Buying an old house is akin to getting married. Once the euphoria of the honeymoon is over, owner and house have to settle down and build a successful partnership. One way to ensure "happiness ever after" is to engage the services of a qualified home inspector to look over your intended acquisition. After all, as the Buyer, you have presumably been blinded by love. A dispassionate inspector, on the other hand, has not (although we hope he or she has an eye for a good old house).

Once an offer is made and accepted, the agreement almost always includes a home inspection contingency. A good inspection should benefit both parties. For the Buyer it will allay fears of the unknown. For the Seller it should allay liability anxiety by bringing everything out into the open. Unfortunately, in some rare instances a home inspection reveals serious problems that derail the sale entirely. More commonly, however, when an inexperienced inspector unfamiliar with the special characteristics of an old house overblows "problems," an inspection can cause needless strife and leave the Buyer and Seller at odds.

For our listings Sellers usually complete a Seller's Description of the Property (also commonly known as a Seller's Disclosure Form) in order to assist American Landmarks in providing full and complete information to prospective Buyers. As helpful as these forms are, however, a Seller's Description should never be construed as sufficiently detailed to eliminate the need for an inspection.

Any good Realtor relies on visual inspection and information from the Seller in presenting a property; however, there can be problems that exist about which the Seller and Realtor are completely unaware. An inspection by a qualified home inspector (who should be a member of the American Society of Home Inspectors, or ASHI) will confirm or disprove information on the Sellers Description and will also cover a long list of items that are not covered by the Description. These items will be found to be either functioning as they were intended or to be in need of attention before or after the sale.

Generally, any repair needed to make the house functional at the time of sale is something that might reasonably be expected to be the Seller's responsibility. This can be addressed in two ways by the Seller-either through a contractor who will carry out the repair and provide documentation of the service, or by offering the Buyer a credit against the purchase price at the closing. The latter can benefit the Seller by reducing the brokerage commission, but it can be dangerous for the Buyer who then assumes complete responsibility to correct the defect after the sale-even if it winds up costing more than originally estimated.

Some Buyers forgo an inspection, but these tend to be people with a genuine understanding of old houses and their structural and mechanical systems. Still other Buyers have several experts look over one aspect each(e.g. roofer, plumber, electrician, structural engineer).

Fees for home inspections range from $250 to $750 or more. Some inspectors charge by the room. Whatever the arrangement, the inspector will quote his or her price in advance and expect a check immediately following the inspection. Some use voice recorders to store information used later to prepare a written report. Others make written notes as they go.

Inspection reports almost always include a litany of disclaimers, waiving the right to sue for misdiagnosis. These may or may not legally protect the inspector, but they are an indication that inspectors cannot know all things about all houses.

It is also important for Buyers to understand that a home inspection report is never either a ringing endorsement or a flat condemnation of a property. A good inspector will help the Buyer differentiate between immediate needs for repair and needs that may arise in the intermediate term (after the purchase). The inspector should never offer to undertake repairs he or she identifies as needed since that is a clear conflict of interest. ASHI prohibits its members from engaging in this practice and pending legislation will make it illegal.

The same legislation currently pending before committees in the Massachusetts House and Senate mandates formal training, licensure, and continuing education for home inspectors. We strongly support this provision.

At American Landmarks, we feel the time a Buyer spends with a qualified inspector of period homes is a valuable exercise well worth the fee paid for the service. Call us for more specifics on this important part of buying or selling a period home at (781) 729-5174.

American Landmarks, LLC
One Mount Vernon Street, P.O. Box 1050, Winchester, MA 01890 (781) 729-5174