The Seattle Condo Blog

As a condo buyer, you can hire anyone you wish to do the inspection. You can have your dad do it, you can hire a professional inspector referred by your Realtor or a friend, you can search out someone in the yellow pages or Google them, or heck, you can get the guy on the street standing outside the condo building.

If truth be told, you need to hire someone you are comfortable working with and who is knowledgeable about construction and safety matters. If you get a name from your Realtor or from a friend’s referral, you are probably off to a good start. Now, I’ve had clients come up to me during inspections saying they didn’t want to work with their Realtor’s recommended inspector asking me “What if they are in cahoots with each other and the inspector is getting a kickback or missed something?”

Well if you have this feeling about your Realtor, don’t do business with them. A good Realtor is worth their weight in gold and is looking out for your best interest. They are going to go to bat for you, so if you think your Realtor isn’t, then Fire him or her. There are plenty of honest hard working Realtors out there who in the end will save you time, money and significant stress and headaches.

[Editor’s note: As of January 31, 2009, Washington state law (WAC 308-124C-050) now requires real estate agents who refer an inspector to provide written disclosure of any business/economic or family relationship they have with the referred inspector to their client. This law is intended to prevent collusion between the agent and inspector.]

So what if I’m thinking about hiring my dad (or friend) to inspect my condo? If your dad is comfortable and experienced in all facets of construction, not just one area like framing or drywall or painting, but is also knowledgeable about the electrical, plumbing, HVAC, garage door safety, siding, roofing and fireplace safety, then he may be able to do a condo inspection for you.

A contractor is generally a master of one particular area, i.e. a plumber is an expert at plumbing systems but may not know much about windows or electrical systems. So if your father (cousin, sister, friend) is well rounded in all facets of construction he may be able to perform the inspection. I didn’t say a good one, but a condo inspection nonetheless. Professional inspectors, on the other hand, are generalist, trained in all areas and are licensed and certified.

At the end of the day, whomever you choose to hire to perform your condo inspection, make sure you are comfortable working with them be it a professional inspector, a family member or someone off the street. In addition to being knowledgeable about condominium systems and construction, the inspector should produce an inspection report that’s easy to read, includes photos and is summarized in a format that is easy to understand. The report should be easy for you, the client, to digest and for the Realtor to negotiate with the seller’s agent.

If you go down the path of hiring a professional inspector what questions should you ask them? I’ll answer that in my next article… YourCondoInspector.com.

Farren West is the owner of Key Inspection Services and is a contributor to the Seattle Condo Blog.

Many people feel there isn’t a need to inspect new construction because the home has been “Code” inspected by the city. And, to a certain degree this inspection could be accurate but here’s my take as a home inspector and as a potential buyer.

As a buyer, purchasing a home and scheduling a move is stressful enough without having to worry about potential structural issues. The cost of a new construction home inspection runs with median home prices in the Puget Sound area. So, with a median price around $400,000, a new home inspection runs approximately $400 (condos inspections are generally priced lower than single family homes). Thus, you’ll gain additional peace of mind for roughly a tenth of a percent of the price of the property for an inspection.

Now here’s my impression as an inspector. I have been inspecting properties for over 8 years and haven’t found a single one without a problem. Small or large, most need some sort of attention to prevent a safety hazard or a potentially significant financial investment if not tended to in a timely manner. With new construction a list of corrections can be just that, a simple punch list with photos to assist the buyer and contractor to ensure all details were corrected by the time of the final walk through. Also, since the home is new, systems and appliances haven’t been thoroughly tested or used to ensure they’re functioning properly before you move in.

Here’s a sample list of items that would be tested during the inspection: run water throughout in the home, flushing toilets, test appliances for proper installation & function, test the furnace and heat distribution, the fireplaces, review in the attic/roof and crawlspace areas (single family homes).

If you have any questions, or if you’d like to view a sample new construction report, feel free to contact me.

