The truth is that no home is perfect, and if you're looking to buy one, it's wise to check it out thoroughly before striking a deal. To do this, you might consider hiring a home inspector to point out potential problems that a seller or agent might not disclose or be aware of. But before you do, keep in mind that almost anyone can call themselves a home inspector, as there are no current national or provincial requirements or standards (except in British Columbia). Since hiring a home inspector is not equivalent to a warranty, and inspector liability is usually limited to the fee you paid or a similar amount, you could be stuck with repair costs above that. The financial stakes could be high if you rely on an inspection that turns out to be incomplete, so here are some questions to help you inspect your home inspector beforehand:
What kind of experience do they have? If the inspector doesn't have much of an answer, that's a big red flag. Experience and the right kind of training is key, since even if someone is an engineer, it doesn't mean they are qualified to inspect a home.
Can they provide references? A large, satisfied client base is always a good sign. Get as many as possible from the inspector and call them all.
Are they independent? A home inspector is there to offer an unbiased assessment, and shouldn't be part of any construction or homebuilder group or offer repair services themselves.
What kind of equipment do they use? A pen and paper are simply not enough. Do they bring binoculars, a ladder, or an infrared camera? A thorough inspection includes hard-to-reach places like the roof and chimney.
Can you follow them around during the inspection? A good inspector will encourage you to take part and will clearly communicate any serious problems, and not bury them in a checklist.
Even accredited inspectors have missed major issues, so I'm not sure who to trust anymore....Had our house inspected by an accredited inspector, failed to tell us no insulation in basement, foundation was just filled and painted, ancient heat pump that needed to be replaced....and the list goes on...I am more likely to get a trusted contractor in next time when I decide to buy a house...
Your observations are correct -cheap inspectors not able to provide knowledge,documentation,client relations,service.
It will not stop when community collegesand email exams certify students without mentor and extensive field experience. The only way you are going to extract them from the market place is to play their game, matching price while providing top-notch service. You will be in demand and these less knowledgeable will find another field to disrupt. Realestate agents get the point when purchasers start legal action. Hold your pricipals - meet the $ challenge - old saying give the ##### enough rope an they will disappear. This is a national problem -everyone thinks they can be an inspector - experience,knowledge prevails. I am working through the same issues, more principals are saying get Victor to do the inspection.It did not take long to separate the field. every day more are coming on board. Good Luck
I Totally Agree with Julia Trip. Never let your Real Estate Agent recommend a home inspector. It cost me a small fortune to fix the things he should have found and no real way to hold them accountable at the time it happened. He never properly inspected the roof .. yes it needed new shingles .. but it also needed new sheeting and some of the trusses were broken. He also missed the tell tale markings of water damage that had been marked by an insurance claim inspector. rotting floors in the bathroom.. gah. I wont even get into the problems I had with the contractor I hired to fix the problems.
Still fixing things after 5yrs
Most comments ask who is being secretive. Should blame be put on realtors, police, inspectors, municipalities, tradespersons, former owners ( if they are in jail) or the buyer? Surely, if a motor vehicle is deemed salvage, so too should a former grow-op home have such a title.
Hi I agree that the home inspectors should have been more aware knowing that grow-op houses are steadly rising and as a person buying a home you need inspectors who are more aware of grow-op hoses and how to spot them. Mike E I will be needing an Inspector soon let me know how to reach you.
From my experience, when the police bust a home for grow-op, the bank takes over the mortgage and it is the bank that will initiate the remediation work. Doing a proper search to see if permits were obtained, by the home inspector, real estate agent or Lawyers, a permit search would show that the house was renovated due to a grow op.
Alot of these permit searches are either free or have relatively small costs for peace of mind.
As a home inspector, I am angered by a lot of things with this episode. It was maddening to see other inspectors miss the issues and give pathetic explanations for sure. I'm upset that this episode sends a message that mould or patches = grow op. I appreciate what Mike Holmes is attempting to do as to educate consumers. Where he fails, IMO, is that he inspects homes (as per his new show) from the perspective of a contractor and with inside information. Many inspectors are disgusted by Mike's approach, but I at least, perhaps foolheartedly, believe that he wants to protect the consumer. What we should see on TV is a qualified HI, (respectfully, Mike is not), inspecting a home with no prior contact or knowledge allowed. That is what we as inspectors face daily. I am not defending the inspectors from this episode, they should be ashamed of themselves. But, for Mike to inspect a home after the fact is not even close to presenting a true inspection situation.
