Grow Ops - does a Home Inspection protect a Buyer?

Buyers generally would believe that a home inspection would reveal if their potential home had ever been used as a a grow-op or drug lab. That is not necessarily the case as detailed in the Marketplace report below.

Small wonder when you look into what is required to become an accredited home inspector in British Columbia. Here is a sample of the course curriculum - it is one week in duration:

"Students will be taught to:

1. Operate furnaces; check old furnaces and cracked heat exchangers on site
2. View different electrical systems, different types of plumbing material - legal and illegal
3. Test gas and electrical water heaters; hands-on
4. Participate in discussions; one-on-one and round-table
5. Take a sample test to evaluate your strengths and weaknesses
6. View roofing material of all types right in the classroom
7. Conduct two test inspections at the end of the week to apply what you've learned
8. Learn easily via videos, slides, and guest speakers

Hundreds of slides of actual situations are shown in order to give you the best possible learning environment. This unique class takes you through, in detail, all the phases of a home inspection - including three personal on-site inspections."

ARE YOU KIDDING ME? No, I am not.

Marijuana Grow Ops can exist in small bungalows, large two story homes, apartments and industrial units. Police forces across Canada estimate that if you take a 30 minute walk through any neighbourhood in Ontario, you will pass at least 2 Grow Ops and I imagine the same would be true for many neighbourhoods in BC. Police admit many grow-ops are never found and after one crop, these houses are quickly fixed up and listed for sale.

The damage caused by growing Marijuana is not the plants themselves, but rather the indoor conditions required to grow Marijuana successfully. The results can be extensive environmental and mould damage throughout the home.  Unfortunately, the majority of the mould growth is behind walls and inside insulation which is hidden from view. If the potential buyer hires a home inspector to perform a home inspection, that inspector cannot damage the home. In other words, the home inspector can not tear up carpets or punch holes in the walls. There are usually some signs if the home inspector is experienced enough to spot them but . . . watch the video.

Since hiring a home inspector is not equivalent to a warranty, and the inspector's liability is usually limited to the fee paid for his or her service or a similar amount, the buyer could be stuck with the repair costs not to mention the health consequences of living with mould.

I am doing further research and will continue this blog tomorrow. See you then, Diane