasion my client told me he was concerned about the basements bilco door.  There were some water stains on the floor in front and he was concerned about how bad the water intrusion would be during a heavy storm.  When I got to that part of my inspection, I pulled out my moisture meter and together we made moisture readings on the concrete slab in front of the door and on the wood around the frame.   Everything was dry. There were a few stains along a crack in front of the door but it did not come back with any moisture levels that were out of line. I explained to him everything I could about what I thought about it, and explained to him what the meter was showing.  I finished by telling him that it was moist in that spot, and it probably did get wet, but not excessively.  He saw what I was doing and understood my thinking. 

Of course, as it turned out, it becomes one of the Great Lakes every time it rains.  He called me.  But he wasn’t upset with me; he just wanted the name of a contractor who could address the repair. 

 

I believe he did not blame me or get upset because he saw how I addressed his concern and he understood what my opinion was based upon because at the time of the inspection I included him and he participated with me.  He helped me measure with the meter, he saw what I saw. 

The bottom line is - get to know your clients. Involve them in your inspection, be thorough and communicate in a way that gets through to them. Be sure as you can be that you have fully alerted them to serious problems. Address their specific concerns. Once they see how you inspect they will be less likely to hold you responsible for the unforeseeable problems that invariably come up.

‘Just Looking Around’

‘Just Looking Around’

 

I have a practice inspection (or mock inspection) for my classroom students each week.  This offers them the opportunity to perform an inspection, write a report, and then come back to class and have the whole class and me view and critique their report. This gives each student feedback on his or her inspection and report writing skills - or lack thereof.  As the student progresses through the program he or she is learning more after each inspection and should be improving each week. Every student must go through this process a minimum of ten times to fulfill the requirements of my class.  Those who apply what they learn in class and prior inspections usually finish with a relatively high level of competence as a home inspector.  Those less serious about it either take longer or just don’t cut it.

 

 

Depending on the group, students can range from very serious about learning the right way to do things, all the way to not showing up to participate in the mock inspections. I notice many are simply going through the motions to try to look like they are inspecting.  It is troubling to me as a teacher to see students who are not really invested in improving themselves as inspectors.  This business is not easy and the stakes are high both monetarily and most importantly for safety.  This last Saturday was particularly disappointing. 

 

 

I had nine students participate in Saturday’s mock, six of who have already completed five or more practice inspections.  All nine showed up with their worksheets and proceeded to inspect the property.  Outside the house they were each going through the sections and were, for the most part, doing their inspections by themselves; as it should be.  There were a few casual conversations about one element or another but, in general, they each worked on their own.  Once inside the process appeared to change; it became more of a group inspection, more sharing of information and less inspecting.

 

 

This property was a fifty year old house that was empty, so there was plenty of reason to expect to find defects and warrant a careful inspection.  Also there were no impediments like furniture, belongings or residents to hinder a thorough inspection. 

 

 

Since I can’t possibly watch all nine students the entire time, I decided to watch just one section of the house to see how each approached inspecting an interior room.  I sat down on the floor leaning against the far wall in the living room to watch how each of the students approached their job.  My goal was to determine how many of them actually inspected this big, empty room. The room had two picture windows and four wall outlets, one on each interior wall, as well as a view of the main entry. 

 

 

After all nine had inspected the room I observed only one of the students inspect the ceiling, operate the windows, and test the outlets.  (There is more to an interior room inspection, but these are the minimum three basics that have to be done).  The other students walked through the room and “looked around”.  Not even one student bothered to go to the front door and operate it, or look at its condition.  This lack of attention was discouraging; to say the least.

 

 

There is an inspection logo I have seen used by some home inspectors; in part the ad says that you should, “Use me because the other inspectors ‘are just looking around’.”  The problem with many students and some new inspectors is they are so busy going through the motions to look like they are inspecting that they skip the most important part, the actual inspection.

Home Inspection Training

Home Inspection Training

 

ALL students that start a home inspection training program believe they are there to learn about the house.  Some know that they need to be trained how to inspect a house. Few know they need to learn how to report on the house.  All students (even those who arrive from related businesses like construction or real estate sales) are unaware that much of the subtle but very real training of how to be a competent home inspector involves learning the relationships between all the different players involved in the real estate transaction (or sale and purchase of a house).

The players are: The buyer; the seller; the buyer’s attorney; the seller’s attorney; the buyer’s realtor; the seller’s realtor; the real estate brokers; the contractors and vendors that provide quotes, and the home inspector.  Each of these players has a different take, perspective, and motivation regarding the transaction; each has different terminology describing what is happening and what needs to be done during this complex process.  Many times misunderstanding about what one another’s job entails and confusion about terminology leads to bad feelings, damaged reputations and can even kill deals.

