Home Inspectors.

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nizak

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Got a call from a homeowner who is selling her home.

Buyers hired a home inspector and she wants me look at what was reported.

Report:
- Corrosion on copper wires in fuse box.
( Minimal green oxidation, assuming from dampness.)
( 200 amp load center, not a fused panel)

- "Double tapped" wires on breakers.
( SquareD Homeline type breakers designed for 2 conductors.

- Outside plugs at front of house not working.


( Switched at front door) Non GFCI protected, no mention of that. The

List goes on.

Directly next to the "fuse box" is a automatic transfer switch and sub panel. 20 KW Generac outside. Install is relatively recent.

Unit is feeding transfer switch with #6 AL SER cable.
( No mention of that in report)?

How do these people justify charging $400/$500 per inspection and are so incompetent?
 
Its a scam taking advantage of peoples' uncertainty when buying a home. About half of all states do not require a license or any mandatory training.
 
Most potential home buyers these days know nothing about anything so they want an "official" to look the property over and tell them what's wrong. Unfortunately part of them not knowing anything is that a building inspector is not an engineer or official, the report carries no legal weight and it's often incorrect in some areas. It's real easy to fan the emotions of the ignorant when a report indicates electrical problems. Then it's the seller who has to spend money to prove it wrong.

-Hal
 
How do these people justify charging $400/$500 per inspection and are so incompetent?
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Because they're not educated enough to differentiate quality work from crap.

That, and many people are what I call "Wal-Marted". Low price is the prime factor. Nothing else matters.
 
I don’t want to detract from the topic but just what does a “home inspector” do by reporting on a house’s electrical layout? Are they qualified electricians, do they have any powers to enforce their findings?

I could walk through my own house and find faults. Are they dangerous? Not as far as I know.

I will start another thread about this because I’d like to know what the situation is.
 
Tony S said:
I don’t want to detract from the topic but just what does a “home inspector” do by reporting on a house’s electrical layout? Are they qualified electricians, do they have any powers to enforce their findings?

I could walk through my own house and find faults. Are they dangerous? Not as far as I know.

I will start another thread about this because I’d like to know what the situation is.
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They look for defects and hazards while reporting on the overall condition of a home about to be purchased. They are not qualified to do plumbing, electrical, HVAC, ect and have no power to force change or enforce rules.
 
mbrooke said:
They look for defects and hazards while reporting on the overall condition of a home about to be purchased. They are not qualified to do plumbing, electrical, HVAC, ect and have no power to force change or enforce rules.
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They're generally not licensed (or often qualified) to do repairs but at least some of them actually know what to inspect for (IME, those are usually retired contractors or tradesmen). The one who did my house before I bought it presented a thorough and AFAICT accurate report; that is, I already have some idea about what's right, nothing tripped my BS detector, and he ID'd some things I wouldn't have throught to look at.

It's the ones who take a course or two and then hang out the "Home Inspector" shingle that give the others a bad name.
 
zbang said:
They're generally not licensed (or often qualified) to do repairs but at least some of them actually know what to inspect for (IME, those are usually retired contractors or tradesmen). The one who did my house before I bought it presented a thorough and AFAICT accurate report; that is, I already have some idea about what's right, nothing tripped my BS detector, and he ID'd some things I wouldn't have throught to look at.

It's the ones who take a course or two and then hang out the "Home Inspector" shingle that give the others a bad name.
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does your state require HI licensing out of curiosity?
 
at least someone who generally has more of a clue about such things than the typical HO looks at the house before a sale. if they miss something serious that causes a major issue down the road they have malpractice insurance that might come in handy.
 
mbrooke said:
They look for defects and hazards while reporting on the overall condition of a home about to be purchased. They are not qualified to do plumbing, electrical, HVAC, ect and have no power to force change or enforce rules.
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IMO your generalization is overly broad. There are HI's that are licensed tradesman or PE's. I wouldn't paint them all with the same brush. Having said that I've met good ones and horrible ones and I'm in a state that has licensing and strict CEU requirements.
 
infinity said:
IMO your generalization is overly broad. There are HI's that are licensed tradesman or PE's. I wouldn't paint them all with the same brush. Having said that I've met good ones and horrible ones and I'm in a state that has licensing and strict CEU requirements.
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And it's the licensed tradesman and PEs that you would want. But unfortunately the buyer's ignorance doesn't allow them to know that they exist or what the difference is. So it's usually the HI that is the best salesman or is recommended by the real estate agent that gets the job.

