Although a home inspection is always a smart investment, many home inspectors facilitate a bland, checklist style report. Hard to read and engage in, sometimes with unclear explanations and photos that provide little clarity. Eventually it’s filed and forgotten about, with education and impact opportunities fallen by the wayside.
An industry with relatively no change or adaption requires changing, at least a new perspective or unique way of presenting the information. Inspection companies, such as Home Fax™ Inspections, utilize creative ways to enhance and change the way inspection reports are viewed.
#1: No home is perfect. Every home requires continuous maintenance.
One of the most important purposes of an inspection is to show a buyer what’s truly impacting their safety, well-being, and investment. People perceive differently, but consistency and clarity help avoid confusion and misunderstanding. The way many reports are presented and communicated often determine a buyer’s perspective.
A checklist with multiple ‘defects’ running down a seemingly never ending list has a different effect than a consistent set of impact ratings that change “Satisfactory” comments (which is the most positive expression used by most inspectors) into Low Impact ratings that show a buyer, ‘this is a positive aspect’, not a defect or deterrent.
#2: Every home has a story
Streamlined processes and organized flow of observations tell the story about your home, instead of checklists that fail to paint a picture because they’re disorganized to readers. Understand how a missing downspout extension affects the vapor barrier that led to mold and water penetration in the basement windows through a process of organized steps, for instance.
#3: Limitations on reports
Many inspectors are restricted and prohibited from fully inspecting the property and gathering additional information that reaches beyond the scope of the inspection. As a result, many buyers do not receive supplemental records, such as Environmental Records and Hazards Reports, which may have a serious effect on their family’s well-being, health and safety.
True story: Home Fax Inspections viewed a 1,200 sq. ft. single story residence that was 20 years old, built in 1994, on 3 acres of land. Vertical cracks were present on the interior kitchen floor, with small staircase cracks along the wall facing the exterior. The outside corner, near the same exterior wall, had a 2” separation along the foundation. Environmental records showed that an underground river was running directly through that same section of the homes foundation; the home was destined to crumble from the moment it was constructed.
If you’re thinking everyone, or at least everyone you hired would know that, why was a house constructed on a 3 acre parcel in the only small area that had an underground river? They didn’t know.
Even more, a standard inspection report would only tell you that 1) a structural crack was observed, and 2) staircase cracks were observed along the wall.
Which example paints the true picture? Know the Home Before You Buy™