OT. Home inspections

My wife's Dad passed away back in may and we have the job of selling his 11 year old house. Just had a buyer have a inspection done and it is comming back with problems we know do not exist and the way things are written in the report we just recieved from the realator he does not know anything about construction. His report is going to cause problems down the road for any other potential buyers. My question is how do we challange his report and get it corrected? This is in Ohio in a town of about 10,000 people. Trusses are not in a basement. All these problems are keeping me from getting my machinery ready for sale that I rebuild to sell to the Amish.

Are you sure there are no trusses used in basements. They are used on many homes in place of solid beams.

Been out of the trade for some time now, and have no info on what the situation is in your state; that said, questions come to mind:
(A) Inspectors licensed by state or professional organization, or can anyone there call themselves home inspectors??
(B) Qualifications, experience of their inspector??
(C) Other inspections he/she"s done?? (Realtors" tame inspector to drive prices down??).
(D) Your own inspection to rebut/cast doubt upon validity of original inspection (probably quickest and cheapest).
Formal complaint to any State/Professional organization if your inspector finds original seriously deficient/in error (almost certainly waste of time, but establishes record).
Did you follow inspector when he was at house both to witness what he found and to gauge his/her experience/competence??
These can be he said-she said situations; inspections are often individual judgment decisions. With sympathy, Bud

These are beams with joist on them for floor, no trusses

A hired home inspector is paid for and furnishes a supposedly "expert" OPINION soooooo one way to challenge it is to hire your own inspector and obtain his "expert" opinion.......Only trouble is what if he agrees !!!!!!!!!!!! If he disagrees then its "the battle of the experts"

Theres no harm in getting a "second opinion" and then if you like it your job is to convince others (like prospective buyers) its more accurate and correct and give sound reasons why such as your inspector is more experienced and knowledgeable etc etc. If I were a potential buyer Id hire my own, however, instead of blindly trusting one the homeowner hired.

Not much you can do if you dont like or agree with an inspectors opinion other then prove it wrong but wary buyers may be naturally suspicious.

Im assuming youre talking hired inspectors NOT city or county??? If a government official rendered the opinion (regardless if right or wrong as rain) you dislike THEN YOURE REALLY SCREWED and my advice above may not work at all

John T

NO, was not at house. Report comming from realator said truss problems in basement, there are no trusses in the basement. I have done enough work that if my health would allow to be able to completely build a house. Never hear of these people, haven't even been told who they are. So do not know if licenced or not or ever did any inspections. How do you find the agency to file a complaint? Or even to find out if licenced?

Responsible inspector should be willing to meet at house to point out his findings; responsible one will do so for reasonable or no cost-others will quote exorbitant discussion/illustration fee to avoid discussion.
Your State has a .gov website; start there, and Google home inspection firms/home inspectors in your locality and see what their websites say about professional qualifications/memberships.
And Google whoever did your inspections; check the name and/or firm name with local BBB and with County Consumer Affairs/Consumer Protection Office, if any, and with State such office, both for earlier complaints and for where to go to find
State registration etc if required. That's a start.

Don't pay any attention to what your agent says is in the report. Get a copy and read it for yourself!

I've gotten some work from sellers who's houses have failed a home inspection. Usually what the inspectors say is wrong, is actually wrong. Sometimes they can't find anything serious to report so they start nit picking. Sometimes I think they think they need to find something wrong to justify their fee.
I'd say at this point it's premature to file a complaint.

Get a copy of the report and post specifics here... and why you disagree with the inspector. Once we have that info we might be able to help you.

Another reason its important to have a copy of the report is the buyer can't come back on you later for something that passed the inspection.

Just re-read your post. Sounds like you have the report. Thats good. Posts specifics not just he dorsn't know what he's talking about.

Since this is a newer home, does it have MDF beams? I've heard those referred to as trusses before.

