I can't find previous posts on re-inspections. Below paragraph is one of several on my certifications page.

The home inspector is under no obligation to make amendments/modifications or updates or to verify or inspect repairs or alterations based on new information made available after the home inspection is completed.

I have yet to do a re-inspection.

I inspected a $100,000 home recently that probably had $20,000+/- in problems that included practically everything except the roof. Borrower emailed, will need a re-inspection very soon as sellers have just about completed all repairs, will need a mold inspection also. I haven’t responded yet but I need to soon.

Hi Dan,

I just replied to this subject in another post. Check new posts.

If you haven't done a reinspection yet, you'll have to decide if you're going to do them at all.

I hate doing them, but I do them. I do try and discourage the clients from hiring me to do them, but if they have their heart set on it then I'll do it.

The key is to follow their repair addendum or whatever aggreement they have made with the seller. Read it carefully. Make sure you understand what they are agreeing to. You're not inspecting per the SOP at this point. You got to understand this or you will get yourself in trouble.

That's what makes reinspections so tricky.

Chris, Oregon

I have gathered this from Inspection News over time. Most I believe is from EC and WC Jerry's. Take what you need.

.......... Home Inspection does not do Re-inspections.
Re-inspections are not recommended as ........ Home Inspection after reviewing the corrections refers the client back to the contractors work repair order and any guaranties provided by the contractor.
For Example. Your family physician is a generalist. (Home Inspector) And he or she sends you to a specialist, such as a dermatologist, and the dermatologist performs some procedure on you. Do you now return to your family physician and ask him or her if what the specialist did is correct? No. If you have concerns, you go to another dermatologist. Your family physician is not qualified to pass judgment on the specialist.

I have never endorsed re-inspections because in essence the inspector is "blessing" the repairs/modifications of others and will be held legally responsible for work done without his/her oversight.

If you are going to do the Re-inspection as some here do.

It is recommended that documentation be obtained from the contractors performing the repairs for any applicable warranties or guarantees.
Licensed Contractor should provide you with the following.
-provide you with the written quotes for the work to be done. (Details on materials etc. Quality?)
- provide you with the written work order stating what was done.
- provide you with the written invoice marked "Paid In Full",
- provide you with the company name, address and phone number and the person who is licensed license number.
- provide you with that company's insurance certificate.
- provide you with that company's guarantee covering the work.

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Dave

I just turned down an inspection of a home that was hit by lightning. The wiring in the home was toast. The family was also having an adition of a family room over a garage. He is concerned with mainly the electric as to is the electrician doing everything he should. Nope, aint doing it. I told him to wait for completion and then bring in another electrician to test all the circuits and proper grounding to make sure the first electrician did not miss anyhting.

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Ted Menelly
"Castle"
Home Inspection Services

To do a proper reinspection you need to see things as a work in progress. If you comeback and are trying to insprect items that are inpart inaccessible you need to state that in your report. ID the inaccessible areas and why. take photos of the areas. The work that was done and then completed/behind sheetrock/walls is where I find all the problems.

Best

Ron

If you have E&O insurance, you might want to ask if you are covered on a re-inspection. My understanding from FREA is that I am not.

If the repairs were not done by appropriately licensed and competent contractors, consider the repairs as "Not done."

If the repairs were done by appropriately licensed and competent contractors, those contractors will offer their own warranty for their work, consider those repairs as "Not needing inspecting."

Okay, now just what was it your client wants you to re-inspect? Things which were "not done"? Why?

There is no need to re-inspect repairs which do "not need inspecting".



There is no 'win' side for you with this.

Either you disappoint your client by not re-inspecting, but you should be able to reduce that disappointment by explaining why it is not needed, or, you may get called back to address something which supposedly had been repaired, which you said was okie dokie, yet which then later failed to perform. The later can cost you money out of your pocket.

About all you can safely state is 'Yeppers, they put a new roof on. But I can't tell you anything about how it was done.'