If I may leave you with piece of advice; just as you would "put the word out" with friends, family colleagues etc. in order to find a Realtor, do the same for finding a Home Inspector. Don't wait until you've found a home. It is too easy to let emotion sway your choice by then. God knows enough of us advertise our selves online. It's fairly easy to find us on the web, and most of us give our credentials front and centre. OAHI/CAHPI are the dominant associations. The largest INACHI with over 500 members just in Ontario.
My point is start searching for us at least at the same time you begin finding your Realtor. You're the real leader here, not us, not the Realtor, you. Create your team early on.
Mark E.
GTA
As a home inspector, I have to say that many of these issues would be non-issues if the public
were to change their mindsets about hiring the cheapest inspector in town! I inspect in the Durham/G.T.A,
and I can't begin to tell you how many potential inspections I've lost, because far too many people shop by price, first and foremost. There are dozens of " so-called " home inspectors out there, marketing themselves at $199.00- $250.00
Folks have not yet caught on to the fact that, in this business; you get what you pay for. Why would any self respecting, well trained and experienced home inspector prostitute himself for so little? He/she has invested a lot of time and money in tools, as well as constantly upgrading his knowledge and skills through online training, and attending seminars and conferences locally, and sometimes far away. Why would an inspector with a lifetime of experience, and thousands of inspections under his/her belt give his services away for $200.00? People who want to pay $200.00 for an inspection on a home that is likely costing them $300,000-$1,000,000,000 deserve exactly what they get. The only inspectors who will charge those prices are likely going to be fresh out of school, with NO EXPERIENCE or they just have had NO TRAINING and haven't a clue as to what they're doing. I'm sure there must be an exception or two to that last statement, but I know it to be true 99% of the time. Many times I've had to go in and re-inspect a home done by a
BARGAIN BASEMENT INSPECTOR,and it's disgusting how many very obvious major defects are missed!Fair market value for a thorough inspection, with photos, should cost between $350.00 and $500.00, for an average late model home of 1000-2000 sq.ft.
The highest price does not necessarily mean you've got the best, either, but chances are good that if an inspector has enough confidence in his experience, and inspection knowledge and skills to charge considerably more than his competitors;
he's probably worth it! One last thing......any realtor who shops for the cheapest inspector to save his client a few bucks, really doesn't care much about his client, just the sale!
I whole heartedly AGREE! If I bought a house I would take it down to the studs and start from there. Check for mold issues, maybe a new roof, then electrical, then plumbing and on from there or maybe start at the foundation level and go up. I would trust Mike Holmes but no one else, since most everyone is out for the almighty dollar. But we do need more people like Mike for every kind of contracting job. We need to make people accountable for their actions and if they're not, make THEM pay for the repairs.
It was a very informative piece that certainly has opened my eyes when considering my next home purchase.
The one thing that intrigued me was why it first featured the police officer that was giving his opinion as to why this issue with grow-ops has become so predominant accross Canada, but meanwhile, why is this not part of public record? Being that they are the ones doing the bust, and knowing exactly which properties are affected and to what degree -- why don't they share this information with realtors, home inspectors, buyers lawyer, so that all parties are aware of the situation and can then make an informed opinion on the matter??
If this was done and the information was diseminated across all stake-holders we wouldn't be having this problem, nor blaming the guys at the end of the line -- the home inspectors for not catching & pointing this out.
Also, Mr. Holmes was aware of the home being a former grow-op so it was very easy for him to point out the many red flags. Had the other 4 home inspectors had that information given to them ahead of time, they might have been in a better position to point out the issues to the potential buyers.
I am a realtor and I would HIGHLY recommend having a realtor suggest home inspectors. You should trust your realtor and their connections, or you should not use them. When asked by my clients about home inspectors, I have 3 that I would recommend. I have heard of some poor inspectors and I have had clients use them. I cant control who my client picks, but I am going to give them the best ones I know to interview. They are my clients and I would not wish a grow house accident on anyone. It affects your health, your homes value, your risk of fire/electrical issues and stigma. Why would you take the chance?? The more eyes and knowledge looking through your home, the better....
OK, so Mike already knew it was a grow-op. That doesn't excuse the fact that none of the inspectors saw the giant hole in the bottom of the fireplace as an issue. And one even suggested it was to help the fire start? Please. If I were buying a house with a hole in the bottom of the fireplace, I'd wonder what other strange things I'd find.
