House Inspection | 1 Day Strata Inspection | Open House Inspection | Fees
The market has changed, in some cases requiring immediate buying decisions.
To respond to this frenzied marketing, Ted Gilmour will accompany you through an Open House showing.
During and after the inspection Ted will discuss the findings including cost estimating and remedial advice. You will also be given a captioned photo summary of the investigation.
The Open House Inspection will not be as exhaustive as my regular inspections but will focus on the critical components which may affect your purchase decision, such as:
- undersized electrical service and old wiring
- roof quality and previous leakage
- drain tiles
- heating, plumbing and hot water issues
- health & safety concerns such as mold, grow-ops and asbestos
- rot and/or insect damage
- structural deficiencies
This new service is only for Open House showings. Fees will vary depending on access time and length of time required to inform your decision process. Ted’s Open House Inspection process exceeds most standard inspections by other companies.
Notes About the Staging of Open Houses
Staging has become a fairly standard procedure utilizing sophisticated aesthetics to maximize the buyers attraction. Decorating devices such as undersized furniture, designer paint, light fixtures, stainless steel appliances, solid kitchen counter-tops, laminate flooring and tiling are all relatively inexpensive (compared to the overall price of the property) items used to distract potential home buyers from the underlying quality of the structure and infrastructure of the house/strata.
Often these cosmetic touches deflect attention from what is a below standard home; quick fixes plastered over what would otherwise qualify as bulldozer fodder. These homes are often listed at below market value. Agents try to get all their customers to arrive at these open houses at the same time in order to drive up interest and hopefully create a bidding war. With the right makeover, disastrous money pits get sold at above market value. Very slick!
For homework I recommend that you watch Flip That House, Sell This House etc. on YouTube. Don’t be fooled by cosmetics or lifestyle gimmicks. Make no mistake, many of these properties are staged for impulse buying and would not suffer a critical inspection.
Remember, it is generally better to find a fixer-upper with good bones than a pig with lipstick on it. And of course, location, location, location can make almost anything look good.
Ooops … we purchased our home without any professional scrutinizing!
It’s never too late to exercise your due diligence. If they did not disclose a known deficiency… it may well be negotiable even now! (The seller wouldn’t want to be accused of fraud.)
That newly staged basement may flood this winter and may have some undisclosed evidence of flood history or water/moisture ingress and related damage. This is the time to find out exactly what you purchased, if for no other reason than to make repairs to safeguard your investment.
Contact Ted About an Open House Inspection
Ted Gilmour is a Vancouver home inspector and industry recognized professional with a commitment to best practice in client service and reporting excellence.