fema , inspections

daniel nantell · 03-01-2010, 06:35 PM

Taking the e-learning with fema home inspections, and one thing Im not sure of , on rooms that are non essential, how do you write up the real property damage , I believe the personal property you just show not affected . Let say dryway needs to be replaced and floor covering damaged, do you just charge debree removal for removing the bad dryway and floor covering , and not charge for putting any floor covering and drywall back ?, I would think the roof area thats damaged over a non essential room would have to be repaired, as that would affect the habitabilty of the house. If they are any expierence fema Inspectors out there would appreciate some help.

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**Bruce Breedlove** · 03-01-2010, 10:47 PM

It depends. It's been well over a year since I have done a FEMA inspection so my skills are a bit rusty but I'll give it a shot.

Your best bet is to attend a workshop where you can get the correct answers AND put them to use (by doing a practice inspection on a computer identical to the ones we use in the field).

To answer your questions:

You report real property (RP) damages as you see them. (See exceptions below.) FEMA will decide if they will award anything for the damages. Same thing with personal property (PP). You address furnishings when you build the room. (Remember, the only rooms for which you will report furnishings damage are Bedrooms, Bathrooms, Kitchen and Living Room. ALL other rooms - including Exterior - have Furnishings Damage = Not Affected.)

Suppose you are inspecting hurricane damage and at an applicant's house you see RP damage (water damage at ceiling and light fixture and damaged laminate wood flooring in a non-essential room (a bedroom used for storage). A stored bed (propped up against the wall), a set of encyclopedias, a baseball card collection and an infant car seat have also be damaged by water. You would report the damages something like the following:

COD (Cause Of Damage) for all = Wind Driven Rain

You would build a Utility Room with Furnishings Damage = Not Affected. It is Not Affected because the room is not a Bedroom, Bathroom, Kitchen or Living Room. (You might think it is a Bedroom but the type of room is determined by its use. In this case it is a Utility Room because it is being used for storage.)

For RP damages you would report:

Under F/W/C (Floors/Walls/Ceilings) record:
Insulation, Replace 48 SF (to replace wet insulation in the ceiling - FEMA likes the SF of Insulation, Replace to match the corresponding Sheetrock, Replace)
Sheetrock, Replace (although word is not that line item has been changed to 'Drywall, Replace') 48 SF
Paint 132 SF (I am only painting the ceiling of a 10'X12' room because in this example I am replacing the drywall in the center of the ceiling. If a piece of drywall is replaced such that you have to tape the corner at a wall you will then need to also paint the walls.)
Floor Covering, Replace 30 SF (Laminate Wood Flooring is NOT the same as Wood Flooring in FEMA's eyes. Laminate Wood Flooring is the same as carpet in FEMA's world.)

Under Electrical record:
Light Fixtures, Replace 1 Each

For PP you would not record the bed, encyclopedias or baseball card collection. The bed was not being used; it was being stored. (Anyway, the only way to record damage to a bed - other than a Twin Bed - is through Furnishings when you build the room and for a Utility Room Furnishing = Not Affected.) There are no line items for books or baseball cards. You would record the infant car seat ONLY if an infant is a member of the household AND it was damaged or destroyed. You would not record the infant car seat (or other infant items) if the applicants have a grandchild that uses the car seat when (s)he visits.

FEMA will decide if they award anything for the RP damages in that Utility Room. You report and let them decide.

For certain non-essential rooms, instead of recording RP damages like you would in an essential room, you would record an appropriate amount of Debris, Remove to remove and dispose of the damaged material. For instance, for an unoccupied basement bedroom with WDR damage you would not record anything for Sheetrock, Replace; Paint; Floor Covering, Replace; Door, Interior, Replace. Instead you would record a few CY of Debris, Remove. FEMA won't restore that damaged non-essential room but they will help the applicant remove the damaged materials.

To answer your last question, you should record all roof damage above the living space or when it affects the habitability of the house. About the only time you would not record roof damage would be if it were above a carport; and what we are talking about is a few shingles blown off, not roof decking blown off and roof framing damaged.

I am assuming you are a new inspector who has not been deployed to a disaster yet. My advice to you is don't sweat the small stuff right now. You are not expected to be an expert right out of the chute. You will learn by doing. You will learn a LOT your first deployment. And you will learn more on subsequent deployments, especially when you are deployed to different kinds of disasters (flood, hurricane, tornado, etc.).