Regardless, if this buyer has paid for an inspection and this is what they came up with, I do not think this has any bearing on your whatsoever. If you don't like his price, tell him to take a hike and wait for another buyer. You could hire your own inspection done and if they tell you there's a problem, then you can be concerned.

When I was doing home inspections I always tried to make sure that the person that I was doing the inspection for was there so I could show them what I found,if I found anything.

Over the past 10 years a local guy has hung out his shingle as a home inspector. He's the guy I bought my house from...and after the closing on my house [no inspection required, and no licensed inspectors back in '94], I found so much shoddy work done on that house...all done by the guy who's NOW such an "expert" that he's a home inspector! As a first-time home buyer, I wasn't experienced enough to know what to inspect; I just figured that when someone said that all the plumbing was NEW, I could assume that it was done RIGHT! Not to mention discovering that the septic tank lies UNDER the slab he poured for the addition he built himself! [Board of health has no records on septic layouts on homes built in '73, as mine was.]

Based upon MY experience, these home inspectors are just one more scam to part you and your money.

Your best option,spend the 200 bucks and hire your own inspector,and go from there.

OK, did the buyer call off the deal because of the inspection? Then it's a done deal. The buyer might have had cold feet anyway and just used the inspection report as an excuse to back out. This inspection has NOTHING to do with future prospective buyers, because no inspector is going to let someone see his report for free, although the buyer's agent might be aware of the report. YOUR agent has no business disclosing the report.

Now, that's not to say you should do nothing. Call the inspector up and ask for clarification on the report. He should be more than willing to discuss any of the items on the report. It's quite possible he saw a real problem that needs to be corrected.

I have a fairly low opinion of home inspectors. We paid for an inspection of our home before we bought it, and it was pretty much worthless. The inspector made no mention of the poor roof condition and rotting fascia boards, even though they were clearly visible and I pointed them out to him. It seems that real estate agents encourage inspections, probably to deflect blame from themselves if the buyer finds problems.

Your mistake was not getting an inspector and then going with him when he came then you would have a record witnessed by you and you could have it printed to give to buyers. Any buyer could have his person tear down the house to get a cheaper deal. The Amish can wait i am familiar with what you guys do with them.

What types of comments were made and written up on the insp. report.?

Most home inspectors are supposed to give the potential buyer a warm fuzzy feeling before they buy the home, or find serious flaws and tell them to not buy it.

America is suffering a credibility crisis. Corruption is the norm.

Over the last several years laws have changed a lot here in Ohio about selling a home and because of this it can cause the seller a lot of problems. I don't use real estate company to sell. I get it inspected and sell by auction. I have the inspection information told at auction and it gets sold "AS IS" no warrenty, no nothing, what you see is what you get. There has been "STUPID" things happen to sellers, example, furnace quits two years after house sold, buyer came back on seller and real estate company. I dont have a problem with someone going after a crook or going after someone that has truely taken a buyer but it can be bad news for a seller in Ohio if the buyer is the crooked one.

I did some reserch last evening after I posted and found out in Ohio the inspector is not licenced and what I also found out is that if inspections are done it is supposed to be done before an offer is made and a purchace contract is signed. Also we were told after we were told about the inspection and was too late to be able to be there that we should not be there. I have found out that we should have been given the opertunity to either sign the report acepting it or that it contained disputed facts that were pointed out to us and we could either accept it or sign as disputed. The realator from the first day we new she was not compent but she was a friend of Wife's sister so to save problems accepted her. There are no manufactured items in the house that a compent builder could call a truss, no composite beams, only solid wood. So if they do not know what a truss is they are not compant to build a house and therefor not compant to inspect one. What it is amounting to is that the buyer did not have finacing approved when they made the offer and signed the contract and now to try to get out of the contract at our expence for there failure. You do not at public auction have the opertunity after the property is sold to you come back and say you have to have an inspection, it has to be done before the sale is completed. I know my spelling is bad and am mad and not time enough to get the book out to check spelling of all words. And we went over the house with a close inspection of my own and if there was a problem I would have had it taken care of. We had profesionals come in and clean as after a person that is 83 and heart trouble and dies and then having a auction the place is going to need cleaning.

