topic Re: Independent Inspection in Mortgage Loans

Independent Inspection

FLAJenn — Wed, 22 May 2013 19:55:54 GMT

What are everyone's opinion's of getting my own inspector come in during the building process to check also. Would the builder inspections at all the different stages be good enough?

Re: Independent Inspection

Anonymous — Wed, 22 May 2013 20:17:50 GMT

It's always a good idea to get your own independant inspection done. Assuming it's affordable to you, there really is no downside. The upside is that they will be completely objective and will point out everything they see. Sometimes, they will find things that were not found or noted during the inspection process as the home is being built.

I would definitely do it if you can afford it. We are lucky in that my father in law, who was an engineer and also built houses for many years, has had his eyes on our home as it's being built since the beginning. But as far as radon tests, and other things that he can't do upon the house's completion -- we're going to have our own inspector do that.

Re: Independent Inspection

Anonymous — Wed, 22 May 2013 20:23:54 GMT

Not sure how true it is but I've heard that some builders will not allow outside inspectors. Inspections are done by the city anyway, so it should really be a unbiased 3rd party , but who knows. Once you close on the house, you can have an inspection done and get anything needed repaired by the builder (all new builds come with a home warranty). Of course an inspection after the fact won't see any framing, electrical or plumbing issues that may not have been done propertly.

Re: Independent Inspection

Anonymous — Wed, 22 May 2013 20:33:44 GMT

Municipal inspectors aren't as thorough as private inspectors. Someone working for the municipality has a lot of work to get done, and they're simply making sure the work is "up to code." Independant inspectors usually take a lot more time, they look at the quality of the work that was done, and they anticipate any issues that may come up that might not be covered by warranty. The work may be compliant with code, but not up to the quality of a newly built home, and that's not something a city inspector will care about.

I'm not completely sure, but i believe city inspectors are not liable for any issues they either overlook or don't find. And in most cases, they're not going to test furnaces, appliances, go up into the attic, and so forth - they're usually done before electricity is turned on. There are always human errors - both from the builder and inspector. I just think it's a good idea to get someone who will spend a few hours looking the house over thoroughly.

One of the first things we asked is whether our builder allowed our own inspections to be done, and they said yes. I don't think i'd build with a company that said no.

Re: Independent Inspection

Anonymous — Wed, 22 May 2013 20:47:26 GMT

@Anonymous wrote:
The work may be compliant with code, but not up to the quality of a newly built home, and that's not something a city inspector will care about.

One of the first things we asked is whether our builder allowed our own inspections to be done, and they said yes. I don't think i'd build with a company that said no.

The builder may not care much either...or maybe I shouldn't say not care, but maybe not willing to do anything above and beyond code compliance.

As for not going thru a builder that won't allow inspections, I agree...it would be awfully fishy if they didn't allow it, but at the same time depending on the market, you may not have much choice if you want to be in a certain area and at a certain price point.