Home Inspection News & Articles

Earthquake Retrofitting and the Real Estate Inspection

Americans are in love with the west. Each year, despite predictions to the contrary, Americans move from colder parts of the country to the sunshine states of Arizona, Nevada and California. For many of these transplants (particularly to California), the thought of an earthquake tearing into their dream house is a remote one.

People who want to become home inspectors, however, must be far more practical when seeing that older homes have been correctly retrofitted for earthquakes - a real estate inspection will go a long way toward making sure someone's dream house doesn't turn into a nightmare during an earthquake.

When inspecting a house for its "earthquake preparedness," there are generally four retrofit items to look for: stud spacing, steel roof and foundation tie downs and diagonal bracing. We'll take a look at each one to get a better understanding of their functions.

Recent experience in California has shown that when a house sits on a foundation - without being secured to it - the house will simply bounce right of the foundation when the quake hits. Home inspectors should look for steel rods that connect the foundation to the wood sill; the rods should be spaced every two or three feet. One should also look for steel braces on the support beams of the house.

Another important tie down is for the roof. Home inspectors should look for a steel rod that begins at the foundation (at all four corners of the house) and extends up to the top sill of the roof where it is fastened with steel clips.

Earthquakes, in a word, bring stress to a home's structure. Another important way to shore up a home is with diagonal bracing, which helps strengthen vertical studs. And when it comes to wood studs, their spacing is critical. To save money, many studs are sometimes placed several feet apart instead every 16 inches, which creates a stronger wall. A quick way to check the stud spacing is to inspect the garage or other areas where studs may be exposed.

It's important to remember that different states may have different requirements for what a home inspector can, and can't do, related to earthquake readiness, so it's important home inspectors know the rules in their local area.

Those individuals looking into home inspection as a possible career should consider online home inspection schools. Enroll in a distance learning home inspector training program, allows people to keep their current jobs while they study and prepare for a home inspection career. Many states require that one have a home inspection license, so it's important to check out your state's website for licensing information
Allied Schools, www.homeinspectioncourse.com

Labels: california home inspection, home inspector, real estate

Who's Chewing on the House? Certified Home Inspectors and Termites

Insect infestations are a concern to all home buyers and sellers, which makes it something that certified home inspectors should know something about. And when it comes to house invaders, the termite is certainly the king of damage.

Each state has laws concerning the regulation of termite inspections.
On a home inspection report, you may be restricted only to the most general comments about termites; depending on where you live, you might have to call in a professional termite inspector. Before you get your real estate inspection career off the ground, check with local agencies to see what you can and can't say during a home inspection job regarding termites.

Despite that caveat, it's important that a licensed home inspector understands some of the habits of this pesky bug. There are thousands of termite species in the U.S., but we'll look at the characteristics of four termite species that can cause great problems in and around the home.

Subterranean Termites:

-Live underground in protected nests
-Resemble grains of rice
-Feed on wood
-Develop wings in the spring
-Dried insect wings are a sign of their presence
-Build tunnel systems

Drywood Termites:

-Create nests above ground
-Infest attic or high spot in home
-Don't require a water source
-Football-shaped pellets fall from nest

Dampwood Termites:

-Rarely found in the house
-Usually adjacent to house near moisture
-Do not construct tunnels

Formosan Termites:

-Mainly found in Texas and Louisiana
-Colony is usually larger than subterranean termite colonies
-Able to chew through metal and plastic to reach wood

There's nothing nice to say about termite infestation, but it's a reality that home inspectors will encounter time and time again. Professional home inspection training will certainly expose you to the general characteristics of termites and their ways, but it is each inspector's responsibility to know the applicable local laws regarding inspections and termites.

Labels: california home inspection, Certified home inspectors, home inspection training, home inspectors

Do You Follow the Golden Rule of Real Estate Inspections?

Part of the appeal of a home inspection career, arguably, is that certified home inspectors work independently without the nuisance of a boss "breathing down their neck." Although there is some truth to this, it is important that home inspectors listen to their conscience and live by the Golden Rule of treating others (and their property) as they would expect to be treated. This is all the more important, of course, when no one in the house is watching them.

In our own homes, we wouldn't think of tracking mud across the living room carpet or leaving windows open despite a forecast of rain. Licensed home inspectors need to treat each house, first and foremost, as someone's home. This isn't to suggest that there is an epidemic of thoughtless, cavalier home inspectors in America, but sometimes inspectors get busy, and the little courtesies slip.

Bob Golden, CRI, of Safeguard Home Inspection in Roswell, Ga., wrote on this topic in the Sept./Oct. issue of the National Association of Home Inspector's (NAHI) magazine NAHI Forum. He wrote about his practice of checking for anti-tip brackets behind ovens. The process involves opening the oven door and tilting the oven forward with a push from the back. Recently, a homeowner spotted Golden during an inspection and become angry, mistakenly thinking he was mistreating the appliance. The incident reminded Golden that certified home inspectors must go to great lengths to make sure their inspections demonstrate respect for private property.

Golden noted his way of conducting respectful home inspections: "I am so mindful of being careful with a homeowner's property that I make an imaginative presumption that my actions are being monitored by a hidden camera. I always think to myself: How would this look if I were being watched right now?"

In addition to the Golden Rule, individuals considering a home inspection school should carefully research their options online. Potential home inspection students should also become frequent visitors to industry trade group websites like NAHI and the National Association of Certified Home Inspectors (NACHI). Armed with home inspector training, knowledge of the Golden Rule and the resources of home inspection trade groups, how can anyone go wrong?

Labels: california home inspection, Certified home inspectors, home inspection, home inspection career