I wanted to go with the auction route but the kids including my Wife did not want to because I knew there would be problems this way but you try to have to keep peace in family. The realator says they are backing out.

It was listed as no warentee.

You need to get a copy of that inspection report since your agent is probably required to disclose it to other agents and potentioal buyers.

Real estate agents hate working with family groups on selling a property. There are too many people who can get confused or angry or think they know more than anyone else about a situation.

If the real estate agents are using the national association of realtors model contract, the buyers can cancel the contract if they don't like anything they see in the inspection report. It does not have to be a rational decision or a real problem.

Piecing the different posts together here I'm under the impression the "buyers" signed a purchase agreement contingent on a clean home inspection. Then used that contingency to back out of the contract due to inability to obtain financing. If they paid you a deposit and you think the ispection is a bogus ploy to back out, I would suggest you keep that deposit and dispute the inspection with some kind of certified inspection of your own. If you recieved no money and they can't get money you have a dead deal no matter what the contract says or the inspection says and it is time to turn the page and move on.

Saying "no warranty" or "as is" sends out a warning to potential buyers. I'd suggest offering a homeowners' warranty. It will cost you about $400 and prevent future squabbles, but then you would have to convince the other owners to agree with that.

If the seller made an offer contingent on inspection, everything else you say is moot. They said they would buy it if it passed their inspection, it "failed" their inspection so the deal is off. Whether or not the inspector was qualified to inspect the house, or whether or not they followed proper procedure is irrelevant. The offer and your acceptance formed a contract; unless that contract specified otherwise they get to kill the deal if they didn't like the inspection results.

BTW, I've never heard of anyone paying for an inspection before making an offer.

In Illinois a seller has to disclose any [b:07d2666488]known[/b:07d2666488] problems.
I'd be very surprised if the seller's agent has to disclose the buyer's inspection report to anyone. The buyer paid for that info. It's up to other potential buyers to pay for their own inspections! Of course once the seller reads the report those problems become "known" and need to be disclosed to future buyers.

The selling agent should only deal with one person in the seller's family...the executor.

The offer to purchase contract can contain any wording the buyer chooses. Often times this will include language on how problems found in the home inspection will be dealt with. A seller can advertise a property as-is, but if they sign a sales contract that says they must repair problems found in a home inspection, the as-is caveat has no bearing. If the seller wants to sell the property as-is then he should not sign a contract that includes a home inspection contingency!
In the long run its often cheaper to hire a real estate attorney to look over the sales contract before you sign it. Their fees generally run about $400 to around $700 if they also sit in at the closing.

This is how it usually works...
Buyer and his agent write up an offer to purchase contract. This will include the price, the amount of earnest money, contingencies dealing with the sale of their current home, ability to obtain financing, and how problems in the home inspection report will be handled (repaired by seller, price adjusted, or negotiated settlement).
The seller then has the opportunity to accept to offer or decline it outright, or counter offer. The counter can include language about the price and/or contingencies.

We don't know what's in the report. All we know is the OP thinks the inspector is incompetent.

I'd be happy to try and help the OP with this if he'd post EXACTLY what the report says and why he disagrees. This sale is probably history but the problems that are in the report are likely to show up in future reports when the next deal is in the works.
So Leroy, how about posting EXACTLY what the report says word for word? These reports generally include pictures as they are a great tool to help people understand what the problems are.
Once you post exactly what's in the report, tell us why you disagree and not that you think the inspector is incompetent. We get that. So he's calling joists trusses. People use the wrong terminology all the time. That doesn't mean there's not a problem with the joists. What EXACTLY did he say the problem was? And why EXACTLY do you think its not a problem?

