home inspections: FAQ: Who Should Attend A Home Inspection? - 06/11/15 02:07 AM
I have attended many home inspections during my tenure as a Realtor.  Of course, as the buyer's reprensentative, that's one of my responsibilites (at least, for my comfort level, for the most part).
Over the years, I've seen wonderful, streamlined inspectors, who get their job done in the time they have allotted (and they know better than anyone else how long a  house will take).
And, then, I've seen the opposite: long drawn out inspections with too many people in attendence, all wanting to ask "their" question.
Yesterday was one of the latter examples.
The buyer showed up, with her 9 year old daughter in … (6 comments)

home inspections: Ah....The Early Days of My Real Estate Career - 04/19/14 11:09 PM
 

 
One of my very early real estate transactions involved a young lady, who was looking for a house close to the Naval Air Station in Jacksonville, FL.
We would put our heads together to figure out what areas made sense, and we knew what her budget was.
There waa a house she loved that "looked" ok, (remember, this is early on, so I haven't got a lot of experience yet).  This could well have been the FIRST house we looked at. 
There was something funky about it, but I could not put my finger on it.  We make … (39 comments)

home inspections: REO's & Home Inspections -VERY Important! - 05/03/11 11:41 AM
 
We have all had our individual challenges with what looks good to the eye, and what is actually not.
ALL properties, regardless of title status or seller, are worthy of a solid home inspection. There is a standard inspection phrase in our purchase & sale agreements here in Florida, and I imagine they exist in almost all purchase & sale agreements. My most recent experience helped my buyers avoid a major bullet.
What did we find?
 Non-standard workmanship on the front porch, the unfinished rear addition, and the attached hot water heater shed. Improper electrical throughout the entire home, requiring … (2 comments)

home inspections: Professionalism - It Matters! - 04/24/11 02:25 PM
I had a marathon home inspection Friday, made longer by a bug inspector who was late. It was my first time with both the home inspector and the bug inspector, and my buyer had made both appointments.
Now, this is somewhat unusual in my line of work; typically, I set these appointments up. Not a problem that my buyers chose their own, just a learning curve as to how to also establish a secondary connection with the the service provider and help them understand how important the time management facet is. 
So the bug guy is AN HOUR LATE I learn, … (5 comments)

home inspections: You Can Put Lipstick On A Pig.....But It's Still A Pig! - 04/12/11 01:32 AM
I had a  home inspection yesterday afternoon, that revealed way more about the house than I had anticipated. Now I know Realtors ARE NOT home inspectors, and I'm not suggesting I am, however, I think we would all agree, we have learned what to look for when showing homes so our budget sensitive buyers don't spend dollars on homes that are, well, pigs.
This was  a renovated property, presented well and I anticipated a mainly clean inspection.
Well, I was WRONG!
The seller had done all the "pretty" things: new flooring, new windows & doors, new bath fixtures, new kitchen cabinets, … (53 comments)

home inspections: I Am Not The Enemy, The Devil, Or The Antichrist, Mr/Ms. Seller! - 03/30/11 08:31 AM
I apologize - I have never had to deal with such a situation as I'm in right now, and I need a safe place to speak out and receive good solid advice to move forward with.
My buyers are in contract with a non-represented seller, who had her house listed in the local MLS for a flat fee. This post is not about flat fee or full service brokerages and their respective differences.
We had a goat rodeo of a home inspection Monday, because the seller wanted to direct what items would be inspected and how.  The inspector almost walked, and … (121 comments)

home inspections: A Home Inspection Fable - 03/28/11 02:04 PM
If you have been reading my blogs lately, you know I managed to get a flat-fee listing under contract with agreeable terms to all, and today was our home inspection.  When I arrived, there was a group confab in the driveway, which is never a good sign, and the home inspector was very close to walking and rescheduling the inspection for another time.
In the vein of seeing the light inside the darkness we often encounter when things go not precisely as planned, I'm writing this fable for everyone to enjoy!
Once upon a time, there was a very happy, motivated … (5 comments)

home inspections: What To Expect At Your Home Inspection - 03/22/11 12:44 AM
Yeah!  I attended a home inspection Saturday morning in St. Augustine.  Now, I actually enjoy this, as I bring work with me to occupy my time, and socialze with the buyers on aspects of the house.
The buyers were driving up from Orlando, my guy was set to start at 9am, and I got there about 9:10am (a drawbridge had delayed me).  I had also heard the listing agent would be there, which was a bit surprising, but not an issue.  What was surprising is that the SELLERS WERE THERE!
I had not anticipated this, and they, apparently had not been … (16 comments)

home inspections: Save Your Roofing Sanity! - 01/29/08 07:37 AM
This is an easy-to-read and understand method to ensure the roofing job you are contemplating is done correctly, and that all the necessary elements needing replacement are actually replaced.
This suggestion comes from a commercial roofer, who inspected a residential roof for me in South Jax Beach today.
When it comes time to have your roof replaced (which will vary, however, if your house is more than 15 years old, and you have not yet replaced the roof, the time is approaching), get a limited scope home inspection.  This inspection should have the inspector walking the roof to take digital photos of the … (2 comments)

home inspections: Inspection Repairs - Who Knew? - 09/25/07 03:09 AM
Has anyone else had this happen to them?
My buyer's home inspection revealed VERY LITTLE wrong with the home; only suggestions were to have the air conditioner coil professionally cleaned, and an exterior outlet that did not have power.
I had written in $2000 for repairs, knowing the listing agent would strike that to $1,000, which would be fine.
Apparently, the exterior outlet simply needs an interior light switch flipped to make it work.  Issue dealt with.
The seller and the seller's agent are saying they don't want to do the AC cleaning - it's my understanding the price for coil cleaning can vary … (11 comments)

home inspections: Pre-Listing Inspections - 09/24/07 01:21 AM
I've done pre-listing inspections on several homes, as I find they are a great way to get a real gauge on what issues will arise during the buyer's inspection and can lead to a potentially higher offer based on property condition and appearance.
I have a friend whose home I listed, and we did a pre-listing inspection, and she agreed to handle anything that came up as a result of the inspection (this was BEFORE the repair list was available).
After about a week of working on various things such as rotting wood, screens, etc. she decided she was not going to … (7 comments)

home inspections: Ambiguous Home Inspection & Lessons Learned - 09/23/07 04:31 AM
I had an experience recently with a home inspector.  I was the listing agent, and therefore, had no input over who the buyer and the buyer's agent would use as a home inspector.
The home inspection report (no names, please) was ambiguous as to the precise number of fogged windows in the house.  Now, the house was 25 years old and these were the original windows, so not a big surprise there would be some fogged windows. The report stated "Fogged windows throughout", and did not give pictures or locations of all the fogged windows, nor had the inspector marked all … (3 comments)

 
Carol Zingone, Global Realtor in Jax Beach, FL - ABR, CRS, CIPS (Berkshire Hathaway Home Services Florida Network Realty)

Carol Zingone

Global Realtor in Jax Beach, FL - ABR, CRS, CIPS

Jacksonville Beach, FL

More about me…

Berkshire Hathaway Home Services Florida Network Realty

Address: 375 Atlantic Blvd., Atlantic Beach, FL, 32233

Office: (904) 241-2417

Mobile: (904) 993-9048



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