Kenmore Undressed

Home Inspections - Gas-fired Furnaces are often neglected

I recently had my gas furnace serviced. I own an upgraded furnace with an air conditioner. I knew something was amiss when the darn thing kept firing up and was blowing air for long periods of time. As it turned out, I HAVE BEEN A BAD BOY! Even though I’m a Realtor and I’ve witnessed a huge number of home inspections where the furnaces are called out as an issue, I had not cleaned my furnace filters for a long time. Fortunately, my technician said I was lucky and no damage had been done. He serviced my furnace, charged me $200 then lectured me on the value of simply cleaning my furnace filters every couple of months………….yikes! After such a traumatic experience, I consulted Stephan Cancler, my favorite inspector (see my previous post) to find out just how big a problem furnaces pose to the average home owner. I told him about my recent experience. He gave me the “inspector’s look” and then offered his sage wisdom:

“I would say that 80% of homes that I inspect with gas-fired furnaces do not have regular maintenance performed. This is recommended annually to keep the furnace running efficiently and safely. There are literally dozens of different manufacturers, and although the function is similar, all are not created with the same quality.”

THE PICTURE ABOVE IS A FURNACE WITH A VERY DIRTY FILTER

“The simplest form of maintenance that a home owner can perform is to change the filter(s) regularly. The filter helps to clean the household air and protects the heat exchanger from contamination. When the filter is not changed (or cleaned) regularly this will cause the furnace to run inefficiently, thus not providing adequate heat due to lack of proper air flow. This condition will also cause the furnace to short-cycle, causing stress to the heat exchanger, which can effectively shorten the life span of the furnace.

The pictures above show a corroded furnace that has seen better days. He continues: “A service professional will clean the blower, contact points, oil moving parts, balance the air-to gas mix, change the filter and check for leaks. If there is a crack in the heat exchanger, carbon monoxide can leak into the heat ducts, a potentially deadly situation for the home’s occupants. Gas furnaces have 20 year life span and if neglected, this life can be shortened considerably. I have seen units that have failed in less than ten years. I have failed several furnaces myself due to cracks I found in the heat exchanger either from age, lack of maintenance or inferior quality. I recommend for homeowners who are putting their homes on the market to have the furnaced serviced and to install a clean filter.”

I’d like to thank Stephan for sharing his extensive knowledge regarding gas furnaces. It’s amazing how homeowners (all of us) have a tendency to ignore basic maintenance issues with our homes. Spending just a few moments every month and a relatively minimal amount of money every couple of years can literally save us thousands of dollars in the long run.

Home Inspections Series - Finding the Right Inspector

In an earlier post I focused-in on one of my favorite home inspectors, Stephan Cancler. Whenever I’m working with buyers, I always recommend that they contact him, BUT, I also tell my clients that they should interview more than one professional and then decide whom they will use. This process is no different than hiring a roofing contractor, painter, or carpenter. So where do you go to find inspectors? Below are several large franchise-type inspection websites. Just click on them to find out more about the companies. Also, the sites have a lot of interesting consumer information:

As I mentioned above, these are but a few inspection companies that are well-known in the area.

Home Inspections Series - Stephan Cancler, Owner of Full House Inspections

I have had a long professional relationship with Stephan Cancler who is the Owner of Full House Inspections. He is well a well-respected inspector among many real estate agents (and realtors) in the King and Snohomish County areas. Over the years my clients have been impressed with his professionalism, knowledge and thoughtfullness when he inspects a house. As I mentioned in an earlier post about Uncle Fred doing your inspection, it’s imperative that you hire a professional inspector with a proven track record to examine your future home. What’s unique about Stephan is that he offers more than simple inspection services. Stephan will also conduct energy, pest and environmental evaluations on your current or future home. Stephan also sends me his on-line newsletter, Home Savy, which is a wonderful publication.

If you’re interested in learning more about your home, check this out.

In the future, Stephan will share some of his experiences about home inspections and give you a whole new perspective of a very interesting business.

Home Inspections: To Pre-inspect or Not - A Very Important Question!

If you’ve ever purchased a home, chances are you had the home examined by a professional home inspector. But, if you’ve sold a home (or are planning to do so) did you ever consider having your home pre-inspected prior to listing the property? This may not appear to be an issue. After all, isn’t it the buyer’s responsibility to do an inspection? The simple answer is yes, and if you’re working with an agent who doesn’t recommend you hire an inspector to check out the house, you may be working with the wrong agent. But you should know that there has always been a huge debate among real estate professionals regarding pre-inspections. Here’s how the pro and con arguments usually play out:

Pro pre-inspection: An inspection may reveal latent or hidden defects that can be resolved before selling the house. An inspection may confirm defects that the seller is already aware of such as a failing roof, aging furnace or problems in a crawl space. The seller can choose to repair or adjust the price of the home based on the inspection in order to head off work orders requested by the buyers. The seller can feel confident that they’ve “done the right thing” by disclosing what was found in the inspection.

Con pre-inspection: Many brokers (and legal experts) believe that once a seller chooses to sell his/her home, they should not go looking for problems BECAUSE IF THEY FIND PROBLEMS, THEN THEY MUST DISCLOSE THEM! Why open a can of worms by finding out something you truly don’t know about your house? Some agents believe that they represent the clients, not the house; therefore, what benefit is it to the seller to have a pre-inspection at all? Many brokers believe that (as mentioned above) it is entirely up to the buyer to have the home inspected. If the buyer’s inspector discovers issues, then it’s up to the buyer to negotiate a solution………….Hey, this is confusing!!!