The inspectors also weren't concerned about the mold. Granted, air quality in the house was ok which was a good thing, but mold growth is NOT a good thing and shouldn't be dismissed as lightly as was done. At a minimum, the home owners should have been advised to check into it further, not to simply not worry about it.
hey mike, like the fact that your trying to weed out the cowboys but your raising the insurance for me as im finishing the carson donlop courses at seneca and about to start,hey did you do the courses, do you have insurace if these guys sue you
Who actually initiates the remediation? I can't see that the growers would do that after they move out of a home that was a grow-op. They just do what they have to to hide the damage. It would seem that the unsuspecting new home owners are the ones stuck with the cost of remediation. Or the landlord if the house was rented. So between when the home was identified as a grow-op to remediation, someone is stuck with a huge repair bill.
I'm just trying to learn more here. The show was an eyeopener to me and when I purchase again, I will be going in much more informed.
Anyone can call themselves a Home Inspector. The only regulated province is B.C. CAHPI has been working hard for many years to have some sort of regulation right accross Canada. As a CAHPI member, and also a journeyman Carpenter, I am required to continue my education for all the components of the house. There are all sorts of exams and testings.
It was not determined if any of the inspectors mentioned in your program were members of CAHPI (I checked the B.C. inspector and couldn't find him in the membership).
It appears that you caught Glenn Gogal of CAHPI Ontario by surprise. I think he could have represent this CAHPI organization with more authority.
Hanging in my office is a photo of Mike Holmes and myself taken at a CAHPI National Conference. A program with the President of CAHPI National to inform Canadians that THERE IS an organization trying to "MAKE IT RIGHT" may have been a better approach to consumer protection.
Thank you for an insightful episode, I had no idea how bogus home inspectors can be and that their are no regulations for them, when the time comes for me to sell my house, I will surely be doing my homework.
Do you homework people. Find someone you're comfortable with. As a contractor with many renovations and builds under my belt, I would never hire a trade who started trashing another person's work in order to make themselves look good, or to suggest that if may affect they're, work, or perhaps it was an attempt to sound that they knew something about everything. None of it impressed me, and I'd say thank you and never call them back. There's no need to trash others to show how something should be done. I'm tired that all of Mr. Holme's shows seem to be produced in this vein. Very tiring and not professional. Stand tall on your own merit.
Like Bill Cosby says: ''Come on people give your heads a shake!'' Once we get to the appraisal stage, we've lost the battle against the Grow Ops. Local jurisdictions should be implementing guidelines with some teeth that the local realtor boards would be bound to enforce with their member realtors. Case in point, last year 2 grow ops were discovered in a new upscale neighbourhood in South Winnipeg. The homes sold for $475,000 and $525,000 respectively to two individuals -- with Vancouver addresses to boot -- who paid CASH. Where is the paper trail? There is none. For this reason and this reason alone, the realtors should be prohibited from selling the property until further documentation is gathered on the buyers in question. If such were the case, they would have discovered that these individuals had links to Asian organized crime in the greater Vancouver area. It boils down to one thing...money. So while the realtor and the builder are on a cruise drinking pina colodas and high-fiving each other, the neighbours have to sit and worry that their children do not get caught in the crossfire as the home next door receives frequent visits from unsavoury characters in charge of checking the operation!
I think your next program should profile the realtor boards and the guidelines that govern the activities of their members.
You need to remember Mr. Holmes was previously informed of the grow-op, so he knew he was looking for signs. Does this mean any home with a few holes in the ceiling are now grow-ops?
Or how he pulls carpet back, NO home inspector is allowed to do that, Non Invasive, Non destructive inspection of readily accessible areas.
Why did the Police not inform anyone of potential grow-ops and have a Database those Inspectors can log into for this information, What about the real estate agent who listed the house, they met and signed a contract with the drug dealers themselves to sell the house. Any Red Flags there?????
Blaming the last one to go through the house is foolish; plenty of supposed professionals were there prior, I'm happy to see they remain blameless. Inspectors do have stringent education, courses, and conventions and upgrading, most take advantage of this. One claim is why were they not educated in grow-ops, OK good question, WHOM shall teach it, Police officials are not jumping in to help, Maybe the drug dealers would be happy to give us NON drug using inspectors a course in cooking dope???