Hope that helps.

**H.G. Watson, Sr.** · 03-01-2010, 11:10 PM

Originally Posted by daniel nantell

I would recommend any new Home Inspector to take the Fema Housing Inspector training through parr or pb disasters services. I have been in business 2 years as a Home Inspector but made more money with Fema Inspections when the Hurricanes hit Houston and New Orleans , I worked practically night and day , 7 days a week but the money is great. The economy is so slow right now it's hard to compete the Experienced people unless you work for one half the price.

Originally Posted by Bruce Breedlove

I am assuming you are a new inspector who has not been deployed to a disaster yet. My advice to you is don't sweat the small stuff right now. You are not expected to be an expert right out of the chute. You will learn by doing. You will learn a LOT your first deployment. And you will learn more on subsequent deployments, especially when you are deployed to different kinds of disasters (flood, hurricane, tornado, etc.).

Not according to his prior posts! Hmmm.

**H.G. Watson, Sr.** · 03-01-2010, 11:27 PM

Originally Posted by daniel nantell

These jobs are not a get rich opportunity, I have been on the roster for 3 years and have been deployed twice for a total of 2 weeks. Im sure if you look around you can find something better than 2 weeks work in 3 years.?

or maybe not.

**Bruce Breedlove** · 03-02-2010, 12:21 AM

That's certainly interesting.

daniel nantell · 03-02-2010, 07:23 AM

Judge not least ye be judged . A quote from the Inspector General.

**Bruce Breedlove** · 03-02-2010, 11:44 AM

Daniel,

I wrote my detailed response thinking you were a new FEMA inspector. Now I see you have worked a disaster or two.

The short answer to your question is: Record RP damages in non-essential rooms the same as you would in an essential room except for non-essential rooms in the basement where you would treat the damaged materials as debris.

daniel nantell · 03-02-2010, 11:54 AM

Most of my time was working the computers In the shelter, Regisration Intake I did just a few Inspection in Merryville In. Its seems pretty confusing in the field, It seems that everyone I asked a question, they were 3 differnt answers that I got. thanks for your info.

**Bruce Breedlove** · 03-02-2010, 01:27 PM

Daniel,

I've been doing FEMA inspections for a while. (Took training in 2001. First deployment was 2003.) I learn something new every deployment. Like many things, it seems fairly simple on the surface but there are innumerable exceptions, special conditions and unusual situations. Then there is the fact that FEMA frequently changes their procedures or reinterprets things.

Who do you work for? PB or PaRR? (I work for PB.) I don't know how PaRR works (although I am sure it is very similar to PB in many ways and VERY different in other ways) but PB has an Inspector Helpline that inspectors can call for help. Why don't you call the Helpline with your questions? Assuming someone is there to answer the phone I'm sure they have time to answer questions with no major disasters going.

daniel nantell · 03-02-2010, 02:42 PM

I worked for Pb , I heard so many bad things about Parr I didnt bother to sign up with them. I did talk to P.B and they said they would answer any question , I made pretty good money while working the R.I. job they paid mileage going and coming from disaster sites plus they pay hourly pay $ 23 per hour while driving, I think it was coupler of hundred a day living expense, and we worked 12 or 14 hours a day , 7 days a week. Unless you can inspect 10 or 12 houses a day, the R.I. jobs are pretty good money with very little driving. Not everyone is award of R.I. jobs ....Thanks for all you Info.

**Bruce Breedlove** · 03-02-2010, 02:53 PM

I was sent to New Orleans two days after Katrina. The neighborhoods I was assigned were under 12' to 14' of water so I could not do any inspections. After 3 days I was called back to Houston to do Registration Intake at the Astrodome (where several thousand evacuees were being housed).

We worked 10 hour days and were paid a flat rate per day. I was able to do a registration in 10 to 15 minutes so I should have been able to do 40 to 50 registrations per day. For some reason they could not get more than a few applicants to us. I think I did a total of 12 or 14 registrations over 4 days. I was ready to quit and go home when I got the call to go to Alabama to do disaster inspections. I jumped at the chance and worked a total of 13 weeks.