For example, I just got off of the phone with a client whose attorney was questioning if I had performed mold testing.  My client became concerned because he now thought that because the attorney asked for a mold test that it must be a standard service that I neglected to perform.  I am not aware if this attorney is a specialist in real estate law, but his misunderstanding about the scope of a home inspection has raised doubts in my client about my inspection.  In the attorney’s effort to protect his client he questioned my thoroughness.  If this attorney knew that the home inspector can only point out what appears to be mold-like substances during the inspection, and recommend a mold specialist come for further testing and recommendations about the possible need for remediation, he would not have put me in the awkward position of explaining his error. 

The attorney could have thoroughly read my report as part of his service.  My report clearly stated that at the time of my inspection of the attic I found no indication of any mold-like substance or conditions to support its growth.  I also included a disclaimer stating ‘…that this is not a mold inspection …and only a mold specialist can determine the presence of mold and make recommendations…’

My answer to the client who called about the mold “test” was, “No, I did not recommend that you have a mold test performed because I found no mold-like substance during the home inspection.  I then explained to the client that mold is everywhere and on every surface, but what we are looking for is visible evidence of a substance that may appear to be a colony of mold.  If we find that, we then call out the mold specialist to determine the cost of treatment and of remediation.  The attorney really did not understand the difference between a mold test and that part of a home inspection that may report evidence of what appears to be mold.

Only experience teaches the inspector all of the subtle intricacies of home inspection and how the needs of each of the different players is intertwined and involved.  This is only one of the reasons why I don’t believe anyone can learn this business in a program that meets four days a week over a three week period.  It takes time to understand the roles of each of the players and what they need to do to perform their job.  The home inspector is the expert in his area and has done this hundreds, and possibly thousands, of times.  It is incumbent upon him to be able to explain the process to the buyer since, in the end, protecting the buyer is our main objective.

The "upset" email

The “upset” email

Often when a client has a problem with your Home Inspection they notify you by way of an email.  People generally don’t call with complaints because they are afraid of the confrontation.  There is nothing wrong with contacting someone via email but we hope that the first contact is not notification that we are being taken to court.

Over the span of 10 years and after performing over two thousand, two hundred inspections I have been involved in 15 situations that ended with dissatisfied clients.  One was my fault and I paid some restitution for my error. One wasn’t my fault but I paid-up anyway.  (My clients were a young couple who were just staring out and I felt sorry for them).  The other dozen or so were people trying to get me to pay (or more accurately to get my insurance company to pay) for something wrong with their house that developed months after they moved in. Apparently lots of people are under the false assumption that having a Home Inspection is like buying a warranty on all the systems of a house!

The most recent situation involved a single woman for whom I inspected a house three years ago. She purchased the house and presumably there were no problems until a year ago when Hurricane Irene blew through and a skylight in the addition started leaking.  An unscrupulous roofer looked at the leak and charged her $6,000.00 for a complete new roof. He told her the Home Inspector should have caught the defective roof, and she would have no problem getting the inspector’s insurance company to pay for the new one.  Two months after the roofing job was finished she brought me to small claims court. 

Among the many mistakes she made in this situation most importantly she did not call the Home Inspector (me) to try and resolve the complaint as soon as it was noticed.  I could have explained about the nature of the inspection and that it is not a lifetime guarantee. I would have pointed out the extreme nature of the storm situation, and that nobody could have reasonably foreseen that this leak would occur two years in the future. I would have explained also that the Home Inspector is usually only responsible for the inspection fee; except in cases of gross negligence. I could have also counseled her to shop around for a contractor before having major work done.  The roof was architectural shingle approximately three years old; at the time I inspected the house, and likely did not need a complete replacement.

The bottom line is the judge is probably still laughing about this case.  He looked at her and said, “You have to prove that when the inspector looked at this roof he should have known it was defective.”  She withdrew her suit.

The thing I have learned over the years is; if you find you have a problem, immediately follow-up on it (whether by email or phone), don’t procrastinate, it only makes the situation worse. It is good business to inform your client at the time of the inspection of your availability should any questions or problems arise.  Encourage them to call or email you before a problem goes too far.  Follow up with your client a month or so after the inspection to be sure all is well.

We Home Inspectors understand the misconceptions about this business and are happy to clarify the true nature of our services.  Inspectors are usually good about giving advice (as long as it is only a courtesy service) in regard to repairs and contractors.  If a mistake has been made by an inspector, he deserves the opportunity to make it right, without litigation, if possible. And believe me, the burden of proof that belongs to the plaintiff is a tough sell in court- even if there was an oversight.