In which case, why take your clients money just to tell them nothing of substance? You'll keep their referral longer by telling them not to waste their money on a re-inspection, as much as you would like to take their money, there is no need to.

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Jerry Peck, Construction / Litigation Consultant
Construction Litigation Consultants, LLC ( www.ConstructionLitigationConsultants.com )
EastWestData (www.EastWestData.com )

Thanks for all.
Buyers want out of this in a bad way. If the realtor was truly looking out for the buyer’s best interest, the realtor (representing the buyers) would not have used the Local MLS Contract of Sale. Local MLS Contract of Sale gives the sellers the right to repair or refuse repair if they so choose once they have been furnished a copy of the report by the buyers realtor. If sellers decide to make repairs, the buyer has little choice but to continue or forfeit earnest money. On the other hand, Missouri Association of Realtors Contract of Sale is the opposite. Missouri Association of Realtors Contract of Sale gives the buyers the right to decline the property and receive back all earnest money if the home inspection is not of the buyer’s satisfaction (the contract I use). With the local MLS Contract of Sale, the buyer is closer to “trapped” thus protecting the realtors paycheck.

I'm guessing that if you read that contract, the seller has to use licensed contractors.

If the contract is worded that way, then nothing the seller did on their own counts as being repaired, not unless they hold a license in that trade.

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Jerry Peck, Construction / Litigation Consultant
Construction Litigation Consultants, LLC ( www.ConstructionLitigationConsultants.com )
EastWestData (www.EastWestData.com )

Dan,

This would be my pitch to the buyer, to give to their agent, who hopefully is not real stupid (or they may live to regret it).

Tell your client that *IF* you do a re-inspection, you will do a re-inspection, and if you see anything else wrong which was not wrong before, you will note that too, because, as the contract states (at least it should so state) 'the seller is obligated to maintain the house in the condition in which it was when offered for sale, other than making repairs, and minor wear and tear'.

That means that if you 'missed' something, you really did not 'miss it', obviously, it was 'okay at the time of inspection', which means the seller had to maintain it in that 'okay' condition. If they did not, and you now see it and write it up, the seller must now correct that too.

Talk about opening a can of worms, man, I could go in there an open a real big can of real big worms, making the real estate agent and seller totally regret they tried to force the buyer to buy it.

That said, why is the buyer trying to back out? That is, after all, what contracts are for - one party agrees to buy at a give price and the other party agrees to sell at that given price. A contract is supposed to protect both parties.

Sounds like that contract does not, in which case I would love to come out with a 'jeez, guys, you really let this place deteriorate since the inspection, this, and this, and this, and this, and ... all need to be replaced, and it's only another $50,000.

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Jerry Peck, Construction / Litigation Consultant
Construction Litigation Consultants, LLC ( www.ConstructionLitigationConsultants.com )
EastWestData (www.EastWestData.com )

Like I said I hate doing reinspections and I don't do very many.

In my area they are mostly done to confirm whether anything was done at all or to obtain a clearance on pest & dryrot reports.

If you're going to do them, the work is more in the vein of a construction consultant. You're going to need a skill set beyond the scope of your typical HI SOP and in IMO you should be good and comfortable at writing narrative.

The principal problems I run into are:

• Sellers simply agreeing to and not carefully reading the buyers repair addendum as we call them here.
• Contractors doing the same. But in defense of the contractor, when I have had a chance to talk with them, they never saw my report or the repair addendum just the hand waving of the seller or realtor.
• Bubba doing the repairs.

Very rarely is the issue about whether something was done to code or the Mfg. installation instructions; Usually, it's about whether anything was done at all.

Like I have said, it's about inspecting to the mutually accepted repair addendum not my areas HI SOP.

Just so you know, I have no broiler plated disclaimers, disclosures or limitation of liability statements when I write my reinspection reports.

You need to think in terms of giving advice, not giving the client some wording that acts as some kind of assurance.

