Investment Property: Mold Inspection
Introduction
An inspection to detect hazardous toxins within and/or around a dwelling is as easy as calling on a qualified home inspector to bring his or her experience to your environment, and evaluate the presence of toxins in and around your property. Home inspectors are trained to spot a structure's weaknesses, and allow property owners an opportunity to protect themselves, and their investment(s) from the advancement of progressive damage. Common substances like water, fire, soil, mold, gas, and other toxins and naturally occurring acts of nature and man can encroach upon building materials and weaken the environmental quality of the structure(s). When it comes to the detection of moldin the home or office, investment properties should be evaluated annually to prevent an unseen liability from growing out of control.
What to expect from Mold
Mold spores have a job to do. Decompose organic matter and reproduce. As mold is produced, they release new spores that become attached to any moist areas they may come in contact with. It is these moist areas that mold flourishes, in nature, and in our buildings and homes. What can be expected of mold is that is will grow. The bigger the mold infestation becomes, the bigger the effect of mold on the air quality and character of an occupied space. Mold has been known to disable some persons and has actually caused death in some cases. The fact that your tenants could be affected by mold should give every property owner a reason to get mold inspection from a qualifiedhome and structure inspector.
Agent Air
Mold can enter a building through any opening. It is because of an ability to infiltrate easily that even new buildings can become victim to this problem. As a property owner, you should be on the lookout for signs of mold where visible, and realize that any added moisture in the building can create an environment that is suitable for the growth of mold spores. Mold inspectionsare easy to have done by trained home inspectors, but you can also keep an eye out for certain signs you may have a mold problem in your building.
Rental Mistakes
Many rental properties go un-inspected due to landlords not making it a point to stay on top of environmental threats "on-site". What every good landlord should do is make an annual visit to the property an inspection of the property, and to recognize issues that need to be corrected. One such land owner, who has made it his routine to visit each space he rents during the fall, and make a routine inspection of anything he needs to fix. During one of these trips in 2007, he discovered that one of the apartments had not reported a leak under the sink, and the water had cause a lot of water damage to the wall structure down through the 1 floor apartment, all the way to the foundation. After realizing what had happened, a few calls had to be made to fix the problem.
Fixing it Fast is Key
A plumber came out the next day and fixed the leaky pipe. On the same day the pipe was getting fixed, he had a home inspector come so that the inspector could tell him what was going on inside the wall which had been receiving a daily dose of tap water for what must have been much of the year. The inspector did more than tell him about the possibility of water damage, but the inspector was able to discover that much of the outside wall had become home to a type of microbial mold that was harmful to his tenants. The possibility was, that the property would have become uninhabitable without a quick find of the problem, and easy mold remediation which could happen much faster, now that the problem had been discover. How this example ends, is that the property owner was able to correct his property's problem quickly, and for far less than had he not had a home inspector analyze his property after it was found out that water had infiltrated wall for an unknown period of time. Getting the mold outwas easy once it was discovered, and the land owner was able to generate some extra income by raising the rent a little once the original tenants had left (the ones who let the leak go unreported). The landlord had a refreshed kitchen, a new set of tenants, and a better rental space because of the air quality that was now available to the tenants. This is how to correct investment property problems the right way.
Conclusions
So how do you know your rental property is safe from mold infiltration? Well you don't if you haven't had your property inspected since you bought it. For smart investment property owners who are good landlords too, an annual inspection of any property should be something that is on the list. Like our landlord above, his choice of a fall schedule for inspection is good time of year because the humidity has lowered, and doing the inspection and repair work (if needed) is easier to accomplish. It's the perfect time of year to call on a home inspector to come and analyze your rental structures. Get an assessment on the issues that affect your tenants, and you can be sure to have better, longer lasting tenants now and in the future because your time on the quality of living is an investment in future returns of the rental property. When you are able to keep up with the maintenance and protection of your tenant's homes, they will return the good deeds with on-time rental payments, and accurate reporting of problems. Your rental property can be affected by nature, and it's your job to be sure you catch it early, and fix the problem fast.
Mold eradication can now be completed quickly and easily once a mold inspection has determined that you need to remove harmful microbial mold from a structure. Get yearly building inspections that include a mold and mildew inspection of living spaces in, and around rental properties that can be fixed quickly and easily once the problem has been discovered. Getting the right information from an experienced home inspector is easy once you make the call for a yearly mold inspection on rental properties you are responsible for.
Olympian Civil Home and Building Inspections (866) 476-2056
Visit our house and home learning library
Copyright © 2008 Olympian Civil Home and Building Inspectors,
2008 All Rights Reserved
Comments(0)