bellingham: Inspecting Foreclosed Properties - 01/27/10 05:05 AM

Inspecting bank owned homes can be a challenge. Most have been vacate for a time and many don't have utilities on. For the buyer a home inspection can alleviate some of the uncertainty but a home inspection does have it limitations especially during winter and the utilities are off. Fortunately in the Anacortes, Bellingham, Burlington or Mount Vernon, Wa we do not have the deep freezes that other parts of the country have but it does get cold here. Regardless of whether the home has been "winterized" if the home has gotten below freezing you are going to have some … (2 comments)

bellingham: Mold Experts - 04/15/08 05:34 AM
 
I follow an Indoor Air Quality group on Yahoo. This post came in recently:
On 4/1/08 12:00 PM, "midsouthbuilders" <no_reply@yahoogroup s.com> wrote: I am a builder and as such, no stranger to mold contamination. We just finished a large custom home and within three weeks of occupancy, the new homeowner was complaining about musty odors. Recognizing that we could be dealing with mold, I suggested they find a mold inspector and we would pick up the bill. I show up about the same time the mold "expert" is completing a few air samples. He states "these will tell us if there … (5 comments)

bellingham: children and smoke detectors - 03/09/08 06:36 AM
Kids and Smoke Detectors

Don't be so sure that your smoke detectors will wake your sleeping children if there is a fire. Recently there are been several reports that show that sleeping children do not respond to smoke detector alerts. Based on these reports the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission has launched a two-year study to investigate smoke-alarm waking effectiveness among children and the elderly. The study is currently in progress.
In Australia, Dorothy Bruck, a psychologist at Victoria University in Australia, was the first to identify the problem. In her 1999 study published in the Fire Safety Journal, … (2 comments)

bellingham: A new year, a new goal - 01/03/08 05:03 AM
 
 
 A new year, a new goal. Every January we get to take stock and make a new begining. Some of us are more successful and accomplishing our goals then others. I want to make this year simpler, so I decided to work on one goal. To get there I thought of 7 essential tips for accomplishing this goal1. One goal. This will sound crazy to many of you who have so many goals you’d like to accomplish. And trust me, I know how that feels. I started out 2007 with a whole bunch of goals, but I only accomplished about half … (2 comments)

bellingham: Getting to the top of Google Searches - 01/01/08 03:35 AM
On another post I saw an new inspector set of goal of dominating the web with his site. Thats a great goal but you need to figure out how you want to be found. For example, if I say I want to dominate all searches for "Anacortes Home Inspection" then my goal is to have my website come up in the first 5 organic listings - such as this http://www.google.com/search?q=anacortes+home+inspection&ie=utf-8&oe=utf-8&aq=t&rls=org.mozilla:en-US:official&client=firefox-aFor some mysterious reason Google actually gave me two listings and my pay per click ad showed up on the right side. To get here you need to figure out the words … (4 comments)

bellingham: Furnace and Water Heaters don't last forever!! - 11/12/07 05:33 AM
Why do inspector's say my client's furnace or water heater needs to be replaced when they are working just fine?
Answer:
Most inspector's (like Realtor's) are trying to protect their client from having to deal with expensive component replacement . When we estimate the particular component is at or past its expected life expectancy, then we advise or client of this. The chances of the furnace, for example, failing increase dramatically when its past its life expectancy. The National Association of Home Builders publishes this information and we refer to it when evaluating a component of the home. We also take … (3 comments)

bellingham: Certified - what does it really mean? - 07/12/07 05:06 AM
There has been a lot of discussion lately over the terms we use in the home inspection industry to express an individual’s competency. Certified, Master or in some states, Licensed are terms commonly used. The first two can freely be used to describe anyone while the later is regulated and awarded by city or state government.
Unfortunately anyone can use the term certified to describe someone who has taken a test or complete a course. There is no government standard, which defines the level of competency, experience or rigor necessary to pass a course or test.  So in essence the … (3 comments)

bellingham: Inspecting for Building Codes? - 07/10/07 04:58 AM
 
In today's Wall Street Journal - Real Estate Journal site June Fletcher talks about disclosure and how the home inspector should be calling out code violations. Home inspectors do not inspect for code violations. Building Codes are ever changing, no two city codes are the same and variances are granted on a regular basis. Home inspectors cannot be expected to know if the particular remodel meets code or not and most disclaim it in our agreements.
However on a more general basis we will recognize or call out that a remodel that was unprofessionally done and ask if it was permitted. In most … (0 comments)

bellingham: Inspecting the Neighbors - 07/09/07 10:18 AM
 
Your Neighbors
Frequently I am surprised that buyers have not checked out the area where they are buying. We have all heard stories about how one bad apple can ruin a neighborhood. What about if that family is right next store? The sellers don't have an obligation to disclosure the real reason they are moving, do they?
 