-Hal
 
Tony S said:
I don’t want to detract from the topic but just what does a “home inspector” do by reporting on a house’s electrical layout? Are they qualified electricians, do they have any powers to enforce their findings?
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Home inspectors are hired by buyers as a tool to accomplish two things, in varying degrees of importance:

1. Catch potential problems that may cost the home buyer money in the future.

2. Use those findings to reduce the selling price or to back out of the purchase.

The inspector renders opinions, and there is no legal obligation to either the buyer or the seller to follow any of the inspector's recommendations.
 
LarryFine said:
The inspector renders opinions, and there is no legal obligation to either the buyer or the seller to follow any of the inspector's recommendations.
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I don't know if there has ever been a legal challenge to what a HI says. At that point it's either the seller fixes the alleged problem or at least concedes to it, or the buyer walks. So these guys cost sellers money if they are incompetent. Fortunately if the HI is hired or recommended by the buyers real estate agent you can bet that they won't find much because the agent want's to make the sale. If they don't because of the HI, you can bet he won't be working with that RE agent again.

-Hal
 
hbiss said:
I don't know if there has ever been a legal challenge to what a HI says.
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I don't know about a legal challenge because there is no legal clout involved.

I have refuted several wrong electrical complaints in home inspection reports.
 
zbang said:
California does not. Happened that the real estate agent was an old hand (and a full-time agent) and knew who to hire; same for the termite inspection, etc.
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Termite (pest) inspectors must be licensed and bonded in California from the Dept. of Commerce Structural Pest Control Board. Roof inspectors must be licensed as well.

Home inspectors though, no licensing requirement, but they are still bound by the Business and Professional Code, a broadly ranging code that basically says you will not undertake that which you are unqualified for (without going into any strict definitions) and that you cannot be a Home Inspector AND a Contractor for doing the work. HIs are however curiously required to report on any Swimming Pools safety violations they see. I guess so that if your home burns down, you can safely jump in the pool to avoid being burned...

I just went through the process with helping my daughter and son-in-law buy a house. I went through the house myself, but her Husband's parents, who were helping them with cash as we were, insisted on an HI and the sellers paid for it. So I showed up that day to shadow him. I thought he did a great job, very thorough, and he saw all the same things I saw (without my prompting). He had a cool little home made creeper for moving around in the crawl space (no basements around here in earthquake country...). Instead of wheels it had triangular caterpillar like treads on swivels to deal with the uneven ground under there.
 
hbiss said:
I don't know if there has ever been a legal challenge to what a HI says. At that point it's either the seller fixes the alleged problem or at least concedes to it, or the buyer walks. So these guys cost sellers money if they are incompetent. Fortunately if the HI is hired or recommended by the buyers real estate agent you can bet that they won't find much because the agent want's to make the sale. If they don't because of the HI, you can bet he won't be working with that RE agent again.

-Hal
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I sold a home a few years ago and had a horrible experience with the worlds worst HI. Even the realtor and my attorney couldn't believe the low quality of his report not to mention all of the things that were completely wrong. First I said I wouldn't correct problems that do not exist with a written explanation to the things in the report that were false. When that didn't work I sent links to articles and other documentation, and when that didn't work I sent a link to a YouTube video. After all of that I received no response from the HI the buyer went bye-bye.
 
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infinity said:
IMO your generalization is overly broad. There are HI's that are licensed tradesman or PE's. I wouldn't paint them all with the same brush. Having said that I've met good ones and horrible ones and I'm in a state that has licensing and strict CEU requirements.
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Maybe- but at the same time what are we to do about the bad ones? My thinking is along the lines of MDShunk on this one.
 
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