Recently I had the opportunity to speak in front of the Arizona ASHI members at their 2 day conference in Mesa. Kinda my first big speaking gig in front of a large audience. Wish I could say it went better. And I say this, not because the material presented was bad, it was the delivery or lack thereof. If I could do one thing over it’d be the opening 5 minutes, as this is where I mentally struggled to get my pace and thoughts on track.

It was just after asking the first simple question to the audience that I’d gotten thrown off and gored by the white noise. You know, the noise in your own head when your are greeted with silence from the crowd after asking for feedback. Your not sure how to react, and that was where I fell. I reacted by talking louder “at” them, which made me feel better, but further distanced me from the audience. But I do have to say this, I risked it and I learned from it. Stepping out and doing what others won’t or can’t is how you grow personally and professionally. Not to mention monetarily.

There were some who thanked me for the presentation and others who chimed in and said it was what they needed to hear. But I knew it from the moment the white noise hit, that personally, I had bombed. I missed the connection, or maybe it was that trust hadn’t been established, or…. So many thoughts of what went wrong, and I had them all in the split second that I recognized the white noise of an unresponsive audience.

What makes this post so annoying for me is that the same thing happened during a Webinar I hosted the other night on Phase Inspections. Six home inspectors on the line and none would volunteer feedback on the easiest of questions.

I’ve thought about it a lot since then, to the point of signing up for Toastmasters. I’ll post on how the first meeting strikes me.

This article was written for the Vail Sun (local newspaper), for an up coming home buyers seminar. The article took a few hours to write but it was well worth the FREE exposure.

Home inspections are now considered a necessity by many Realtors and for good reason. Clients who do not want a home inspection are often times asked to sign an advisement notice. Something that says that they were counseled to have an inspection done, but decided otherwise. Making a client acutely aware of the importance of a home inspection is now stock and trade for anyone in the Real Estate profession. 

Why is it that important? After all it’s another few hundred out the door and the fee’s are piling up. We’ll for the buyer, it’s a built in re-negotation tool. The standard real estate contract has a satisfactory (to the buyer) home inspection contingency clause.

In Arizona, after acceptance of an offer, there are no more counter offers except in the case of a contingency such as a home inspection. You can’t just decide not to buy the place without giving up your escrow funds unless a contingency is in force.

If a buyer is not satisfied with the condition of the property he can ask for the escrow funds to be returned and continue his house search, or, if he still likes the home but not at the cost of repairs, request of the seller, re-negotiated terms covering some or all of the anticipated costs.

The seller upon notification of an unsatisfactory report, also has the right to refuse further negotiations, return the escrowed money’s and wait for another buyer, or, the more probable response, re-negotiate the terms with respect to the inspection report.

In a buyers market, this is powerful stuff that can save you big dollars if the property needs some work.

Having major repairs or large maintenance issues addressed at the negotiation table will greatly enhance the homeowner experience. Not to mention keeping some of your hard earned cash in your pocket.

A client last week sent me an email expressing thanks for the great job and gave me a few details on how the transaction turned out. She was one of those clients that didn’t think she really needed a home inspection and was sort of talked into it.  In effect she re-negotiated to the tune of $9,500.00 as a result of the report, which was a bit more than the anticipated repairs to the property.

According to the American Society of Home Inspectors (ASHI), a home inspection on average, returns about 10 times on your money. Not bad odds, and my direct experience proves this out. Just a hand full of the hundreds of inspection I do a year have less than the inspection fee in reported repairs.

Warning: Home inspections are not a commodity, you can’t buy the exact same report from two different providers. The experience and education that each individual home inspector brings to the table varies widely. As such, price shopping for a home inspection is akin to price shopping for a brain surgeon.

Not getting the best you can afford may have dire consequences to your pocket book and rainy day fund.

Bob Kille

Acuspect Home Inspections

www.acuspect.com   520-237-8965

Poor old Da-wayne, yep, I know him from another “fastener” debacle that almost cost him his job last year. Might I digress, last year under his watch several of the homes I was inspecting were coming up with improper hardware and nailing. Da-wayne stuck to his position that all was well. That I didn’t know what I was talking about - even though I backed up my reports with code references and installation instructions. Now here’s a lesson for you - always know who you are dealing with. 

My client just happened to be well connected with more than a few lawyers on staff, those lawyers contacted my other clients who had the same problems and poof !!! I get a call from the V.P. of Operations, he’s located in Texas but is willing to fly in to meet with me on Monday if I’m available. Monday, Monday, what a day at the office. I get paraded into the conference room where upon Da-wayne shoves the plans at me in protest of my faulty reporting. Ok, I’m up to the challenge, I find the plan details showing the connections and specified hardware.