I recommend NOT signing a dual agency contract with your agent. By definition the selling agent represents the seller. It is not in the seller's best interest to have their agent also represent the buyer.
As much as I dislike dealing with lawyers I strongly recommend that sellers at least talk to a real estate attorney before they list a property.

(quoted from post at 15:00:56 09/21/10) If the seller made an offer contingent on inspection, everything else you say is moot. They said they would buy it if it passed their inspection, it "failed" their inspection so the deal is off. Whether or not the inspector was qualified to inspect the house, or whether or not they followed proper procedure is irrelevant. The offer and your acceptance formed a contract; unless that contract specified otherwise they get to kill the deal if they didn't like the inspection results.

BTW, I've never heard of anyone paying for an inspection before making an offer.

Click to expand...

I agree 100%

In Kansas there is a standard "reveal" statement that the seller signs off on. You can plead ignorance (in this case it was the parent's home and you have no idea what issues it has), but with the inspection report that tells you what is wrong you have to reveal what the report disclosed to you. You could get your own inspector that says it isn't an issue but you can't say "we just won't tell anyone that".

If you and your seller agent KNOW the electrical system is bad, there are termites in the basement and the furnace has a carbon monoxide leak you are required by law to reveal it. Three months later the realestate agent and the sellers could find themselves in court with a losing case.

I agree. The offer probably had the "subject to inspection" clause.

The second home we bought had a "subject to financing" clause. Our offer was good only if we could get a 30 year fixed loan for 6.5% or better (its been 14 years). We could only get one for 6.75% because few lenders would loan against the home and farmland as one unit, most wanted one loan for the house and a second for the land. It was close enough and we took the place but the "financing" clause gave us an out if we wanted it.

Had I have been on the receiving end of that offer I would have rejected it until that clause was removed. I thought the seller's agent was a moron for letting that clause in the contract, even if the seller didn't know any better.

The REPORT BELONGS to WHOMEVER PAYS FOR IT , And May be different CAUSED by unscupulous Powerful Realators...

Leroy, After reading all of the posts within, Mr. Brown has it about right! I have spent twenty five of the last Thirty two years in the Home Inspection and home warranty business.My Son has the Co. now. I could write two or three books on crooked real estate agents ,bad Inspectors(in the pocket of Real estate agents) And lying sellers and screwed over buyers.We have always insisted that both parties along with their agents be at the inspection! However when it comes time ,nobody seems to have time to look after the most important purchace in their life. I had selling agents say "Don't find anything wrong" The seller has no money. Than when that same agent is the buyers agent they say "Nit pick this house to death" Sure agents always want it both ways!And when something breaks down after the closing, guess who they want to "Kick" in for the repair?..I could go on and on but, I think you get the point!! If anybody has any questions just ask me ,I'll help anyone if I can...Jim in N M

There was no subject to inspection claus and no money paid. They agreed to a price as is upon there own eyes and upon sale of there house would take it at the asking price. Now supposedly there house is sold and they are wanting to come back to negociate a new air contitioner, new roof to replace a 1 year old roof that thay say is bad and poorly patched and it is the better quality roof that was put on after a windstorm and insurance company wanted to only patch and Father-in-lay would not hear of that. Then the window wells, gutters and grade of the lawn that was what the city building inspector required and approved this inspecter says all that has to be changed,rooms have to be repainted and a hundred different things that we know are not in need of being done. New drains in bathtub, is one thing. Anything that we could find that would be questionable to anybody compantent we have taken care of. And I would be the one that if it were not for my health and age they would be calling for a different airconditioner that I know there is nothing wrong with and I will stake my refregeration licence to work on anything in a building except amonia on that there is nothing wrong with that air condition. They are now wanting to renegociate the price way down as I am sure they did not have a loan aproved and cannot get one and did not get the price out of there old home.

Things might be different in Illinois, but I am a licensed real estate broker in Missouri. You have to learn to be careful if you want to stay licensed. Cheaters spend a lot of time trying to cover themselves when things go wrong, and they always seem to go wrong for them. Then they whine about it.

