Just the other day, I get a call, It's a Buyers Agent, She tells me "all the stuff on your home inspection is fixed - when can you come back and check it all again?"
This is one of those re-inspect calls that I dread. The next thing she says is "How much will this cost?" After all, her client already paid me over $600.00
I explain that the re-inspect will be $200.00 (a bargain), and I refuse to do it for any less. This fee is met with resistance, but agreed upon and I receive the check before the inspection.
Now comes the hard part, I meet the "contractor" at the site yesterday and review each of my original findings to see how they were remedied. The contractor tells me that the homeowner fixed most of the stuff, and he only did the hard stuff.
This is where the story gets interesting. The homeowner caulked the basement windows, however he must have purchased the caulk in a 5 Gallon pail. He smoothed it on with his fingers so it looked like my 4 year old did it. The caulk was interior caulk and it ran down the foundation. Just Awful.
His next repair was re-locating the garage door opener control. He moved it. But he put a screw right through the control!
Another repair was repairing the garage ceiling. The spackle was on so thick, that sections were still not dry even though the repair was done days ago. He must have used a shovel to put it on.
Well by now I certainly earned my $200.00 I had 4 hours in this ordeal. I wrote my client a letter, discussed the findings with her, and she (very frustrated) cancelled her purchase contract.
Why back out I asked? She explained that there are 100s of houses just like this one and she did not want to be bothered with dealing contractors etc.
I have seen this scenario play out many times. (Especially in the last year). This particular home was on the market for over a year.
Today, it is an absolute must that the home seller hires professionals to address the concerns in the home inspection. Any home repairs by the seller - puts doubt in the buyers mind, and they will walk in a heartbeat.
Lawrence Transue
http://www.integrityinspection.com
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