Steven L. Smith, Bellingham, WA Home Inspector (King of the House)

If you are thinking about moving to Bellingham, one thing is certain. You should be happy with the cultural activities and the Bellingham Public Library. For years now, Bellingham has been ranked near the top in the nation as far as highest per capita use of the public library and it's collection. No wonder so much wrangling has been going on as the local officials try to figure out where, and how to, expand the current facility. Last I saw, Bellingham also ranked in the top five as far as per capita number of arts organizations and the per capita number of espresso stands.  Needless to say, it is an entertaining place to be. If you would like further information on the Bellingham Public Library and it's resources, the link is below.

http://www.bellinghampubliclibrary.org/

Thanks for looking,

Steven L. Smith

www.kingofthehouse.com

I remember being a kid in grade school, here in Bellingham, nearly 50 years ago. In many ways Bellingham is more sophisticated, and certainly bigger, than it was back then.  While it was more rural, and more rugged, back then, one change that is interesting is the amount of wildlife I see in town. Few wild animals were seen back then, except maybe in the deep woods -- certainly not in the parks or neighborhoods. Perhaps this is an impact from homes having been built in those areas. Even ten years ago, I would see lots of squirrels when I visited Canada, but only saw them in parks around here. Now, I see them almost everywhere -- dozens in my backyard in the Cornwall Park neighborhood, and even downtown by the library. I even saw one on Railroad Avenue.  The other creature that has moved into town is the raccoon. I was a kid during the craze for coonskin caps and never saw a raccoon except at the Woodland Park Zoo. I own a duplex in Fairhaven, raccoons are abundant. And in my neighborhood they hang out pretty much all year round and not just at night either. I sometimes see them about noon just strolling by or looking for something to eat. Skunks and opossums are common place as well. Other parts of town have coyotes, but that is an animal I could live without and I have not seen or heard them in my neighborhood. While rare, sometimes cougars have been seen in the King Mountain area, where I used to have a piece of property. The photo below was taken in my back yard in November. A few months before these prowlers had been babies. They say that raccoons will attack cats but so far my experience is that the two species have a peaceful, if worried, coexistence. The cats seem bright enough to keep their distance if any food is involved and the raccoons are not overly aggressive.

Thanks for looking,

Steven L. Smith

www.kingofthehouse.com

Sometimes it is amazing where certain individuals choose to sleep. So, in this case, could this bathroom legally be classified as a bedroom? And could the sink be considered a bed that is thrown in for free? It seems to me this would be really uncomfortable and it makes it hard for other people to wash too!

Thanks for looking,

Steven L. Smith

www.kingofthehouse.com

Believe it or not, the image above and the link below, are promotional material depicting the soon to be Bay View Tower in Bellingham.  After some local debate, among residents and planners, people in Bellingham have been learning more about this new high rise condo that is going in by the bay. This picture, and the website promoting it, are amazing. It looks like a building one would find in Seattle. People are supposed to be moving into it within a year and it is advertised as about 85% reserved at this time. Times they are a changing, yet again. We will see how it all washes out and if it ever goes in.

Thanks for looking,

Steven L. Smith

www.kingofthehouse.com

I have only been here a week. I accidentally stumbled on the site while checking my search engine placement and finding that active rain was supplying hits for a number of inspectors, and pretty high placement too. So I was pleased to see it was a free membership. And I was doubly pleased to see that it is a well thought out site with loads of information and lots of conversation and viewpoints. But what I like best, so far, is that people seem to leave thoughtful comments. I have been to a number of similarly conceived sites where it ends up being screaming matches, so to speak, between egotistical windbags. So far, I have not seen that here. Even with realtors and inspectors, who can at times have different ideas on things, the conversation is brisk but courteous. We are really able to get the other side's viewpoint and that is great. When actually working with a realtor, or a realtor with an inspector, the day of the inspection is not the greatest time to debate perspectives. I find it worthwhile to do so here, in a less frenzied environment. Certainly, I do not expect everyone to agree, but the realtors and members of AR who have replied to my blog comments have been great. I was a bit concerned about that at first. I have posted pretty tame comments at some of the home inspection sites and the replies were out of the realm of reasonable or normal. In summary, active rain is like a breath of fresh air with all of us in the real estate field discussing matters and sharing ideas to increase understanding. 

Thanks for reading,

Steven L. Smith

www.kingofthehouse.com

There is an ongoing debate about whether new homes should have home inspections or not. This debate goes on with buyers who wish to save money where they can, with realtors and with the builders themselves. I think it appropriate to make a few comments.  I am sure that it can happen but I do not believe I have ever inspected a new house where those concerns I noted resulted in the deal not closing. Obviously, that is not that uncommon with older homes. That said, I have supplied buyers with some valuable information, and a list of essential repairs required, on new homes.

Does that mean the newer homes really do not need to be inspected? I would say that is not the case because, although it is rare to find "deal-killers" I have found concerns and conditions that a buyer would certainly want to know about. Some of the common, more minor things as long as they are caught before they lead to bigger problems, include crawl space vents below grade; condensate and TPR drains routed under the home; the pressure test cap left on the main sewer vent; gutters with inadequate slope; doors and windows that do not operate; appliances not hooked up; gas fireplaces not hooked up; whirlpool tubs not wired in; missing or failed GFCI outlets; missing door stops and out of adjustment cupboards or closet doors.