Buyers should inspect the neighborhood to make sure it is compatible with their lifestyle and needs. To find out more about the neighborhood inhabitants and whether their lifestyles are compatible with your own the best thing to do is to visit the area and … (0 comments)

bellingham: Should you get an iPhone? - 07/08/07 08:41 AM
 
The short answer is no. Don't get me wrong I love Apple products and have used their products since the days of the Apple II. I have owned a number of Macs and recently got an iPod but can't recommend the Iphone for several reasons.
1. Bleeding edge technology - I don't want to spend hours with tech support unraveling issues. I am much too busy and lost my lust for new technology years ago.  I prefer to let others with more time and enthusiasm do the bleeding.
2. Bleeding edge pricing - $600 for a phone. I paid half that … (5 comments)

bellingham: Getting Rid of Cigarette Smoke odors - 07/08/07 04:37 AM
   If it Smells........
I was inspecting a home that also had a rental cottage. I was informed the rental unit had a long-term tenant, a kindly old gentleman. When I entered the cottage and met the tenant I noticed the walls were harvest gold at the top but light beige at the bottom. All the windows were open but as I worked my way toward the rear of the cottage I was picking up the odors of a smoker.  I was chatting with the gentleman who said that he had lived in the cottage for over 15 years but was finally … (13 comments)

bellingham: Would you buy this home? - 07/08/07 03:57 AM
At least twice a week at the completion of an inspection, my client will turn to me and say "Would you buy this Home?" I have my standard politically correct answer but that does provoke the question knowing what I know, what would I look for in a home? 
There are basic features in a home that does make it more desirable from a home inspectors perspective and that's what  buyers should look for:
 
… (2 comments)

bellingham: 10 Things You Need to Know about pre-listing inspections before you put your home on the market. - 07/06/07 02:19 PM
10 Things You Need to Know about pre-listing inspections before you put your home on the market.
With the shift to a buyer's market, sellers (and their REALTORS) need to be more aggressive in marketing their homes. One tactic is to have a pre-listing inspection before putting your home on the market. Having a pre-listing inspection  will make the sale process easier. Find out about any hidden problems and get them corrected in advance, on your own terms. In some cases a $50 repair will prevent an expensive price concession.
Sellers who are proactive will find that there will … (0 comments)

bellingham: Forgetting who we work for... the client - 06/24/07 08:08 AM
Got a call from a lender who I know. He explained that his client was unable to close on a home because the underwriter had gotten the full inspection report and was now wanting a bunch of repairs made. "Ok, I didn't do the inspection how can I help." The lender explains that the original inspector (who claims to be certified) didn't want to come back to reinspect the property because his insurance didn't permit it. I explained that the client can document the repairs in a letter with receipts and pictures. No, the underwriter doesn't want to accept that (must … (6 comments)

bellingham: Beware of Mold Testing - 06/21/07 04:14 AM
 
 
In the real estate industry there is a lot of marketing for mold testing and mold cleanup. However what most consumers don't understand is that there are no standards and regulation of this industry and few states are moving toward regulation include my state Washington which has more natural mold and fungus than most states. I get offers on almost a daily basis offering classes as brief as four hours to certify me as a MOLD Tester. In my opinion Mold Testing is bad for the industry unless it is done in the right conditions, with the right methodology, by someone … (6 comments)

bellingham: 3 Myths that Web Marketing companies will tell you - 06/10/07 03:04 PM

3 Myths about Website Marketing
1. Instant Results “Our company assures that you will get instant results”. If a salesperson says that they can get you instant results, they are either purposely feeding you incorrect information, thinking you don’t know any better, or they themselves don’t know any better about results. Either way, stay away from this false promise. Getting results with the major search engines take time and no one can get instant results with a site like Google
2. Guaranteed Placement “We guarantee top placement” This has to be the worst lie ever told; yet so many people … (0 comments)

bellingham: Don't skip the final walk-through - 06/08/07 07:46 AM
Home Inspections are not perfect. We can only inspect what we can see, don’t have x-ray glasses and can’t see under rugs or behind bookcases. Frequently we are called on to inspected homes that are stuffed with furnishings. This obscures our view of many areas of the home and may prevent us from seeing water leaks or that hole in the floor that was covered by a rug. We encourage all of our clients to have a final walkthrough prior to close of escrow. This is an opportunity to see the home without the seller’s belongings and areas that may have … (2 comments)

bellingham: Get more Hits on Your Website! - 06/06/07 05:17 AM
So you took the time and expense to setup a website, but you're not seeing much in the way of results, right? Building a website is akin to opening a shop on a busy street. If it's just a plain doorway not many people are going to look in, however, if you promote it  with signs and spotlights customers will stop in. The way to do that with a website is to make sure that when people search for a set of   words such as Anacortes home sales, your site pops up. Here are 5 steps you can take to optimize … (6 comments)

bellingham: Watch out for flippers - 05/26/07 04:08 AM
Lately I have seen the results of what I call flips gone bad.  I got a call from an agent that had seen an inspection report on a HUD repo I did last year. I usually don't like to see my reports passed around but this time I was happy and it generated another job. 
Last year when I inspected this home I commented on structural issues, faulty electrical, leaking roof, leaking plumbing, 8" of water in the crawlspace and so on. I heard that my buyer didn't want to take on that big of a challenged, but the house went under … (3 comments)

bellingham: If it Smells, it won't sell - 05/13/07 05:44 AM
Buyers judge a house by many attributes but generally if it smells, it won't sell. Odors that a lot of longtime homeowners have gotten used to can torpedo a sale. It’s been proven in scientific studies that our olfactory senses or smells help us remember a particular time and place. Realtors can use that to their advantage when staging a home. However in some cases a few air fresheners or baking cookies isn’t going to cover a larger problem. I sense real problems in homes when I see everyroom having an air freshner in it and savvy buyers will sense a … (3 comments)