How to Choose the Right Home Inspector

Choosing the right home inspector can be a daunting task, especially if you have never hired one before. When you are finished with this article you should know what questions to ask when interviewing prospective inspectors.

Since all licensed inspectors are required to adhere to the same standards, many people believe all home inspectors are equal. Nothing could be further from the truth. If two inspectors were to inspect the same house, the inspection reports and findings could be quite different. Simply stated, some inspectors try harder, are more experienced, and are more thorough than others. For example, some inspectors examine the roof by walking on it, climb up into the attic and into crawl spaces under the house while others don't. Which is why you should attend your inspection, to make sure the inspector is doing their job. Here are some other factors you should consider when choosing the right home inspector:

Home Inspectors Licensing- Verify the inspector is properly licensed. Most states require home inspectors to be licensed, check with your state's real estate board to find out.

Home Inspector Experience- It may surprise you to learn that anyone can become a licensed home inspector, and in very little time. While experience in the construction industry is very helpful, it is not required. This may change in the future, but as of now, a person just has to attend the required hours at an approved home inspection school and pass the state home inspection test and they are considered a professional home inspector, although they have never inspected a single home in their life. The inspector you hire may be performing their first inspection ever.

Professional Affiliations- Most home inspectors join a professional organization to take advantage of the benefits and sharpen their skills since these organizations also require continuing education hours for membership. Inspectors can also learn from each other at meetings and conventions. Texas Law requires home inspectors to complete 16 hours of approved continued education per year. The most prominent of these associations are ASHI, NAHI, NACHI and TAREI.

Insurance- Texas recently adopted a new law requiring home inspectors to carry a minimum of $100,000 of professional liability insurance. This is required at license renewal, so at this time, some Texas home inspectors may not carry it yet.

Ask to see a sample of the inspector's report - This should give you an idea of how thorough the inspections are and if the inspector includes pictures of defects. Most inspectors use computer generated reports and some post them on their website for you to review, or he or she can email you a copy.

Should I Choose an Inspector Referred by a Realtor? - That really depends on how much trust you place in your agent. Some agents want you to use an inspector who does a quick inspection and writes basically nothing in the reports so the transaction goes through fast and easy. More professional agents want you to have the best inspection possible, after all it's their reputation on the line when they make referrals. If you are unsure if you should let the agent choose the home inspector for you or not, then seek out your own.

Don't Choose the Cheapest Inspector - Please believe me when I make that statement. I get calls from potential clients daily. Many times price is the first question they ask about. I don't think it's because people are cheap, I think it's because they don't know what else to ask. While I understand that no one wants to pay more than they have to, you do get what you pay for. The cheapest inspectors are usually new, inexperienced, or ones performing inspections as a sideline. I know of one customer who was determined to hire the cheapest inspector she could find. After the sale she discovered her insurance company would not insure her roof because the shingles were installed over old wooden shingles, which were clearly visible from the attic. She wound up paying for a whole new roof (about $6,000), all because she tried to save a mere $25.00 in inspection fees. The average cost of a home inspection in the USA is $380.00 (USA Today... Friday, January 13,2006)

Here is a list of questions I've put together for you which you can use when interviewing potential home inspectors:

1. How long have you had your license and been inspecting homes?

2. Do you carry Errors and Omissions (E & O) insurance?

3. On average, how long does it take you to perform a typical home inspection? Through inspectors will take about three hours on a typical home.

4. How long does it take for me to get my inspection report back from you in electronic format?

5. Are you a member of a professional association?

6. Do you perform re-inspections on repaired items? If so, for how much?

7. Do you mind if I follow along while you inspect? Your inspector works for you and should allow you to learn as much about the house as possible.

8. What is your inspection fee? If the inspection fee seems too low, you may not get a through inspection.

10. Do you have any references I can speak to?

Kent Keith is a professional real estate inspector in Fort Worth Texas and serves the entire Dallas / Fort Worth areas. He is also a certified whole house diagnostic energy inspector performing home energy audits as well. You can get great information on houses and home inspections by going to his website at: http://www.fortworthinspector.com

Oaks Trees and Metal Roofs May Drive You Nuts!

Something to think about.

