Nick,
Obviously this is coming from a realtors point of view, and he does state that Home Inspections are good (paraphrased).
I understand what he is saying about the inspector being an alarmist, but it is the responsibility of everyone in real estate industry to educate the buyers, especially 1st time buyers.
During an inspection I talk to my clients and explain to them the problems I find or the conditions present that may cause a future problem. I explain that all house have problems and I will identify all of them, that I can, and then they will have to make a decision on the property. I never opine about value or worth of property. Been asked many times if I would buy “this” property and I am getting better at giving non-committal answers because I believe that is not my job to influence the buyer other than providing them with the info they need to make an informed decision.
I believe that the realtors also need to take a hand at properly educating the buyers on what to expect from a home inspection. I did say properly, meaning not being an alarmist or nay-sayer themselves.
What do others have to say.
Kevin
I’ve seen way too many inspectors on here bragging that they are deal killers and are proud of the fact. I think it’s a shame because as this article states, an inspector can be truthful about a property without being an alarmist.
Alarmist inspectors will ruin the industry for the rest.
Having the ability to disclose problems in a responsible and meaningful way is the crux of our business, in my humble opinion.
I’ve never found a house that was perfect and don’t expect I ever will. I do make it a point to , as RR says, manage the customer’s expectations!
Cheers
Just maybe the agent should look and see what he is doing wrong.
I wonder did he find out every thing the client wanted and needed .
There are three sides to this story and we have only heard one .
Hard to make a decesion with only 1/3 of the information.
Roy Cooke
welll said
Alarmist
: the often unwarranted exciting of fears or warning of danger
Boy; I would not want to be described with that word, I wonder if that is what was being refereed too?
Why can’t someone just Inspect and note what he sees and verbally advise the Client as to the condition of the House in common and plain language.?
Educate the client, talk a lot and write a lot to CYA, as some wise man once told me.
Advise the client as to what you are looking at and what to expect if they choose to buy the property.
Negotiations of the conditions of the house based on your reports will only help them if they understand the value , of what is required to bring the Home to the Standard that they are expecting and capable of affording.
Any Reastate Agent saying publicly that a person is a deal killer, is acting in pretense, that he prefers the checkbox Inspector with nothing said.
Beware of a Realestate Agent of the sort, for he might make your business go sour.
I guess that is why I will not work for a real estate agent. And probably why they do not give me any referrals. Well, maybe they call me an alarmist also, but describing the true condition of a House does not make you one. At least when you are rational about it. IMO
Word for today, AWARENESS
Marcel 
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Actually it is called being TACTFUL in your reporting process and knowing how to convey the message without it coming across in an “Alarmist” fashion.
It takes YEARS to come up with this understanding but the easiest way is to in your mind know that EVERYTHING has potential to be fixed in some fashion…even TEARING it down is technically fixing it so when doing a report err on the side of positive thoughts…while still giving the message that needs to be given and in the end…stay a 3rd party prospective.
Realtors need to talk to their clients and find out what is going to be acceptible. Some buyers are looking for a perfect or near perfect house.
I’ve had clients who had a nice home and were just looking to change it up. For these clients, the margin of error is pretty slim. Some already know that there is a deal breaker and just want someone to tell them if an issue is present, no matter how minor.
The same goes for many first timers. They do not have a large reserve to tap into for repairs, so they are looking for near perfect, at least for the first couple of years.
Even in regular situations, though, not dwelling on the negatives can be difficult at times. There are some houses where you just want to yell, “Run away!”
Not knowing the buyer’s situation fully, though, this is an impulse you have to put away.
The real estate industry is interesting. I think that they should change the term “buyer’s agent” to “buyer’s facilitator”, as it often becomes obvious that the agents just want to facilitate the deal, not work for the clients best interest, like you’d expect of an agent.
We report the facts regarding the actual condition of the home. What our client decides to do with these facts is, frankly, none of our business.
Some “deals” die. Get over it.
…actually I could careless if they DIE…personally I give my report WITHOUT the “LOL’s” and they can do what they wish with it…just when I do it…it is TACTFUL in it’s presentation.
It is a fine balance between writing a report with suggestions for other specialists to evaluate and not sounding like an alarmist. The checkbox and no detail inspections are just awful but overly refering to other specialists sounds like the H.I. is overly trying to protect is a$$.
But its also all relative to how the reader/receiver perceives the message.
Presentation exactly .
I always feel that the written report is only 40% of my report 60% is my verbal.
The written is to give them the information and CYA.
The verbal is ( By this time I know a little about my client ) giving them all about the home .
What is perfect for the person that is handy and the home could be a disaster for the client who can do nothing .
Too one person a old kitchen is fine .
Too another person a small damage to the dry wall is a major fix.
Every home and every client is different.
Works for me
Roy Cooke
You always gotta be there to hear both sides, BUT about 1 month ago I was doing a Stucco Inspection for a buyer and they had found a newer HI from their church to do the home inspection.
I was in the corner entering info in my report when he started summarizing his report AND to be tactful, he was a “deal killer” and alarmist.
He was painting vivid pictures how the electrical outlet without a cover plate was a MAJOR SAFETY HAZARD and could electrocute and kill their darling little 3 year old if the kid was crawling across the floor and happened to have his hand in a pan of water while sticking a nail into the outlet. His whole summary was like that. Like it or don’t we’ve got nitwits among us.
Geez - When he got done I was scared $hitless - Imagine the poor buyers.
Three weeks ago, I reported masonite siding that was crumbling to the touch. The fireplace cap had been crushed by a limb overhanging the house and the back door to the house was an interior door removed from one of the bedrooms and shimmed to fit into the space.
None of this phased the buyer. But when we found a mound of mouse turds in one corner of a garage…he went crazy. “Do you know what kind of diseases…?” etcetera, and so on. I know that one of the things he mentioned was the bubonic plaugue, along with several others.
His agent and I just looked at each other while he carried on. Was it my job to take him aside and tell him he may be overreacting? Nope.
Now, as far as I know, this could have all been a part of his strategy in purchasing the home at a better price…I don’t know. But whatever he decides to do with the information provided is his business.
I agree with Dan that a home inspector can go overboard in dramatizing the possibilities of decapitation from a wobbly ceiling fan…but then, we don’t need to worry about “softening” this stuff, either.
Why did our client retain us??
Is it broke? Is it a safety issue to his kids? etc
rlb
We report the facts regarding the actual condition of the home. What our client decides to do with these facts is, frankly, none of our business.
Some “deals” die. Get over it.
Jim’s right, Just the facts, don’t exergate, don’t down play. Just educate to allow them to make a decision on buying. That’s our job…
I wonder how many of these real estate salespeople who are lamenting the “alarmist” home inspector are also pushing for legislation to mandate E&O insurance for home inspectors.
IMO, the credibility of a report can be directly measured by the distance between the person trying to sell the house and the person inspecting it.
It is not in the best interest of the HI for the cleint to ever purcase a house.