Mr. Big is looking on now and Dawayne says in a loud voice, “that’s right, that’s what’s installed”.  I give my biggest smile and the quiet little head shake. Then I ask, Dawayne, did you even read the report, or look at the installation issues first hand? His voice escalating now - “all of the hardware and fasteners are correct to the plans, I’ve even brought in a box of the installed nails to prove it. Ok Da-wayne, lets see what you got.

Da-wayne proceeds to point out that the clips called for in the plan to tie the roof down are Simpson A35’s and that the nail specifed is a 10d nail. Wow Da-wayne, youre right on both counts, let’s see that box of nails you brought in. That’s a nice look’n box there Da-wayne, its even got the nail size printed out for you on the side.  Da-wayne, do you know what the difference is between a wire nail and a common nail? Umm, ah,, - well it’s about 17% different in width. The Simpson A35’s called for in the plans require 10d common nails (.131), not a 10d wire nail. And, oh, by the way, you don’t have Simpson A35’s installed, you have USP AA35’s which may have similar load characteristics but very different foot prints and approved applications at the roof shear transfer.

The room got pin drop quiet until Mr. Big started asking some questions like, how did this happen? Da-wayne quickly put the blame over to purcurement and suppliers. Mr. Big saddles on over to me with a practiced leading handshake and palm at my shoulder to guide my way towards the door, kinda like the doctor’s office, a very practiced movement.  I did get an invite back for that Friday, and all my inspections were paid for by the builder.

So, that was my last experience with Dawayne, I’m a bit surprised he didn’t take notice of the big smile and quiet head shake..

Copyright © 2005 by Bob Kille. To read other home inspection related articles or to view home inspection software and book publications by Mr. Kille, click on this link. www.inspectorsuccess.com

The American Society of Home Inspectors is a not-for-profit professional society whose members include private, fee-paid home inspectors.

Arizona ASHI

The Arizona chapter of the American Society of Home Inspectors.

CREIA - California Real Estate Inspection Association

The California Real Estate Inspection Association. A non-profit voluntary membership organization that provides education, training, and support services to the real estate inspection industry and to the public.

NAHI - National Association of Home Inspectors

The National Association of Home Inspectors, Inc.  (NAHI) was established in 1987 as a nonprofit association to promote and develop the home inspection industry. The mission of the National Association of Home Inspectors is to promote excellence and professionalism in the Home Inspection industry; to provide a standards of practice and a code of ethics; to educate its members; and to inform the public of the benefits and scope of a professional home inspection.  

Inter NACHI - National Association of Certified Home Inspectors

The National Association of Certified Home Inspectors (NACHI) is a non-profit organization of the nation’s best real estate inspection professionals. NACHI.org helps a home inspector become certified.

AII - The American Institute of Inspectors

The American Institute of Inspectors® is a  non-profit corporation that has been set up for the benefit of residential and commercial buildinginspectors across our great nation.

What could some of the reasons be? Well, chief among them, becoming known. This may not be his reason of course, but it could be yours. There is also the nice attribute of having something meaningful on your list of credentials and a nice healthy networking experience.

Given the choice, so few home inspectors step out of their comfort zone and up into an easily attainable spot of notoriety among their peers. Why do I say - easily attainable, well for the most part, most of these guys had to be asked/persuaded to volunteer by someone who wanted to vacate the spot. Very few actually campaigned, or for that matter, asked for the seat.

I ask you, what better way is there to become the professional home inspector that you aspire to be? Not many of us are comfortable in a leadership role, but that uncomfortable edge is where life is lived and rewarded. The REWARDS you say? Yes, the rewards can be staggering on the road less traveled. At times it feels like a super highway the way things hit you so fast.

There’s only room at the top for those that put themselves in a position of learning and serving. I can’t think of a better place to stick you neck out for the first time than that of the company of your peers. I hope to see at least two contested spots next year, heck I might even throw my hat in the ring again.

Copyright © 2005 by Bob Kille. To read other home inspection related articles or to view home inspection software and book publications by Mr. Kille, click on this link. www.inspectorsuccess.com

Acuspect Home Inspections offers a full range of inspections to fit your needs. A quick look at the Credentials page should ease your mind as to our superior education and qualifications in the home inspection field.

A full description of inspection types are listed below. Sample reports of our work product can be downloaded from the individual services links.

We are currently undergoing training and certification for the Energy Star inspections, this service should be available by the end of 2008.