I doubt things are that much different between MO and IL. Real estate agents and brokers have to walk a fine line. Some do cheat and eventually pay the price.
I know one broker that always recommends a certain termite inspector. The guy has never found termite damage in over 25 years! I know of buyers that have been screwed because of that.

(quoted from post at 00:26:33 09/22/10) There was no subject to inspection claus and no money paid. They agreed to a price as is upon there own eyes and upon sale of there house would take it at the asking price. Now supposedly there house is sold and they are wanting to come back to negociate a new air contitioner, new roof to replace a 1 year old roof that thay say is bad and poorly patched and it is the better quality roof that was put on after a windstorm and insurance company wanted to only patch and Father-in-lay would not hear of that. Then the window wells, gutters and grade of the lawn that was what the city building inspector required and approved this inspecter says all that has to be changed,rooms have to be repainted and a hundred different things that we know are not in need of being done. New drains in bathtub, is one thing. Anything that we could find that would be questionable to anybody compantent we have taken care of. And I would be the one that if it were not for my health and age they would be calling for a different airconditioner that I know there is nothing wrong with and I will stake my refregeration licence to work on anything in a building except amonia on that there is nothing wrong with that air condition. They are now wanting to renegociate the price way down as I am sure they did not have a loan aproved and cannot get one and did not get the price out of there old home.

Click to expand...

I'm beginning to question the competence of your agent. It sounds like she brought you an offer without getting any earnest money. Did the offer to purchase mention a home inspection? It doesn't matter what anyone said verbally if the contract contains language about an inspection. Forget what anyone said. What's in the purchase contract is what's important!!!!!
I'll try this one more time....
We're getting closer. You've mentioned some of the things he didn't like but you haven't said what his reasons were.
What was the inspector's reason for saying there was a problem with the roof? A new roof of the best materials is of little value if the workmanship is bad.
What exactly was his problem with the gutters? Do they not have proper fall? Did he say the downspout extensions weren't long enough? Another common problem that can lead to water damage.
Grading? ....did he say that the fill had settled around the house and it needs to be built up? Thats a common problem that can lead to major problems....including rotting of the floor joists. That could require jacking up the house and repairing rotten plates and joists. I love it when I get a call to repair damage like that. $$$$$$

I'd love to help you but you need to stop ranting about the competence of the inspector and get down to exactly whats in the report AND the inspectors reasons for those things being in the report. I've read plenty of those reports over the years. The inspectors just don't say theres a problem with the gutters. The say what the problem is, what may happen if not corrected, and how to remedy the problem. So until you tell us exactly what the report says, and the reasons you dispute the inspector's findings none of us can really help you.
[/b]

You accepted an offer with NO EARNEST MONEY? No earnest money means the buyer has exactly ZERO skin in the game. He's now in a position to dictate terms. Hopefully you can learn from this experience:

1. Walk away from this deal. If the buyer really wants the house they'll come back and make an offer with more reasonable terms. Right now, you've put yourself in a bad negotiating position.

2. TALK to the inspector and find out EXACTLY what he saw wrong. Once you actually understand his findings, you can decide for yourself whether or not to fix those items.

3. Next time around, BE PRESENT AT THE INSPECTION.

4. Next offer REQUIRE EARNEST MONEY. And if the buyer bails for any reason not allowed in the purchase agreement, you KEEP THE MONEY!

One last suggestion: If you don't sell it before your current contract with your agent runs out, FIRE YOUR REAL ESTATE AGENT and hire someone who actually understands the business.

(quoted from post at 09:58:41 09/22/10) You accepted an offer with NO EARNEST MONEY? No earnest money means the buyer has exactly ZERO skin in the game. He's now in a position to dictate terms. Hopefully you can learn from this experience:

1. Walk away from this deal. If the buyer really wants the house they'll come back and make an offer with more reasonable terms. Right now, you've put yourself in a bad negotiating position.