Some of the more significant things found, while still easy for the builder to fix in most cases, are absolute must repairs that would be best completed before anyone moves in. Common here (and one of the most common problems in the wet Pacific Northwest) is standing water in the crawl space. As we need more homes for more people, some lots people would not have built on 30 years ago are coming into play. When these are sloped lots, adjustments need to be made for drainage. I have done, just in the past two months, a couple homes where standing water, at the low side, was 6" deep in the crawl space. While it can be remedied prior to the sale, this condition will damage the home over time if it is left that way. And, since the problem is in the crawl space, probably nobody will know about it - the builders did not and they were still present at the job site. Other, related, but common problems of a more serious nature include plumbing drains, including toilets that are not hooked up by subcontractors. Needless to say, this is nasty if missed.  Another problem is missing, or incorrectly installed, flashings; concrete poured over wood; heat ducts that are damaged or not hooked up, dryer vents (especially bad with gas dryers where the exhaust gases are also vented through the dryer duct) are loose or terminated in a crawl space or basement area. Another common one, in this region, is builders pass the municipal code inspection and then dump the excavated soil back in the crawl space to save on hauling fees. It ends up all around the posts and structural wood. Over time, this will rot the wood and it is not fun or clean getting down there and digging it back out again, so the builder and his crew should be doing that, not the buyer. Some municipal inspectors often do not pay much attention to railings and safety precautions either. I have seen steps and decks, 7' off the ground that did not have guardrails or handrails yet the homes had passed the "final" inspection.

Basically, my take on it, is that seldom does a realtor need to worry that a good quality new home will have so many problems as to kill a deal. But counting on a warranty inspection in the future, or a builder to make everything right, at some point in the future is not as good for a client as having a good inspection prior to moving in. We all know that a buyer is in a stronger negotiating position prior to paying for the property. It seems to me that many builders are good people, but they are so busy doing numerous projects, and relying on subs, that many things are likely to be missed. And it is better to have those problems repaired promptly, by the professionals than to expect an overwhelmed homeowner to have to deal with something that should not have been that way in the first place.

Thanks for reading,

Steven L. Smith

www.kingofthehouse.com

Those of us, who teach home inspection to new inspectors around the state through the state community college system and Bellingham Technical College, also try to create better communications and understanding between inspectors and real estate professionals. That includes offering an affordable state accredited clock hour course for realtors, that we teach on the west side of the mountains from Blaine to Tacoma. We explain the ramifications of many of the items that are often discovered during the home inspection process. For information on that 3 clock hour course, you can click on the link below. Feel free to follow up if you are interested.

http://www.kingofthehouse.com/realtorsguide/

One of the popular parts of the presentation, is a list we give out to help realtors and their clients prepare a house for an inspection. This is not the "old hat" list telling the seller to clean the gutters and trim the bushes, but a list of specific items and often neglected tasks that need to be taken care of so the inspector can, in fact, properly inspect the home. Nobody, not inspectors, realtors, buyers or sellers likes it when the inspector has to come back another day because the inspection could not be completed.  This list seems obvious enough, but these issues are frequently neglected. Please feel free to copy this list and provide it to your clients. I cannot tell you how many times, even working with realtors with 25 years or more experience, I have arrived at houses where there was zero access to at least one critical area. It was basically a problem of no one having thought about that fine detail, they were too busy thinking of other things. This list should work in any state, or Canada. I hope you find it helpful. 

Crawl space access: Find out where the opening is located, sometimes it can be hard to find. Make sure it is easily accessible at the time of the inspection. Once, at an inspection I did, we actually had to go to the city, the next day, and get the building plans for the home to find the crawl space entry as it had been fully carpeted over.

Attic access: Find out where the hatch is located - in the attached garage, in a bedroom, etc. Make sure it is accessible at the time of the inspection. If a shelf, or similar storage or obstacle, is built under it and an inspector cannot access it, then that obstacle should be removed prior to the inspection.

Electric panels: Find the location of all panels, including any distribution/sub-panels in garages or basements. Sometimes they are hidden behind pictures or cabinets are built over them. Make sure the panels can be safely accessed from the front, so the inspector can removed the covers at the time of the inspection.

Water heater: Find out where it, or they, are located. Sometimes they are in tiny spaces - behind refrigerators, in attics, etc. Make sure the tank or tanks are accessible on the day of the inspection.

Furnaces: Find out where it, or they, are located. Usually they are accessible but can be in crawl spaces or attics. Make sure the unit is accessible on the day of the inspection and, if a second furnace is tucked away somewhere, let the inspector know. The inspector must be able to remove the access doors and view components in the housing.

Sinks: If cupboards or vanities, under sinks in bathrooms and kitchens, are reasonably clear of supplies and belongings, the inspector can view these areas without having to move around personal or hygiene items.

Gas, electricity, and water: If the buyer expects a full inspection of gas or electric appliances and the plumbing system, the gas, electricity and water must be functional.

Thanks for listening,

Steven L. Smith

www.kingofthehouse.com

As a working home inspector, and an instructor of home inspection for the state college system, people often ask me if they should do their own home inspection. Usually, even if someone has worked as a carpenter or a builder, it is still a bad idea. A competent home inspector, in Washington State, is trained to detect subtle problems in many different areas and systems that are not necessarily familiar to a builder; for example, wood destroying organisms, electrical, plumbing and heating systems. I designed a simple, interactive, online test that scores you as you go, for those people thinking about doing their own home inspection. It lets a person assess his or her abilities in the field and it can be enlightening. If you as a homeowner, a buyer, a realtor or any other professional in a related field, would like to try the test, I have provided a link. I host it just for fun at my site, and no data is tracked, no cookies are collected so give it a try if you like. No strings attached! Here is the link: click on it, or if that does not work, paste it in your browser, it should open right up for you.

http://www.geocities.com/rhiclass/apttestkinglogo.htm

Thanks for reading,

Steven L. Smith

www.kingofthehouse.com