I was inspecting a house today and noticed something humorous....I'm sure the neighbors of the home didn't think so. This was a nice, quite neighborhood with lots of large trees.When I was inspecting the outside of the house, I kept hearing noise from the house across the street, sounded like construction and hammering going on at the house and didn't pay much attention. When I got on the roof of the house I was inspecting, I looked over at the house across the street and realized that no one was over there working on it, but the large oak tree overhanging the house was dropping acorns onto the roof. Acorns can be noisy hitting an asphalt roof, but this house had a decorative metal roof and it was LOUD with each acorn that fell....like someone throwing rocks at it. In this type of neighborhood, all noises echo through the entire block. I could only image how this sounded on a windy night at 3:00am! I don't know how long it takes for all the acorns to fall from the tree, but probably not long enough for everyone around there. I wouldn't imagine this would be the deciding factor to buy or not to buy a metal roof, but something to consider if you don't want sleepless nights and mad neighbors!

Kent Keith

Fort Worth Home Inspector

Cool Paint Can Tip

I was doing a little painting today and thought I would pass along a little trick that I do to all paint cans that I open. It only takes a minute and saves a lot of aggravation. Who hasn't tried to open a paint can that was previously opened after sitting a long time and the can's lid is glued shut with old paint? All you do is take a large nail and punch holes around the bottom lip of the can about one inch apart. This way, the paint that gets in the can's lip will simply drip back into the can...viola! No more stuck lids!

Kent Keith

Fort Worth Home Inspector

Home Inspection.....It's a Dangerous Job!

I was inspecting a crawlspace of a home in an older neighborhood and while I was crawling around under the bathroom area, I kept feeling something strange under my body......not exactly dirt or a liquid but slippery. To my surprise as I shined my flashlight around me, I realized that I was lying on a thick bed of literally hundreds of double edge razor blades! I carefully rolled off them and took this picture. The ones you can see are the ones that slid down the small hill, there were many more above on the flat area. I have always heard about the slot in the rear of old medicine cabinets that people used to deposit used razor blades, but never ran into this before. There is no telling how many of these blades were in the wall cavity that didn't make their way to the crawlspace floor. I am always careful to suit up with the proper protective clothing with gloves included, but this will prompt me to make sure I get my tetanus shot updated. They say every 10 years, I'm sure it's been longer. When customers ask why I charge extra for pier & beam homes, I mention spiders, snakes, possums and pesticides. Now I can add another danger....razor blades!

Home Inspection....it's a dangerous job, but somebody's gotta do it!

http://www.fortworthinspector.com

Webworms....How to Control Them

Been noticing all the trees with the webs lately? In the Dallas / Worth area, they thrive mostly in the pecan trees. They are called webworms, latin name Hyphantria cunea.

These inch-long green or yellow caterpillars, bristling with silky hairs, are actually moth larvae. In summer and early autumn they weave expansive webs that bind together the ends of branches. They eat every leaf within reach, continually building larger webs until late autumn, when they pupate. Resembling dirty rags and filled with black droppings and wriggling worms, the webs ruin the aesthetics of any garden.

One way to combat these is to get a long pole and rip the web pocket open in the morning. With the web open, birds throughout the day will feed on the worms.

To plan an effective schedule of prevention and control, it helps to understand the life cycle of Hyphantria cunea. In early spring, moths come fluttering up from cocoons carefully hidden in the bark of tree trunks and in ground debris. The adult moths are about 2 inches from wingtip to wingtip and are white spotted with brown. They lay eggs in clusters on the leaves of suitable host plants.

The eggs hatch within a week. Out come tiny caterpillars, the first generation of the growing season, spinning webs and eating leaves. This first infestation is so mild that sometimes the webs go unnoticed.

The first-generation caterpillars have eaten their fill by early summer. They form cocoons and pupate, usually in the bark, of a tree or underneath leaves or other debris on the ground. By midsummer they re-emerge as moths. A second generation follows -- this time larger and more destructive.

Because the webworms -- in one form or another -- are present year-around, it's possible to devise a year-round strategy for dealing with this pest. Here are some tactics that have worked for me:

* In winter or early spring, remove fallen leaves, ground debris and mulch, which may harbor overwintering webworm pupae. Replace the debris with fresh, pest-free mulch.

* Inspect susceptible plants for the greenish egg masses, which are typically laid on the undersides of leaves and are protected by a woolly or scaly covering. Eggs are deposited from late spring through fall. Remove any affected leaves and destroy them. This strategy requires time and sharp eyes and is obviously impractical for tall trees.

* Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt) is a microbial pesticide that can be applied as a dust or spray. It kills many types of caterpillars but has no effect on warm-blooded animals or bees.

With fall webworms, Bt is effective only if its application is properly timed. Once the caterpillars have enshrouded themselves in webs, they are more difficult to kill. Check on susceptible plants frequently, beginning in late spring, and apply Bt at the first sign of hatching webworms. Bt loses effectiveness after about two days, so it must be reapplied as long as more larvae are hatching.

Always use Bt with care, because it also can kill the larvae of non-pest moths and butterflies.

* When you see webs, clip the infested branches and burn them, or drown the larvae in a bucket of soapy water. A pole pruner with a lopper blade will help you reach webs within 16 feet or so of the ground.

Get your house ready for winter.......now

As a professional home inspector, I see so many homes with problems that could have been avoided with simple home maintenance. Not sure what to look for when determining what items need attention? Why not consider hiring a home inspector to evaluate your home for necessary maintenance tasks? What better person to know what to look for and care for a home that a home inspector? If you can perform your own maintenance, here is a list of fall maintenance items I hope you will find helpful.

Early fall is the best time to start getting your house ready for the cold winter season. Most people don’t get into the winterizing “mode” until the first cold snap, but he reason early fall is better than late fall is because it is just easier to perform some of the different tasks when the temperatures are warmer. Roofing shingles are more pliable and easier to work with, caulk is applied easier when warm and it’s just nicer to work outside when a cold north wind isn’t blowing on your face!

Here is a good checklist for fall maintenance items

1. Clean those gutters
If your house has gutters, be sure to keep them debris free and if you have large trees over the house, you may have to clean them more that once before they lose all their leaves. Many people think, “I’ll just wait until all the leaves fall, then I’ll clean the gutters”. The problem with this is that it does not take many leaves to stop up the drain spouts and if a hard rain comes, water could overflow the gutters and cause water damage to the roof edges and get under the roof’s flashing.

2. Inspect your roof and repair shingles
Perform necessary repairs to cracked and torn shingles. Use roofing cement to seal in areas that you feel may cause leaks and to secure shingles that you may feel will blow off in high winds. Also make sure tree limbs are not touching or rubbing on the roof. Trim any tree branch that may rub on the roof surface. During my routine home inspections, I have seen several roofs that will require expensive repairs simply because tree limbs were rubbing on the roof surface.

3. Cut back shrubs
Shrubs rubbing against the house can invite insects and rodents to enter the house and can cause siding damage when the branches rub on the house in winds.

4. Caulk Windows
By the time the fall rolls around, more that likely your windows probably have cracked caulking around them. Sealing around your windows on the inside as well as the outside of the house can really cut back the amount of cold air that enters your home and warm air that escapes. You may think that these cracks look so small and insignificant, but when you consider all the cracks around all the windows, that could be a lot cold air coming in! Especially pay attention to those north windows.

Here is a tip if you have those older single pane windows with no storm windows installed.

Take some thick clear plastic and cut it to the size of the window frame. Attach it to the inside of the window around the frame and it should create an air space between the glass and the plastic. This will really help insulate the window and keep the room warmer. I have seen people put the plastic directly on the glass, but that will not create the air space. It’s the air space that insulates the window.

5. Clean the fireplace and flue
If your home has a fireplace, make sure it’s clean and clear of creosote buildup before a heavy season of fireplace use. What is creosote? It’s a black flaky substance that builds up in the flue and the opening of the flue. This substance can become flammable in high temperatures, so keep it clean! Also keep in mind that poorly drafted fireplaces can cause carbon monoxide to enter the living space, so always have CO detectors installed in the home when fireplaces are present as well as gas appliances.

6. Winterize external plumbing pipes and fixtures
Don’t wait until the first freeze comes to rush out and do this. Calling a plumber to come out and repair a freeze busted pipe is expensive, not to mention the damage that this can cause. Wrap exposed pipes on the outside of the house and the garage with pipe wrap and install covers on the hose spigots. These are easily removed and reinstalled if you need to use the hose in the meantime.

7. Store outdoor furniture
Most outdoor furniture is made of some sort of plastic material that can crack and break in cold temperatures. If you can’t store it in a protected area, at least wrap the furniture in a thick protective covering.

I hope you find this information useful and again, the best way to get a complete analysis of your home’s condition before the cold weather sets in is to get a professional maintenance home inspection. Call or email me if I can answer any question you may have.