In June of 2007 Ardell Dellaloggia, the principal writer for the informative and successful blog, Rain City Guide (www.raincityguide.com), wrote a post entitled: “Should a seller have their home pre-inspected?” There were quite a number of real estate agents and several inspectors who wrote in to express some fairly strong opinions about pre-inspections. Opinions were more on the side of not doing the pre-inspection mainly because agents fear that advising an inspection can trigger a huge number of liability and disclosure issues. One even indicated that sellers can often pay twice for a repair uncovered by the pre-inspection because the buyer comes up with other issues that cost the seller more money.

Here’s what I think:

1) During 2005-2007, when the market was clearly a sellers paradise, buyers were being muscled into doing their own pre-inspections before offers were even reviewed. Basically, when the market is hot, sellers have a take it or leave it attitude.

2) Now, things have clearly changed. With huge inventories, tougher lending practices and more patient buyers, the sellers find themselves in a difficult position. I know from my own transactions and those of my fellow listing agents, that the buyers are asking for more repairs, work orders and compensation for property defects.

3) Every property and situation requires careful consideration, but I believe sellers should have their homes pre-inspected. The seller needs to know this though: expect the buyers to do an inspection anyway. I believe the advantages outweigh the risk when the buyer’s inspector comes up with a report indicating that everything is “defective” or needs repair. The seller can then present an “expert’s opinion” as to the voracity of the buyer’s claims and a reasonable solution can be negotiated.

Finally, I used to do a large number of sales through 3rd party relocation companies. Whenever I listed a home for a seller moving out-of-state, it was common that the relocation company would have the home inspected (sometimes more than once) before going on the market. There were several instances when the buyers did, indeed, find problems with a home that the pre-inspections didn’t uncover. As I’ve mentioned before: no house is perfect, issues will arise and all parties in a real estate transaction should have a professional realtor help them through the process.

Home Inspectors: Can My Uncle Fred Do an Inspection?

Christiania, Glass House, Copenhagen, August 2007

My wife and I saw a great bumper sticker today that applies to having your home inspected: “Don’t believe everything you think!” As a realtor, several of my clients insisted on having their “friend” the contractor or, worse yet, their father inspect the houses they were buying. When I gently suggested they consider hiring a “professional” I was reminded that their hand-picked person was charging far less for doing the inspection or that “my Uncle Fred knows everything there is to know about houses.” But do your friends and family understand how an inspection contingency works in a real estate transaction? Take a look at the first paragraph of an inspection addendum:

If you read the highlighted section, you’ll note that there isn’t any language requiring a “licensed” inspector to conduct the inspection. It even says that the buyer’s inspection MAY include any number of items. Sure, you can go ahead and hire Uncle Fred to do the job but let me remind you:

We Americans suffer from the modern day affliction of I KNOW IT ALL!!!! We believe that we are experts if we visit enough websites or watch enough DIY programs on cable TV. Well, I’m afraid that this attitude has created an environment in which real professionals (e.g. home inspectors, realtors, carpenters, pilots, etc.) have been reduced to commodity status. Remember, commodities are products or services that cannot be differentiated from one another. So, I’m here to tell you that not all inspectors are equal and, DON’T ENTRUST THE INSPECTION OF A HOME TO NON-EXPERTS.

Please note: as of July 2009 “home inspectors” will be required to have a license. The new law (signed by Governor Christine Gregoire). This will be the first time that minimum standards of competency in the home inspection industry in Washington State. I bet you didn’t know that there is no licensing requirement for inspectors today. The only “licensing” required by an inspector is a Pest and Wood Destroying Organism Certificate. You should do your homework when selecting an inspector. I highly recommend inspectors who hold themselves to high ethical and professional standards. You will often find they are members of:

The American Society of Home Inspectors (ASHI)

The National Association of Home Inspectors, Inc. (NAHI)

Most inspectors welcome the new law as a way to ensure a higher level of service in the industry. According to the new law, a Home Inspector Advisory Board will be formed under the Department of Licensing. This board will develop a Code of Ethics, Standards of Practice and select or create a licensing test. This is good news for anyone considering the purchase or sale of a home.

Introducing a New Series: Home Inspectors

As the home inspector finished  his on-site evaluation of my first home (hopefully), I was impressed by how easily he came across issues that would have passed me by. For example, he didn’t like the fact that soil and plants were growing up against the foundation. What really impressed me was when he called-out the roof: “I think this roof has seen better days,” he said with a furrowed brow. Wow, I thought, this is the best $400 I’ve ever spent…………

The truth is, when you’re buying or selling a home, the inspection process is one of the most stressful, frustrating and critical parts of the transaction. Over the years I’ve seen the best and worst side of people emerge after a home inspection. Calm, rational folks turn red with anger when told their electrical panel needs to be replaced, or the roof needs repair. Buyers get very nervous when their inspector emerges from a crawl space having discovered evidence of vermin or a failing water main. Let’s face it, we all want our homes to be perfect. The reality is: NO HOUSE IS PERFECT. Even the mansion on the hill has problems. So, I’m going to begin a series about home inspectors in order to help you understand their role, their obligations, limitations and how to approach the inspection process in a productive, positive way. If you happen to be reading this post and have questions about home inspection, please ask. I have enlisted the help of my favorite home inspector, Stephan Cancler, Owner of Full House Inspections who would love to help you better understand what he does for a living.