How Important is a Home Inspection?

How important is a Home Inspections to a new homeowner like me? Extremely Important! A house we purchased in the past had hidden health hazards that we didn't find until we tried to have carpet installed in our basement. Asbestos was hiding under the floor tiles so we were stuck having to deal with it because we didn't have a home inspection to find this hidden danger before we purchased the house. Using a reputable inspection company is important and it's easy to find comments and feedback about companies on the internet in addition to your realtor's suggestions.

 

We decided to get a home inspection when we purchased our home in Las Vegas not only to find any problems, but also because we weren't familiar with how houses are built here. For example, the hot water heater didn't have a drip pan underneath - one of the very first things we had fixed when we moved in. We were extremely thankful for that information when it decided to start its massive leaking at 3am. The pan caught the water and diverted it through a pipe leading outside. The home inspector also explained what a Heat Pump is; to look for dripping from overflow pipes; how roof tiles differ from a shingled roof; and many other informative tips.

The detailed report we received from our home inspector has been very valuable not only pointing out problems and repairs, but also maintanance tips and general construction information. It's like having an Owner's Manual on our home.

Can Las Vegas Foreclosure Listing Agents Avoid Disclosure

Here is a letter recently sent to us by Paul Donohue of Spectrum Inspections, one of the leading home inspection companies in the Las Vegas Valley. As usual, Paul keeps us informed of ongoing inspection issues that we, as Las Vegas real estate agents, need to be aware of. Paul sent us the information below just this past week which raises an interesting question: What responsibility do REO listing agents have to disclose defects that they are aware of?


Recently REO agents have been hiding behind the "as is, where is" clauses inserted by sellers (banks) into their contracts. But this does NOT relieve them of responsibility to disclose anything they know about a Las Vegas home for sale that they have listed.


Excerpt from Paul's letter:

No Disclosure

We were recently involved in an inspection on a Las Vegas home in foreclosure where the Selling Agent and buyers were very worried about mold. They had somehow gained entry into the home before it was "officially" on the market and observed an extensive amount of water damage and mold. But the Listing Agent, through the Asset Manager, had the damage repaired and mold remediation performed before the home was placed on the market. When the Selling Agent inquired about the damage the Listing Agent informed her that the home was being sold "AS-IS" and that there was no SRPD being provided. No disclosures about the property condition were going to be provided. They had an accepted offer to purchase contract in place.


The SRPD is the Sellers Real Property Disclosure Statement. True enough, especially with a fully signed NRS 113 waiver in place, the bank who owns the home is not required to make any disclosures about the material condition of the home.


But in this case it was the Listing Agent who arranged and coordinated the repairs that were accomplished. Forget about the SRPD, think about the "Duties Owed" The DUTIES OWED BY A NEVADA REAL ESTATE LICENSEE specifically states: Licensee's Duties Owed to All Parties:A Nevada real estate licensee shall:1. Not deal with any party to a real estate transaction in a manner which is deceitful, fraudulent or dishonest.2. Exercise reasonable skill and care with respect to all parties to the real estate transaction.3. Disclose to each party to the real estate transaction as soon as practicable:a. Any material and relevant facts, data or information which licensee knows, or with reasonable care and diligence the licensee should know, about the property.b. Each source from which licensee will receive compensation.4. Abide by all other duties, responsibilities and obligations required of the licensee in law or regulations.

Our inspection revealed that the home was plumbed with Kitec® plumbing and that a plumbing system leak was the cause for all the previous water damage the home had sustained. The leak and the damage had been repaired but the issue that caused the damage (Kitec® plumbing) still existed in the home.


This particular home was a Woodside Home. Woodside is currently in bankruptcy and no Kitec® replacement actions are going to happen on any Woodside homes until the bankruptcy is completed. If or when the buyers move into this home and then happen to develop mold related health issues do you think that the Listing Agent is going to be immune from litigation?


I am not an attorney and as such I do not provide legal advice. But as is the case with most home inspectors I always am cognizant of the potential liability that may exist in any inspection situation. There is no doubt in my mind that unless the Kitec® in this home is replaced, and replaced soon, there will be other water intrusion issues occurring and further water damage is imminent. And when the homeowner is unable to obtain relief from the Kitec® class action lawsuit they will be looking for other ways to obtain remuneration for the repair and replacement expenses they will have incurred. The buyers are already questioning the responsibility of the Listing Agent to provide the disclosure they seek. Once they lament to an attorney that the Listing Agent was aware that previous damage existed and failed to disclose any information about the issue it seems to me that it is very possible that the Listing Agent could be held liable and end up in court.

Las Vegas home inspectors are licensed by the Nevada Real Estate Division, just like real estate sales people and our guiding regulations NAC 645D.460, which outlines professional conduct, states: A certified inspector shall:1. Perform his duties with the highest standard of integrity, professionalism and fidelity to the public and the client, with fairness and impartiality to all. In light of the information we possess and in consideration of our responsibility to the standards that we are required to observe should we advise the Listing Agent of the potential liability that exists?