Meth-amphetamine residue testing is now available for those properties that may have been exposed to meth-amphetamine use or manufacture. This is especially important if the property in question is a hotel or rental type property such as a four plex or apartment complex. This simple test can limit your liability to a known clean state at the time of purchase or give you the information you need as to the level of contamination in the property before you close escrow. Most states are in the process of enacting laws that give access to the property to the buyer for meth-amphetamine residue tests.

Home Inspection

A professional home inspection will significantly reduce your risk and help make the entire home buying process easier and less stressful. We really enjoy helping our clients in this process customer service is our highest priority. We provide you with an unbiased objective, professional evaluation of the physical condition of your home. Our findings, as well as suggestions concerning repairs and maintenance are produced in an easy to understand narrative style report. The report is generated on site and available to you at the end of the inspection.  Reports can be E-mailed, faxed, copied to a CD or sent U.S. Post. Our office is ready and waiting to discuss and assist you with your inspection needs… [Read more]

Construction Inspection

Generally, you should inspect your new home in three steps or phases.  The Pre-Pour Foundation, Pre-Dry Wall, and Final Walk Through inspections are the most common of the Phase Inspections. Of these, by far, the most important is the Pre-Dry Wall inspection as a host of different contractors have modified the framing for their particular needs. Many of these modifications have significant load and stress implications on the engineered design that may not be caught by the county inspector.  On average we find 16 - 20 code violations after the building has been cleared by the county inspector.  This is mostly due to time constraints on the county officials. 

Communication is key during this process between the new home buyer and the builders site supervisor.  New homes go up so quickly that an entire phase may be missed if the buyer is not communicating where in the construction process the builder has progressed… [Read more]

Home Warranty Inspection

This post will explain what is typically found at an 11 month home warranty inspection. Also, the post should explain the costs of not finding defects… [Read more]

Energy Star Inspections

This post will explain what an Energy Star inspection is and how it can save the client money. I can get more info from the energy star site.  [Read more]

Builder Inspection Services

This post will expand on the home inspection - construction inspection services that are offered to local builders who would like some outside quality… [Read more]

Bob, I’ve received your reports, they seem to be well thought out and very professional. It looks like I’ve made a good decision.     Jack Maxson - Green Valley

There is lots to write about Bob, Gayle and their company. However, one short phrase will do: “The Best!” Acu’Spect is the only company our office recommends as providing the best and most comprehensive home inspection. Charlie Kentnor - Realty Executives Southern Arizona

American Society of Home Inspectors (ASHI)

#207380 Member Since 2001

Technical Review Committee Member (National Level)

Arizona ASHI

Past Public Relations Chair - Board of Directors

Past Southern District Director

Speaker/Presenter Southern Conference

Senior Inspector Designation (AZASHI)

State of Arizona Board of Technical Registration 

Enforcement Advisory Committee Member

Arizona State License #38351

International Code Counsil Member #5206743

Certified Residential Building Inspector

Certified Residential Plumbing Inspector

Post Tension Institute

Certified Post Tension Level I Field Inspector

Certified Post Tension Level II Field Inspector

Energy Star Rating

Passed National Exam - Awaiting certification as a Rator

InspectorSuccess.Com

Chief Editor / Articles

Mentoring Services

Tele Seminars

MethScan.Com

Distributor for hand held Meth-amphetamine scanner for use in the home inspection field.

3D Inspection Systems 

Author/Reseller Database Libraries

Single Family Form Sets

Phase Construction Form Sets

Custom Form Sets

Play the accompaning video on the right side of the screen to find out more about how an inspection can save you money before you buy.

Having your new home professionally inspected by our home inspection company as early as possible in the buying process can possibly save you thousands of dollars on items which you may be able to have the seller or builder correct.

Sellers should depend on an accurate home inspection to maximize their knowledge of the property in order to make intelligent decisions before executing an agreement for sale or purchase. If you are planning to sell your home, a home inspection prior to placing your home on the market provides a better understanding of conditions which may be discovered by the buyer’s inspector, and provides you an opportunity to make repairs that will make your home more desirable to potential buyers.

Are you building a new home? Construction inspections throughout the building process are vital. For example, a foundation inspection before the concrete is poured, so that we can check the reinforcing steel and the slab thickness, an inspection after framing and rough-in of the electrical and plumbing systems and before installation of the sheetrock and insulation as well as a final walk through with the builder could save time and costly repairs later on. Schedule an on-site consultation anytime during the construction process. Written reports reference the adopted codes of the jurisdiction so there is no doubt as to what the process for correction is.

Our company is dedicated to providing you with valuable information about your new home. We thoroughly inspect all major components of the subject property to expose unknown defects, and advise you about future maintenance about your home once the purchase is complete. Our company will give you the information you require to make an informed decision.