Chris, Oregon

My shpiel when asked about doing reinspects:

"Be sure to have the seller provide receipts and invoices from the professionals who performed the repairs as proof it was completed by professionals. Then you have somebody to contact if something is not done right. If the sellers cannot provide any paperwork for repairs, then the repairs should be considered suspect in nature."

I have done reinspects in the past and now avoid them like the plague. Plus, my E&O carrier Allen Ins. will not cover me for them and them and I don't like swinging without a net.

Some inspectors wil say that you are doing your clients a disservice by not performing reinspects and some will say you are losing out on potential revenue. To each their own. You have to do what makes sense for you and what you feel comfortable doing. Personally, I don't like putting my stamp of approval on repair work I can't be 100% certain was done correctly.

This is how and the only way I will do a re-inspection

1. The fee is 50% of the original fee. This deters most from going ahead a re-inspection.
2. I must have original receipts from the contractors for the work that was done.
3. Only those items that have receipts are inspected.
4. I do not look at any other items. So if anything has happened since the original inspection, it is not part of the re-inspection.

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Scott Patterson
Spring Hill, TN
http://www.traceinspections.com

As often as this topic comes up and as often as I read the paranoid, ridiculous responses to it by those who don't do re-inspections, I still fail to be swayed by the points.
I do re-inspections when a client asks. I don't push it as a service. Usually it is for minor issues, once in a while it will be for more significant items. Major or technical issues that cost lots of money (my) buyer's prefer to get credit for rather than rely on the Seller to perform the work properly.
House needs a new furnace - buyer wants credit so they can choose the system of their liking.
Re-inspection:
- Has the problem been solved, yes or no?
- Who did the work?
- Has the problem been solved in a safe, professional, lasting manner?
- Does the repair not create other problems?
It's not rocket science. Clients are happy and usually all parties are happy because the deal can go forward. The Seller's aren't happy that X was written, but for me at least, have been polite and happy when issues were discussed and resolved. People talk, I listen, people tend to finish the deal happy.

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Accurate Inspections & Consulting, Inc.
847/736-9975
Markus Keller

Marcus

You brought tears to my eyes with that ending. Kidding. Almost though. Still Kidding

Seriously though. I do re inspections. Practically never but I do them.

Quite frankly, if it is something overly visible, fine. If it is something I am not going to see as a newly finished piece of drywall then no I won't waste their money.

I have posted concerns so many times about everyone being scared to death in this business. I will say it again. I have building, remodeling, inspecting, doing the commercial thing all my life. From my teens to the ripe older age of 54. Have I ever had anyone ever try to get something from me for nothing, yes. Have I ever received a letter from a lawyer, yes. Has anyone ever received money from me for anything, no, or for that matter gone to court. Why, because it was always bull s**t

Lets face it. If you did get taken to court and actually found guilty for gross negligence then so be it. If your guilty, pay the piper.

Stop with the I am scared to death crap. Do your job, do it well. Let people know where you stand. Give them what ever paper work you may feel necessary. I would tell you all a little secret but I won't. (hire Vinny to pay them a visit) kidding. I am still not telling you the secret.

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Ted Menelly
"Castle"
Home Inspection Services

I think a great deal of the apprehension comes form the Last Man In ideology. The last person to "Bless" the house is the one who will be responsible for whatever happens.

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Scott Patterson
Spring Hill, TN
http://www.traceinspections.com

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Jerry McCarthy
Construction Consultant
www.expertbuildingconsultants.com

Jerry,

You and JP should have this poster on your office walls.

rick

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Don't worry Jerry, you don't sound aragant, especially since you can't spell arrogant.
Maybe it is because I have spent so much time in the courtroom defending clients on both sides of the aisle that I am less worried than others.
I have to agree with Ted. If you do your job well, you can overcome the obstacles others want to throw in your path.

__________________
Accurate Inspections & Consulting, Inc.
847/736-9975
Markus Keller