What homebuyers should expect from an inspector

I recently inspected a 40 year old Rambler type home and encountered a situation where the attic access was located through a small removable access panel in the ceiling of a closet. While this is commonplace in these types of homes, the hard part is that often times the closet is packed full of clothes and other personal affects. I'm not a big fan of moving peoples clothes and personal items. In fact, our policy is that we don't move anything because of liability concerns and because it puts us in an everything or nothing situation whereas people may ask, "well you moved stuff in the closet so why didn't you move the stuff from under the sinks" or, "Why didn't you move the stuff off the shelves in the utility room to see the walls." The fact is that fully occupied homes present challenges for property maintenance and home inspectors. Home inspectors are not movers and movers and not home inspectors. Now that we have established that, lets get back to my original thought.

In this case I explained to my client that our company, and probably all home inspectors, do not move personal items such as this and therefore I would not be able to evaluate inside the attic. Everything seemed to go well and then I received a phone call about a week later from the client asking us to come back to the property on Saturday and inspect inside the attic because the items had been removed. My response was yes we can certainly respond, and consistent with our inspection agreement the return trip fee will be $$. After a few moments of silence the flood gates opened up, "Why should I have to pay you to come back again to inspect something that should have been inspected the first time?". I explained again that we categorically do not move personal items; after all, even the most plain looking items stored in a battered old cardboard box could be a priceless family heirloom.  I have been inspecting properties and homes since 1999, and in over 2,000 inspections this is the first time I have had such a situation come to a boiling point. In the end the client did have us come back out. Since then we have updated our reports to repeat the statement of our preinspection agreement that our inspection fee includes one trip to the property.

I recently came across this article from Allied Home Inspection School about inspection expectations. Its a good read and I agree with most of it. Take a look for yourself and weigh in on this topic for yourself.

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The days of people asking their father-in-law to inspect a house before they buy it are over. Homebuyers now understand that there is a lot of money at stake and a certified home inspection is the only safe bet.   Despite this fact, however, there is still some uncertainty about what homebuyers can anticipate when they hire a certified home inspector. Here are some of the basics that homebuyers should expect from someone who has received professional home inspection training:

1. Standards of Practice: Good home inspectors will give homebuyers the standards they follow, either from the state or from a professional home inspection organization. They will then go over what will be included in the inspection. When the home inspection is over, the report should include a description of:

• The property's classification (age, size, location, condition)
• What inspection methods were used (probing, visual, measurement and research)
• Problem areas/deficiencies (the evidence doesn't need to be conclusive)
• The possible consequences of these problem areas
• Unsafe areas that will require a third-party inspection

1. Limits: There are also a number of things a certified home inspector isn't required to do. Those include: determining the market value of the property, offering any kind of warranties or guarantees, entering the under-floor crawl spaces, or inspecting detached structures other than garages or carports. These are just a few examples; clients should come prepared with their own questions.
   
2. Inspection Agreement: This is what home inspectors think of as their "contract" with homebuyers. After going through the standards of practice, the homebuyer's expectations, the home inspector's restrictions, and any other items unique to the situation, homebuyer's must sign this agreement before the home inspection begins. The signed agreement should generally include:

• Name of the certified home inspector
• The property's address
• Date of the inspection Cost of the inspection and the method of payment
• Information on dispute resolution resources
  

Finally, homebuyers shouldn't expect a home inspector to assign blame for defects. Their job is to identify problems in the house, note them accordingly, but not to pass judgments.