Sale of a house and un-premitted electrical improvements

Posted by RayV on July 17, 2006, 2:51 pm

Edwin Pawlowski wrote:
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I've found myself saying this a lot lately, I agree with Ed. Don't
waste time & money fixing, painting, etc. Last house I sold had some
minor issues on inspection, one was the drip tube on the water heater
T&P was too short, buyer wanted it fixed.
Pointless to mess around with this trivial stuff at that point in a
sale. If I had it fixed or did it myself they would want to
re-inspect, maybe work isn't to their standard, blah-blah-blah. I gave
them $100 bucks off to hire their own plumber or go out to dinner.
Getting hung up on hundreds of dollars when the sale is for tens of
thousands doesn't make sense for anyone.

Posted by MDT at Paragon Home Inspection on July 17, 2006, 2:12 pm

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workman-like manner a Home Inspector usually has no way of knowing,
based on a visual inspection and a few basic tests, if it a permit had
been pulled or not (an exception would by a sign-off tag left by a
inspector from whatever body issued a permit for that portion of the
work).
But also, from a practical standpoint, if a HI sees what appears to be
non-permitted work, that's a red flag that there may be other
non-permitted DYI work present...I won't say the HI will be harder on
the house, but they probably will be just bit a more careful and
conservative during both the inspection and report writing - it's just
a natural CYA reaction.
And one of the ways they may be more careful is to stress to the buyer
that they might want go down to City Hall and check to see if permits
were pulled for the work with observed defects - which can open a BIG
can of worms if other non-permitted work has been done as well - even
if that work was done by some owner previous to the seller, in many
places it's ALL all going to be the seller's responsibility to
correct.
Another issue is the situation where a HI performing a buyer's
inspection suspects that significant defects are being deliberately
hidden.
This is a judgment call - it's just human nature to hang a picture
over a crack.
But when I'm standing in the basement, and the seller's wife suddenly
appears with her chest hanging out of her blouse to make conversation,
my first thought has GOT to be: "OK, where does she NOT want me to
look? Humm, what's this steel shelving stuffed full of stuff doing all
by itself against that wall by the corner of that window.... think
I'll get out the inspection mirror and the flashlight... man, that's
one BIG crack in that foundation wall back there ...".
In that situation the HI pretty much has to go into self defense mode
- think as though they are in pre-litigation territory and ask
themselves "what to I need to do protect myself if I find that two or
three years hence I'm on the witness stand explaining what I did and
didn't find here today" - and take as much time as necessary - and
then some - to inspect extra throughly for hidden defects, and then
report *every* defect they find, however minor, as well as every clue
to possible problems in areas they were not able to inspect.
And while I try to write every report dispassionately and to the same
standards, spending an extra half hour in a wet crawl space or a 140F
attic looking for clues that someone is hiding something, and then
spending extra hours trying to write an absolutely attorney-proof
report, does not improve anyone's state of mind - I've met inspectors
who "write hard" and "stick it to the SOB" in this situtation.
So IMO when preparing to put you home on the market it's wise to try to
put yourself in the buyer's HI shoes, either by getting a prelisting
inspection so you know what major issues will turn up on the HI's
report, or at least inventorying the major issues you are aware of.
That way you will be prepared to resolve them during negotiators with a
potential buyer - for example by having a few quotes in hand to
replace an elderly roof - so you are not negotiating blind, or
scrambling to get a handle on such costs..
Michael Thomas
Paragon Home Inspection, LLC
Chicago, IL
mdtATparagoninspectsDOTcom
847-475-568

Posted by RayV on July 17, 2006, 2:45 pm

MDT at Paragon Home Inspections, LLC wrote:
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You inspectors get all the girls...

Posted by Oren on July 17, 2006, 3:24 pm

On 17 Jul 2006 11:12:27 -0700, "MDT at Paragon Home Inspections, LLC"
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Go Oprah.........
Oren

Posted by Not@home on July 17, 2006, 4:00 pm

I suggest you check with your local government about their procedures
when a home is sold. Within 20 miles of my home, some towns require a
pre sale inspection by the town inspector; some provide it (with a
charge) if you request it, and some require no inspection at all.
Depending on what your town does, you can make an informed decision.
I'm curious about your statement that you tried to meet code; my
experience is that almost anyone can do an installation, but few, other
than electricians, know what the actual code requirements are.
lorrainecase@aol.com wrote:
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Sale of a house and un-premitted electrical improvements - Page 2