There was a blog here recently from a home inspector who basically accused Realtors® of only recommending home inspectors who are quick, easy and don't find defects. He said they pay us for referrals, even said some that are easy to schedule might be, um, well let's just say he implied they have a very close realtionship with the agent. I was quite taken aback at the tone of the blog, and at the fact that he did not allow comments. So in case you are in the market to buy a home and wondering what agents want from their inspectors, I thought I'd clear a few things up and explain at least, what my standard is for inspectors.
1) I have used many, many different inspectors in my 7 years selling homes and am always looking for more and better ones to pass along to buyers. I have never insisted a buyer use one, and always ask if they happen to know one themselves or would feel comfortable doing their own research to find one. And I keep putting the process more and more in the buyer's hands. The last inspection a buyer of mine did was with one she found on Angie's List. That was more than fine by me! If he did a bad job, I did not recommend him. I might direct buyers to Angie's list in the future because he did a great job as far as we could tell.
2) I have quit using a few inspectors when the buyer says they did not like them. It's kind of a one strike and you are out thing with me. Inspections are too important and if I am worried you are cutting corners or moving too fast, I will not use you again.
3) I have never been paid by an inspector. That is against the law. I don't think I've even received a box of chocolates at Christmas time from inspectors I use frequently.
4) I don't want inspectors who find nothing! If you are concerned about this as a buyer, because you think all agents are more concerned with selling the house than doing a good job for their buyers, let me put it this way: My job is to protect your interests. Okay, so say you just don't believe that's possible because I am paid on commission, try this - If you buy a house that is full of problems and the inspector I recommened to you missed obvious defects, you are probably not going to recommend me to anyone. You not recommending me to anyone is far more damaging to me than you backing out of a house on the inspection. That's why it's one strike and you are out with me (see #2).
5) A great report. I need an inspector who emails a PDF of a typed report within 24 hours of the inspection. If you hand me chicken scratch on triplicate forms that I can't even scan legibly, that is a problem. The report is a huge part of the negotiations and it needs to be read easily.
6) Good manners. This is where we get into trouble. No, I don't want inspectors to sugarcoat over defects, but I really don't care for inspectors who hate houses in general, use extreme language to describe the tiniest flaw, and make sexist comments or don't acknowledge the female buyer. Yes I had that happen once, and fortunately, it was an inspector the buyers found on their own.
7) But the most important thing I need, want, must have in an inspector is one who is completely thorough. You need to bring your ladder, flashlight and all sorts of gadgets I don't use so I know you are really scrutinizing this house for my buyers. The last thing I want is for the buyers to get stuck with a money pit because you didn't do a good job. You had better get on the roof, crawl around in the attic, open every window, door and turn on every faucet in the house, or quite simply, I will try to avoid using you again.
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