Taking Apart the Inspection Report

On Friday I received two inspection reports on homes that are getting ready to go on the market. Both are older homes, one has been totally renovated and is vacant, one is occupied. Both inspection reports came in with some items that need action and items that should be left "as is" - but how do you decide what to do and what not to do? Your agent should go through the report with you carefully - remember, electrical, mechanical and plumbing issues need to be taken care of.

On both reports there were notations by the inspector that there were no GFCI (Ground Fault Circuit Interrupt) plugs - these are the plugs that are now required anywhere near water sources like bathrooms and kitchens and trip to avoid electrical shock. In the home that had been renovated in the new bathrooms and the new kitchen these plugs must be installed, in the older home, there is no requirement for the owner to change them. The reason is simple, to change the plugs in the older home is an upgrade - there were no GFCI plugs originally, the old plugs are fine (even the ones that are two pronged!). In the renovated house, when a renovation is done, these plugs must be upgraded - it's comparable to a new build where these are required.

Both inspection reports noted that the grading around the house may not be sloped properly away from the house. Very rarely do we see a report any more that does not mention grading - I'm beginning to believe that more and more inspectors are doing this as a precaution. Both reports also stated that downspouts needed to be routed away from the house. In this item, if there have been water problems in the basement that certainly could be the cause - if water doesn't flow away from the house, it will seep through the foundation and cause these water stains. If there has never been water, grading is not an issue. Routing the downspouts away from the house is as simple as going to your local hardware store and buying some flexible hose extensions, and clamping them on to the end of the downspouts - cheap and easy fix.

Recently, we sold a home that did show water encroachment in the crawl space (there was no basement) and it was definately from grading. At that point, the buyer's agent wanted to call a water remediation company like Sta-Dry to Be-Dry but that would have been a disaster. Most waterproofing companies will not only recommend re-grading but will recommend fixes like French Drains and sump pumps which are extremely expensive to install. We called a landscaping company that also does regrading and got an estimate of $700 to regrade close to the house and an additional $1,100 to remove railroad ties around the flower beds that were starting to deteriorate and replacing them with new treated wood borders. We offered to pay 1/2 of the re-grade ($350) and none of the additional $1,100 as this was an upgrade! Disaster averted and a credit of only $350 to the buyer at closing.

Back to the home inspections. The older house has a slate roof, great roof that lasts up to 50 years, but VERY expensive to replace. The pack portion of the home's roof had been replaced but the front had not. There are missing tiles and the roof is at the end of it's life. We called a roof repair company (they repair only, they do not replace so we don't worry about a roofer telling us the roof needs replacement when in fact it could be repaired). In this case, the roof cannot be repaired. We called a roofer and asked for an estimate of putting an architectural shingle on the front of the roof - the cost $7,500. When the home goes on the market and we have a potential buyer, we will produce the estimates and offer a credit of 1/2 or $3,750. This will become extremely important as if a potential buyer gets estimates for a new slate roof, the cost could go as high as $15-25,000. The roof is not leaking and the buyer will have the option of doing the repair now or waiting until it becomes necessary.

One window was cracked, we leave windows "as is"

One exhaust fan in a bathroom rattles, we leave exhaust fans "as is"

Additional items we leave "as is" are washers and dryers, screens, retaining walls, driveways and sidewalks.

There were "double taps" in the older home - two circuits on one circuit breaker and one electrical plug that did not function. Both of these items must be repaired.

There was one element in the oven that did not work properly, this needs repair as well.

Termite damage was found in the basement of the older home on the bottom of the paneling. The home is being treated for termites and it has been determined that the damage is cosmetic. Luckily this can be "fixed" by the addition of a 6" baseboard around the perimeter. Of course, this too should be done before showing the home. Rather than plant the "seed" in the buyer's mind that the damage could be extensive behind the walls, the treatment is done, the guarantee is written by the termite company and the cosmetic damage is repaired.

When either of these homes get an offer to purchase, we have already protected the seller from the buyer's asking for a long laundry list of repairs. When the contract is signed and the "as is" items are included on the disclosures, no matter what the purchaser's inspector finds, they cannot ask for any of the items we have listed as "as is"

So, again, this goes toward pre-inspection of a property. We continually find that spending a few hundred dollars to have the house pre-inspected invariably saves the seller thousands of dollars down the road. One other point I made in previous postings but will reiterate here is that if the owner is "handy" he/she can do many of these repairs themselves. Once a contract is in place and a buyer requests items be repaired, they will require that the repairs be done by licensed contractors!

Hope this helps, I would be more than happy to answer questions, and welcome your comments.

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