Homes don't pass or fail home inspections

Great post! What is a major problem for some is just something that needs to be addressed for others. The inspection report just reports the condition of the home at the time of inspection. It is up to the client to decide what they consider an issue and how they want to proceed.

I love this post!  I hear this type of thing all the time and I have no idea what they mean!

Jim - Excellent point!  Just for fun, next time a client asks you that tell them, Yep.... she's broke alright.  For a thousand bucks I'll get 'er all patched up and a runnin' just fine.  Hey, hand me that there duct tape!

Jim,

It sounds like the screen scenario just wanted out and this was a straw.

Jim,

Incidentally, that cat in the drawer looks like my cat Tigre. He hangs out in my office too.

As they say Jim ... "To Each is His/Her Own"

Boy am I on your bad list this week or what? Sorry, it was the only inspection graphic I could find.

Remember that home inspections are done by home inspectors, and the home inspection reports are issued by those same home inspectors.

There are 27 states or so that have licensing for home inspectors, at least 6 national trade associations for home inspectors, at least 2 Canadian associations for home inspectors, and many state associations for home inspectors, and not a single one of them uses a "pass" or "fail" system for their inspectors and their reports.

Additionally, there are several companies that provide E&O insurance for home inspectors, and if they found out that any of their policyholders were using a "pass or fail" system, I can assure you that their policies would be canceled or not renewed.

Several years ago RE/MAX was running a national commercial with one of their agents in a RE/MAx balloon flying over a Client's house. The Client looks up and yells something like, "How was the home inspection?" The Realtor yells down, "You passed." The International Association of Certified Home Inspectors contacted RE/MAX and explained the problem with the ad, which was immediately pulled.

If we all play nicely in the same sandbox together, we can get a lot accomplished, but when we try to use the work of someone else inappropriately, especially if it is to further our own needs, it does a disservice to that someone else as well as ourselves.

That's my opinion, and I'm sticking with it!

I don't use those terms however I would think if the buyer moves forward with the purchase the house passed, if they do not it failed.

Good reminder for us to break old habits.  These words, when used by a Realtor, are often taken at face value by our clients, who look to us for "the Gold Seal of Approval", when it's not really ours to give in the first place.

Jim - Issues that a home inspector identifies may be identified as a negative from one person's viewpoint or as a positive from another person's viewpoint.

Often I like to say that the homeowner failed. They failed to do the proper maintenance that any house proud owner should have. Did they think the inspector was going to miss the rock and roll toilet for instance?  

Hi Jim,  Excellent reminder that houses are dynamic collections of various systems and technologies !  Even new builds have issues and older homes are sometimes built to very high standards.  I just had an inspection where the A/C was upgraded within the last 30 days and it was a mess !  I almost think the company took advantage of my elderly sellers !

Jim your post is very informative.   I myself thought along the lines of a home passing inspection because there were not many flaws to deal with.  I didn't look at it from the perspective of the buyer not wishing to buy due to something that seemed so minute.  Thank you for the heads up. 

Hi, Jim. GREAT POST...congratulations on the Feature! You're right; it's a common misconception to think of a home "passing" or "failing" an inspection but you hear that terminology a lot.

Curiously enough...and don't laugh...there are GRASSHOPPERS here that EAT vinyl screens. Buyers often ask why there are no screens but sellers will actually put intact screens away, producing them at the last minute.

I thought that one of my screens had been accidentally punctured during construction but I soon learned that a hole had already been eaten before I had even moved in. They are now so full of holes that I am replacing the vinyl with metal, one screen at a time!

Jim, Great post, and thanks for the "rest of the story" about the screens....I had a feeling there was a story behind the scenes on that one.   And, you are 100% corrent about different clients.  I have done a lot of construction/remodeling on homes and I only look for the "bones"...my daughter and son-in-law think it's a big deal if a sprinkler head doesn't work.  To each his/her own.....