Home Re-Inspections in the greater Vancouver, WA and Portland, OR area
We will usually, at request, perform a re-inspection for items repaired for an additional cost. It is important to understand the re-inspection process and what it does, and does not entail to avoid any confusion. We are not required to perform re-inspections, however, we do them, schedule permitting as a courtesy to assist our customers.
What Items Are Re-Inspected?
Re-inspections usually occur 2-4 weeks after the initial home inspection to review items that were agreed upon by the buyer and seller on the official sales addendum. There are some requirements for what we will do on a re-inspection. We will only inspect items:
- that were pointed out on the initial home inspection report
- that are outlined on the official signed sales addendum
This is important to note, because sometimes, we are asked to inspect items that were not in our original inspection report. An example of this is that a contractor has performed work, and we are asked to review that work to determine if it looks like it was done properly. We do not go behind contractors to try and determine if their work is adequate unless it is an item on the original inspection report.
What Is The Re-Inspect Process?
45th Parallel personnel must review the sales addendum to assess the number of items to be reviewed and estimate how much time will be involved in performing all of the activities that go along with a re-inspection. At that point, we can provide a price for the re-inspection. A minimum price applies, which is currently $250. The inspector (usually the one who performed the initial home inspection) must review the sales addendum and the initial report, and prepare the re-inspection report paperwork prior to attending the inspection so that things go as smoothly and efficiently as possible on-site the day of the inspection. The inspector will go through the items on the re-inspection list and simply document including photos, whether it looks repaired, that it does not appear repaired, or that the inspector is unable to determine if it was accomplished or not. The inspector does not evaluate the quality or method of the repair, only whether it has been performed and if there is still any noticeable defect. If it appears to be non-professional and unsatisfactory, the inspector will note that. A report will be delivered to you as soon as possible following the re-inspection. Photos will be included where deemed helpful to display the results of the repair. We love photos, because we hate to argue!
Use Licensed Contractors for Home Re-Inspections
We always recommend, and include the verbiage in our home inspection reports, for repairs to be performed by licensed contractors. That is in the best interest of the buyer and the seller because then you have paperwork in hand, along with any applicable warranty information. We always ask that copies of receipts from licensed contractors be sent to us in advance so we can review them prior to the inspection so we know what the contractor states what was performed. Sometimes, like in the case of new construction, the builder will perform repairs and we understand there will be no receipts or sales addendum. We strongly discourage home 0wner DIY for larger repairs as they are often sub-par and done incorrectly. Small items are totally fine for home owners to correct such as missing receptacle covers, repairing holes in drywall, etc. We always recommend you obtain and retain the sales receipts from licensed contractors for work performed. 45th Parallel does not accept any liability for the quality or effectiveness of stated repairs.
Our Philosophy Regarding Re-inspections
To be honest, we do not prefer to do re-inspections, because we recommend licensed, professional tradesman (which we are not) to perform repairs. For re-inspections, we are asked to go behind the licensed tradesperson and indicate whether we think the repairs are adequate which is generally beyond the scope of a home inspector, as we are not a specialist in any particular area. As a generalist, home inspectors are trained to identify issues and refer customers to an appropriate specialist. However, we perform re-inspections as a courtesy to our customers to be an advocate for them, because, quite often, we find items as having been stated as repaired which are not actually done. We view re-inspections as a valuable resource to our customers to assess whether they are getting what was agreed upon. It actually also protects the home seller somewhat, because sometimes, they were charged for repairs that were not performed. Over the years, we've considered removing re-inspections from our list of services, but we think it's a valuable service, and often, as we review repair lists that are not completed, we are reminded that our customers often times have no way of knowing if repairs were completed or not.
What Do Re-Inspections Cost?
Our re-inspections start at $250. It usually takes a minimum of 2-3 hours of time to review the sales addendum, receipts, and prepare a re-inspection report and checklist for the on-site inspection process, perform the inspection including traveling to and from the inspection and then complete and deliver the report. 45th Personnel must review the sales addendum and the home inspection report prior to providing a cost for the re-inspection. We just figure out how much preparation and inspection time will be involved, then charge enough to cover our time in the schedule. Sometimes, we even charge less than the typical $250. It just depends on the time involved. Some re-inspections that require the inspector the be in every area of the home including on the roof, in the attic and crawlspace looking for multiple specific instances of an issue (like exposed wiring for example) can take as much or more time as the initial inspection and cost as much as the initial home inspection.
When feasible, we recommend customers obtain documentation and photos from the seller / contractors that show the work was performed. We always advocate our customers save the time and money involved in re-inspections when possible.
How To Request A Re-inspection
Once you have a sales addendum signed by both parties, you can email that to us for review. We strongly suggest obtaining any receipts from licensed contractors that you or your realtor professional can send to us as well.