2. TALK to the inspector and find out EXACTLY what he saw wrong. Once you actually understand his findings, you can decide for yourself whether or not to fix those items.

3. Next time around, BE PRESENT AT THE INSPECTION.

4. Next offer REQUIRE EARNEST MONEY. And if the buyer bails for any reason not allowed in the purchase agreement, you KEEP THE MONEY!

One last suggestion: If you don't sell it before your current contract with your agent runs out, FIRE YOUR REAL ESTATE AGENT and hire someone who actually understands the business.

Click to expand...

Very good advice!

First time thru this and they did not give enough notice for anybody to be able to get there, I do not have a legal standing as I am only the son-in-law and wife and brother are coexectors and both had to be at work, and realotor said do not be there and after meeting the agent for 5 minuts I wanted to walk away but wife being executor and ajent that was sisters friend had to bite my lip to try to keep peace in family. This is what comes from trying to keep family harmony. The trouble brother is causing now told wife if he keeps it up he is not going to be welcome at family thanksgiving gathering that we have had since her mom was no longer able to have it and she passed away 6 years ago.

I told wife DO NOT NEGOCIATE but she wants to. I said walk away but she does not want to. How do you keep peace in family, Sister-inlaw that is friends with realotor sees no problems in the report that could potentially cost $50,000 or more.

Way to much to put in post but things are exactally as city wanted them so why is inspector now saying they are not right when that is the way city inspector wanted them? And that the grade is to high and all the yard that slopes away from house has to be removed to expose more foundation, absoulty makes no sence. All his big complaints go against the city building code. And Father-in-law if he would of thought they missed a nail in shingle would have shut down work till they did things right.

None of those beams and I am as qualified to do a inspection as they are.

Leroy, I'm sorry I was a bit harsh. Now I see that you and your wife are in a tough spot. As co-executor, she has to work with her brother. And apparently she's stuck with an incompetent agent. Best thing at this point is for your wife to stand her ground: stop negotiating because this deal is going nowhere. Next thing you know the buyer will want her to pay him to take the house off her hands. As co-executor, the only leverage she has is to say "no" and refuse to sign anything.

(quoted from post at 13:26:31 09/22/10) Way to much to put in post but things are exactally as city wanted them so why is inspector now saying they are not right when that is the way city inspector wanted them? And that [b:89ecba993f]the grade is to high and all the yard that slopes away from house has to be removed to expose more foundation,[/b:89ecba993f] absoulty makes no sence. All his big complaints go against the city building code. And Father-in-law if he would of thought they missed a nail in shingle would have shut down work till they did things right.

Click to expand...

Building codes have probably changed since the house was built. I many areas you have to have 6" of foundation exposed. That doesn't mean you have to change the grade of existing homes.

(quoted from post at 13:12:38 09/22/10) First time thru this and they did not give enough notice for anybody to be able to get there, I do not have a legal standing as I am only the son-in-law and wife and brother are coexectors and both had to be at work, and realotor said do not be there and after meeting the agent for 5 minuts I wanted to walk away but wife being executor and ajent that was sisters friend had to bite my lip to try to keep peace in family. This is what comes from trying to keep family harmony. The trouble brother is causing now told wife if he keeps it up he is not going to be welcome at family thanksgiving gathering that we have had since her mom was no longer able to have it and she passed away 6 years ago.

Click to expand...

Leroy, I don't think the inspector is the main problem. Your agent is. Your agent didn't have to let the inspector in when a family representative couldn't be there. She didn't get any earnest money, and she apparently didn't do a very good job of explaining the process to the family. It doesn't look like having co-executors is working out so well either. At this point you need to decide if you're more interested in getting the most money for the house or trying to keep peace in the family. As far as I'm concerned family is more important that money. Your wife and her brother are co-executors. Stay out of it and let them handle it. If they ask for your opinion give it.