Farren West is the owner of Key Inspection Services and is a contributor to the Seattle Condo Blog. Farren can be contacted at KeyInspectionServices.com.

One can think of a building envelope as being similar to envelopes used to mail packages through the postal service. A standard package mailing envelope is used to protect the interior contents from moisture, wind and damage while in transit. The building’s envelope acts like a mailing envelope by protecting the structure from rain, sleet or snow…so the saying goes.

A building’s envelope includes the walls, siding, flashing, roof, foundation and so forth. These systems should work together by providing a barrier between the interior of the structure and the exterior environmental elements such as rain and moisture. The installation materials and methods used in the building’s construction will determine how heat, air and moisture travel through the structure.

So, why is this important to me as a condo owner or potential buyer? Well, if the building envelope was not installed property and/or has begun to prematurely fail, it can lead to a whole host of problems including, but not limited to, moisture intrusion, wood rot and fungal growth.

Read the full story

Farren West is the owner of Key Inspection Services. This is the second article of Farren’s series for SCL. Farren can be contacted at FarrenWest (at) KeyInspectionServices.com.

Once you and your real estate professional have found the right condo to meet your needs, the best location/price/aesthetics/etc you will now begin the process to understanding the distinct difference when buying into a condo and its association compared to purchasing a home.

When one purchases a home the home buyer is buying the home and surrounding land and is responsible for all maintenance and repairs be they minor or major. This is one of the distinct differences when buying into a condo. As the condo buyer not only are you purchasing the condo but also you are buying into an home owners association and all of the maintenance and repairs (minor, major, etc) for the particular association.

In order for the association to be properly funded for maintenance and repairs an association will hire a company to provide a Reserve Study. These studies generally are completed by a company having architects and professional engineers on staff, which is qualified to do building inspections and estimations on repair/replacement costs for all components related to the said property. These studies can be done every 1-5 years and at a cost of $3,000+ depending on the depth and breadth of the particular study.

The goal of the study is to set a minimum level of annual reserve contributions made by a home owners association. This will help to ensure adequate funds exist for a significant repair/replacement of any component associated with the property. The study breadth and depth of evaluation can vary depending on many factors but as a general rule the goal is to determine the present condition of said component, the remaining useful life, and the replacement costs.

During the next article we will discuss the benefits of a reserve study and begin to learn about building envelope studies.

(Please welcome contributing writer, Farren West, owner of Key Inspection Services. Farren will be writing a series of condo inspection related articles, which many buyers will find invaluable.)

Generally there are two types of condo/townhouse inspections. The first and most popular is the “Interior Only” inspection. This will cover everything from the sheetrock in, or as others may say, from paint to paint.

For the most part this is all that the home owner is responsible for when owning a condo. The other external items, roof/crawlspace/attic/siding/etc, are covered by the dues paid into the Homeowners Association, but this may not always the case so refer to your HOA guidelines.

The “Interior Only” inspection will focus on health/safety, moisture intrusion, functional testing, and inspecting for components improperly installed, nearing or exceeding their design life. The inspection will last between 1.5-2.5 hours depending on the size and age of the property. The cost of an “Interior Only” inspection starts around $225 and up again depending on size/age of unit.

The second type of inspection is more of a building complex inspection overview. This will cover all items in the “Interior Only” as well as the exterior siding, roof, crawlspace, and attic. This is more of a peripheral view of the exterior components and will be limited to the exterior components directly attached to the unit in question.

Understanding the complex inspection is limited to safe access to the above mentioned components. The inspector will not inspect areas which will endanger him and/or potentially damage the property. The complex inspection generally last between 2.5-3.5 hours again depending on size, age, and access, the fees range from $325 and up.

In the next article we will discuss what a reserve study is and how it applies to purchasing a condo.

If you have questions regarding condo inspections, please visit the Key Inspection website or email Farren at FarrenWest(at)KeyInspectionServices.com.