is an inspection legally necessary? (selling home)

[pi71]

Im selling my home to my neighbor who has been in my home several times looked it over at his descrepency and neither one of us want to pay for an inspection, is it legally required by his mortgage lender or title company? or can we just agree to close without an inspection? thanks in advance.

[Rich]

No it's not legally required. If they need it to verify condition - tell them to pay for it. I'm sure they'll have a few inspectors that tell them what they want :)

[grumpydasmurf]

I bought my condo with no inspection. No it
s not legally required. Like Rich said if he wants it tell him to pay for it. If his mortgage lender wants it then he gets to pay for it or find a new lender.

[pi71]

thanks guys.

[Thumper]

As already said above, the inspection isn't legally required, actually it's just you paying for someone's opinion on the condition of the property - the inspector isn't legally responsible for anything either so if he gives you bad advice or mises anything there is no binding obligations or legal responsibility on his part (ie: you can't sue him if the house falls down a year later) It's recommended for persons not sure of this type of stuff to get a feel-good or bargining leverage to use with the vendor. I'm not sure, but I don't think home inspectors are even licensed in my province - they carry CMHC certifications but it's all unregulated so it's basically just another gamble in realestate. (inspections are mostly used to back out of a deal for the squimish buyers or as a price negotiating tool after the first offer acceptance) Inspectors I've used in the past are generally in the $300.oo - $400.oo range for a 5-7 hours lookover

[roger g]

5-7 hours Wow!!!! We had one who took only a couple of hours. Maybe that's why he missed a couple of realy shiny aluminum pans in the attic.
I only got my house done because living here on the extreme west coast I wasn't sure if there were things like carniverous mold or west coast rain forest insidious creeping mad house desease.
It turned out to be a complete waste of money for me thoughsomeone who is totally ignorant of anything to with houses and has money to throw around might feel better with an inspection.
I had never heard of a home inspector until a few years ago now they're all over the place.



roger

[Chad Fabry]

Hi all,

I'm a home inspector. An average case scenario for a 1200 square foot ranch that's 25 years old would include about 3 hours for the inspection, and about 3 hours for the report. The report is a narative style with a full description of the electrical system, the plumbing, the structure including roof and foundation, the interior, lot drainage, some appliances, heating and air conditioning and a lot more. The reports average 30 pages for a residence of this size in average condition. Further, the report would include component descriptions, ages, and predicted life left.
I report EVERY defect that I see and DON'T worry about the realtor's commission.

Most of my clients save, in the form of buyer's credits, cash off the price, or in repairs performed before purchase, something around 5 to 7 thousand dollars. My fees for this go from 300-400 (on small houses)

I am liable for items I miss, I can be sued for the full value of a missed visible defect and I have the errors and ommissions insurance to prove it.

I carry moisture meters, electrical diagnostic tools, infra red temperature tools, normal hand tools, digital camera, digital recorder, several ladders that I use to gain access to every walkable roof and every attic that has a scuttle. I'll crawl 60 feet through wet crwal spaces to check them and shovel snow around foundations to check them as well.

Some one said I'm sure they'll have a few inspectors that tell them what they want Smile yeah, those guys are out there and if you want one, get him now because in a year or two he'll be sued out of business. Most of us are technically informed, have construction hands on experience, and may surprise you with our breadth of knowledge; most of us are ethical.

Our profession has become the latest "get rich quick" scam and that has been perpetrated by bogus internet only asscociations that'll sell you a "certification" status for 289 bucks. Beware of the home inspector that provides you with a handwritten check list and is finished in an hour.

There'll be more of folks like me along, because this thread link was posted at www.inspectionnews.com which is a good place to go and see what we're all about. Another good place to see that most are dedicated professionals is www.inspectorsjournal.com

I'll pop in here now that I know the place exists and also invite those of you that are serious about the building profession to visit www.jlconline.com which is the Journal of Light Construction bulletin board/ chat room.

Nice to meet you

[jacnspx]

The posts I have read here are typical thoughts by people that are just not familiar with the industry.
My background (part of it): Grew up in a family in the construction business. Got my contractors license (In CA), worked in the family business, then branched out on my own after my grandafther and father retired.
Worked for 12 years as an inspector for Los Angeles County.
Started doing home inspections in 1989

When I started doing home inspections I thought I knew everything there as to know about a home. It didn't take long to find out I didn't. I have a blurb on my web site that says "A contractor knows how to build a house - A home inspector knows how theyt fall apart". That pretty much says it all. A good home inspector knows how to spot defects from symptoms, not always the obvious.

Anyone can see a leaking pipe and say, "You have a plumbing problem". Well, DUHH!!! But how about when I look at the plumbing, and see copper/galvanzied direct connections, and see some small rust spots/bumps on the galvanized pipe? It's not leaking, but there is a potential problem there, and someone bying that house should know about it.

Wasted money?? I have saved clients many thousands of dollars by things I have found. My inspection gave people enough information to realize that the house they were thinking of buying had very serious problems, that would have cost tens of thousands of dollars to repair. The ispection also gave them peace of mind about the house they were buying - they KNEW the condition of the house AND it's components.

Of course there are unqualified inspectors in business, just like any other field. I belong to a professional organization of home inspectors (www.ashi.org), and to keep my membership I have to complete 20 hours per year of continuing education. To reach full membership level (some call it certification), I had to complete 250 inspections and have my reports verified that they met the Standards of Practice of ASHI, and take two written exams (that I would guess most construction guys and girls could not pass the first time).

While home inspections are usually not required, they are usually a good idea. If the buyer and the seller both think it's a waste of money, then they better learn to live with the results. For the buyer, finding out there are major problems they didn't find during their "inspection", like a cracked heat exchanger, or an a/c unit that is ready to die. As far as the seller, they should be ready for the lawsuit that may come up when the buyer finds problems that were not disclosed and they have to spend a couple thousand to fix.

By the way, anyone can sue anyone. They may not win in court, but they can bring the lawsuit anyway. And it still costs money to defend yourself .

Just my 2 cents from the other side of the fence. Your mileage may vary.
JF

[Al Austin]

I am a professional inspector and can give you thousands of examples where a professional inspector have saved thousands of dollars.

That is not to say that there are some cheap quickie inspectors in the business. You have to be very careful how you select them and be mindful of the responsibilities, liabilities and limitation within the industry and with any inspection company.

If you want to know more about the business and its services there are plenty of websites available that can help you.

If you read every page on each of these sites you will get a pretty good picture of the inspection industry and some idea as to how helpful inspectors can be to protect the public interests.

:)

You see the inspection really all about protecting the public, life, limb and property. It takes years to get a handle on all the details necessary to understand all the issues and to be able to make viable determinations.
Ongoing education is an absolute must and the general public does not have the time or means to study all the subects necessary to ispect a property on their own. Many of my clients would agree with me that I have saved them substantial amounts of money and in at least one instance, thier entire life savings. This is not bragging, it is pure fact.

[roger g]

Just read all what the inspectors had to say.Thanks guys for responding. We may bitch and complain but it never hurts to hear the other side of the story unless it is the wife's.



roger

[giddonah]

Wow, all of a sudden three inspectors post for the first time on the same day? That's wierd.

[Cole]

wow!!!

that is weird.

[roger g]

Okay. which one of you guys spelled weeeeerd correctly?

roger

[giddonah]

not me :lol:

[VALENT]

Hey, its a free country. Hopefully, they will continue to grace us with their knowledge. Their "industry" is like all of ours-there are some good and some bad. I will say that I never knew they could be held accountable for things they didnt see but should have.