Practice Does Not Make Perfect

Practice Does Not Make Perfect

(Only perfect practice makes perfect)

I recently had the opportunity to review another inspector’s Home Inspection Report.  One of my students is selling his grandmother’s house and the student brought me the report that one prospective buyer had used to get out of the transaction.  The report I saw was created by a Home Inspector that I know. This Home Inspector has been doing business longer than I and, in my opinion, performed a perfectly good inspection on that house.  I previously had the opportunity to do a walk-thru inspection of that same house with my student prior to reviewing the other inspection report.  This made me familiar with the issues he found and reported.

His report and style of reporting prompted several thoughts about how Home Inspectors perform their craft:

 

1.   The other Home Inspector completed an adequate, professional inspection, and found a legitimate issue that got his client out of the transaction with no arguments from anyone involved.

2.   The Inspector’s findings were clearly stated in his report and there was absolutely no confusion as to the major issue. 

3.   I was ‘put off’ by the format of this report; I did not like it, but I had to admit it was perfectly functional and met all the basic requirements of a professional Home Inspection Report.  The Inspection and report served the client even though it was lacking many of the modern improvements and benefits of the reporting style I prefer.

 

His report had no pictures. The report did not go into detail. The Inspector used a style of language that I would never have used and reported on things I believe are better left out of a Home Inspection Report.   

We Home Inspectors have our own comfort zones when it comes to reports.  We are likely never going to report what we find the same way another inspector does, and yet differing styles are capable to do the job (if done well).

What I take away from this is the way someone first learns to inspect and to report is critical to who he or she becomes as a Home Inspector.  It is very doubtful that a Home Inspector will ever vary far from the way he first learned the job.  After six months to a year of doing this job the habits are formed which allow us to get comfortable with the way we do things like write our reports.  We will probably never change.   

This gentleman learned how to perform a home inspection 20 years ago.  He does not use pictures in his reports and I am doubtful he ever will.  Luckily he is performing his inspections well, despite being behind the times.  I am sure many inspectors are out there and comfortable in their improper, inadequate and perhaps dangerously habituated methods. They are just as unlikely to change until something goes terribly wrong for them or for someone else. 

This really underscores the importance of learning to do this job the right way, practicing proper methods from the beginning.

Inspecting a Private Well

Inspecting a Private Well

 

 

Home Inspectors conduct inspections along a set of SOP’s or Standards of Practice.  These establish some boundaries to tell inspectors and clients what is involved in a Home Inspection and what is not.  These boundaries are not always hard and fast, no matter how clearly they are worded.  The SOP’s clearly state that a home inspector “…shall observe and report on the readily accessible; roofing materials and condition; roof drainage systems; flashing; skylights, chimneys and roof penetrations.”  However, nowhere does it mention that an inspector must walk the roof to do this.  Many inspectors do, but many; myself included; do not ever get up on a pitched roof to inspect it. It is a judgment call in either case, and no blame can be laid on either side for their choice.

 

Many services an inspector provides fall beyond the literal scope of the SOP’s. For example, there in our SOP’s it says … “home inspectors do not inspect underground systems or items such as septic systems or private wells…”  Nothing could be plainer than that, simple, done, let’s move on.  However, is that the end of our responsibility? Does that take us off the hook as far as our service to our clients?  Legally yes; but this is one of those gray areas that I think home inspectors define for themselves.  Most home inspectors will do what they feel comfortable with and will consult the SOP’s only as their guidelines.

 

I think that even though the SOP says we don’t inspect wells, we should at least try to provide guidance for our client.  The measurement term that is used by well drilling companies to determine if the well is ‘good’ or not is the “Recovery Rate”.  How many gallons per minute will it recover or fill back up?  This is a test Home Inspectors do not do because it requires specialized equipment and a certain amount of disassembling.  This test provides the number that determines between a ‘good’ well and a ‘bad’.

 

But just because we cannot do that test does not mean we can’t tell them about the condition of the well equipment that we can see, and it doesn’t mean that we can’t tell them about the quantity of water available.  That’s why home inspectors will inspect the pressure tank, switch assembly, and pressure gauge.  Most home inspectors will perform a well flow test and watch the operation of the system during that test.

 

A word of caution when performing a well flow test; explain to your client that the well flow test does not indicate the well is ‘good’ or ‘bad’.  Often the client thinks that because the well passed the well flow test, that it means the well is good.  There could be nothing further from the truth.  This is the opportunity to instruct and educate your client to the importance of having the experts come out to perform the proper testing.