The ability to do a thorough inspection comes down to having the proper information of what is being inspected, and that information being disclosed, If home owners could face fines, or responsibility to repair for not disclosing the required information, inspections would be more thorough. An inspector is there for 2 - 3 hours, the agent is asking how much longer??, the sellers have drove by twice staring to get back in, and the buyer and inspector are only guest's at the how so tearing it apart is out of the question, if anything is damaged during the inspection, the inspector has to pay that out of pocket, cuz little jimmy dropped a vase, cuz mommy wasn't watching their child.
Personally I am disturbed by this episode. It lacks the dept of the problem. Where is comparison between registered, certified HI and civic engineers I was waiting for? What problem does reporter has with engineers? If someone spent days and nights for years with drawings in another country and is not registered at PEO, it does not mean he is not an engineer and not capable to recognize structural problems. Do everybody knows that Mr. Holmes has no standing here whatsoever? Or it was aimed at everybody with master's degree? For me this hour was targeted small town home owners with IQ less then 87. I cannot find any other reason it to be so shallow. I am sorry.
I agree with Mike regarding Home Inspectors. I have been a realtor for 18 years & in my opinion if the Buyer is not willing to hire an experienced,well trained home inspector then they might as well not hire any body. The home inspection trade needs to be regulated. There are so many people starting a home inspection business without any experience or accreditation that the Buyers are really not being serviced & the non service realtor who only wants the deal is not protecting their client. The Province really needs to take a hard look at this business!!
I think Mike Holmes is one of the most important advocates for "Joe Public Home Buyer".
My concern about this recent show (on "grow operation homes that were resold to unsuspecting buyers") is why isn't the R.C.M.P. also included in the list of people who are on the legal hook for this? It is the police agency that makes the bust! Can these homes not be flagged like a vehicle that was totalled in a car accident. Are they not responsible in anyway for making sure that realtors know the homes were a grow up? If it was the responsibility of the policing agency to convey information to provincial/municipal realtor authority, then we can put this all on the previous owner, home inspector and the relator? Eventually realtors will take heed of this information and hopefully home inspectors we become cognizant of the warning signs. At that point the previous owner will stand alone as being responsible!
It bothers me that this story is based on the negative perception about former grow-op homes. The homes showcased in the episode were covered up by the growers and not remediated by a qualified company - that is where the problem lies, not the fact it was a former grow-op.
There is mass hysteria surrounding grow-op homes and a negative stigma carried on them based on misinformation and lack of consumer knowledge which is perpetuated by the media. I agree the inspectors should have caught the issues Mike pointed out, and some blame lies with them but this all originates with the lack of correct information available to the public. Grow-Op homes are becoming a more and more prevalent issue in Canadian neighborhoods yet we have done nothing to deal with the situation. Instead of educating ourselves about the issue we are simple told to run away as fast as we can - how ignorant of us.
The truth is that a properly remediated home has less indoor air quality issues in it than any other home in the area. Granted there are many complexities involved in dealing with grow-op homes, they are for the most part common sense issues that any homeowner can quickly educate themselves on. The key to buying or selling a former grow-op is disclosure. Be up front with the purchaser, make the effort to educate them and prove that the home is safe for occupancy.
A remediated home should come with a report outlining the details of the remediation, and an analysis from an environmental consultant confirming that the mould spores inside the home do not vary significantly in the amounts or species found in the outside environment. The foundation repairs should include proper reinforcement and a waterproof membrane accompanied by an engineer's report confirming the work was properly performed. The tampered electrical system should be repaired by a certified electrician and be accompanied by an electrical permit from the municipality. Most of these permits are publicly available by contacting your local permits branch.
Think logically when encountering these homes, most of them are available at tens of thousands off market value, simply because the public is misinformed about them. If you want a little extra reassurance, contact your local mould remediation company and ask if they would come and take a look at the property.
NEVER, NEVER, NEVER let your real estate agent recommend a home inspector, no matter how much you trust them. There's too much $ at stake for them (and the seller) for them to want you to find everything. Time is usually pretty short when you need one, but do your best to get recommendations on them from others and let them know you want the truth, even if it means walking away from the dream house you've fallen in love with.
Don't get screwed like we did when we bought our home it was built by a father and two sons. The son we bought the home off of said he's a house inspector so we didn't need to get one. What a friggin joke. We have more stuff to fix here because they cut corners EVERYWHERE.
Great show!
I also like that www.cahpi.ca has the story on their front page.
I'd love to see the next newsletter or memo that goes out to their membership ;o