I would appreciate your input so that I may decide how to act upon this issue. And thank you for your time. Paul J. Donohue, RHI, RREI, CREIPresident, Spectrum Inspection Group Inc.8345 Coyado Street Las Vegas, NV 89123Phone: (702) 269-6716Web: http://www.inspectlv.com/

Las Vegas Home Inspectors

I really must begin by thanking Diann Tonnesen for offering to allow me to blog on her site. In case you’re not aware Diann is somewhat of an icon in the Las Vegas real estate community. To be offered to provide input for her web site is truly an honor. Thank you, Diann.

Diann told me that I could write about anything I wanted to write so I chose something that has been needling me for quite some time now; the way people shop for a Las Vegas home inspector. Do you realize how most people shop for a home inspector? They gain a list of inspectors, usually from their real estate agent, and call three or four inspectors asking what they charge for the inspection. They generally do this without knowing what they are buying. Especially with all the Las Vegas foreclosures on the market being sold "as is, where is" this truly boggles the mind.

Can you imagine people shopping for a car they same way they shop for a home inspector? It would look something like this:

Ring, ring.
“Hello, Lamborghini, Mazarati, Rolls Royce, Bentley dealership, can I help you?”
“Yeah, hi. You guys sell cars, right?”
“Yes ma’am, we do.”
“What do you charge for them?”
“Excuse me?
“Yeah, you know, how much do they cost?”
“Well are you aware of what kind of cars we sell?”
“Naw, I’m really not interested in hearing about that, I’m just calling around getting prices.”
“Well we have a beautifully reconditioned Bentley on sale this week that is valued at $35,000 that we are selling as a lost leader for $22,000.
“That’s great. Twenty-two thousand hunh? Okay, I may call you back. Thanks for your time.”
Ring, ring.
“Yeah, Arties Autos. What do you want?”
“Yeah, hi. You guys sell cars, right?”
“Why sure we do. What cha lookin for toots?”
“How much do you charge?”
“Well I can put you in this sweet little Yugo that was towed in, I mean, that came in last night for say… $15,000.”
“Fifteen thousand hunh? Okay. Sweet. I’ll take it.”

Sound absurd? Well sure it does. But many, many people who are about to make what is often the single largest purchase they’ll make in their entire life shop for their home inspector and their Las Vegas mortgage loans the same exact way.

So here is where I am coming from: I retired from the Navy in 1998 after spending nearly my entire adult life as an engineering inspector. I wasn’t just an “engineering inspector,” I was an engineering inspector and instructor where I was one of eight members of an elite team that earned the distinction as the most successful engineering inspection team in the history of the United States Navy. The distinction still stands today where our success record has never been matched.

When I retired from the Navy I transitioned into the civilian world as a Las Vegas real estate agent. After several years as a modestly successful real estate agent I became very frustrated with the quality and depth of home inspections available for my clients. There simply weren’t any good inspections available. The inspectors were more interested in protecting their own liability through the use of complicated and legalistic inspection agreements than they were in protecting my clients. I couldn’t even find an inspector who would walk on a concrete tile roof. They mostly used binoculars to review the roofing.

I thought the public deserved better. I thought people wouldn’t mind paying a little more for a true quality inspection where the inspector spent hours really investigating the home rather than hiring an inspector that spent several minutes walking through the home filling out a worthless checklist that contained no actual useful information.

I set out to create such a service. Now, after nearly eleven years performing thousands of home inspections, continually refining our procedures, attending thousands of hours of training, holding hundreds of training seminars, and developing an organization that is truly unique and first class I can truly state that there is no better inspection service available in the entire Las Vegas Valley, regardless of the price. It is not an opinion; it is a fact. We have inspecting Las Vegas homes down to an art. We don’t do cheap inspections, and our service is nothing like the inspections that the cheap guys perform.

Nowadays, the most common comment I hear is that we don’t charge enough for our inspections (compared to what we provide). I once had a home buyer say that he didn’t think we charged half of what we should charge for our service. I promptly quipped, “That’s not a problem. You’re more than welcome to pay double.” To my astonishment he did exactly that.

It is a statistical fact that the average home inspector ends up in litigation an average of three times each year because of issues the inspector did not discover and disclose in the course of his inspection. In eleven years that my company has been in existence neither I nor any of the inspectors who work for me has ever been named in any litigation in conjunction with a home we inspected. We have never gone to arbitration; we have never gone to mediation; and we were recently named on the Honor Roll for the Better Business Bureau of Southern Nevada, once again, for maintaining a complaint-free status.

For the consumer who swallows the paradigm that all home inspections are pretty much the same and selects their home inspector based solely upon the price of the inspection, they often get exactly what they are looking for: a cheap inspection. But for the consumer who shops for their home inspector based upon the quality of the service provided and who is able to discount the paradigm that all home inspections are the same: these are people who draw outside the lines and when they stumble across our firm we reward them with a Picasso every time. I can only hope that when it is time for you to get a home inspection you are able to discern the difference between “Art” and “Artie.” Have a great day!


Paul J. Donohue, RHI, RREI, CREI
President / Senior InspectorSpectrum Inspection Group Inc.
8345 Coyado Street
Las Vegas, NV 89123

Email: pdonohue@INSPECTLV.com
Web: http://www.inspectlv.com/
Scheduling: (702) 269-6716