I do not know of any other standards of home inspection that state an inspector must attempt to locate all of the possible mold. Inspectors, if we see it, will inform clients that there is an apparent problem. We are not, however, expected at this time to be responsible for any mold that might be found at some later date when the person moves in. This is a can of worms and liability that is way beyond what those who are not inspectors believe it to be. They think it is simple, it is not.
Actually this message is directed to anyone involved in any part of the real estate transaction in Washington State. All agents, appraisers, loan officers, and inspectors should be concerned about several bills currently working their way through the House and Senate in the State of Washington that in one
way or another relate to home inspectors that will affect the entire real estate transaction. This will be the first in a series of posts designed to bring to your attention the major concerns around these bills. While some of these bills may never even make it out of committee, all deserve a quick email to your Senator or your House representative to voice your concern.
The first one I will discuss is Senate Bill 5644 that would change Home Inspector Licensing to require home inspectors to include “looking for mold.” Since home inspectors are not generally qualified to identify mold, and are not likely to get trained to identify mold, this bill could literally bring every real estate transaction in the state to a halt or at least slow it down while a mold expert is brought in to test the house for mold.
Mold is the result of conducive conditions----in other words there are: roof leaks, plumbing leaks, foundation leaks, ventilation problems, drainage problems, and other building science issues that must be addressed to get rid of this one of the many results of these problems. Home inspectors, while not specifically required to identify mold are already mandated by law to discover and report on conducive conditions, so adding the word “mold” into the law is unnecessary. As long as there is considerable controversy over the effects of home-environmental mold on occupants of the home, blanket legislation regarding mold is not necessary to better protect the health & safety of Washington residents.
No one would argue that particulate in the air, whether mold or dust or other contaminates, can affect anyone’s breathing, but these are “building science” issues not mold issues. Knowledgeable home inspectors are trained (or at least should be trained) to identify conditions that contribute to poor indoor quality including conditions conducive to the growth of mold. Any inspector that found conditions that they didn’t understand related to these issues would already be calling for further evaluation by the appropriate building science expert----calling for a mold expert to evaluate every real estate transaction would seem draconian to me.
While calling for the “mold expert” would not be “required” by the current bill, can you imagine any inspector “signing off” on a house as being mold free? I think not. To paraphrase Chicken Man, “Its everywhere, its everywhere.”
Other Important Bills:
Senate Bill 6434
Charles Buell
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OK I need to ask as a buyers agent I would say GREAT it is one more layer to protect my buyer on a transaction, as a selling agent I must say it protects my seller but could cosy my seller a lot of money with this.... so i am torn about this, i will need to look into this.
I am going to send this to my inspector and see what he says
Our state has a history of making laws that have no logical way to be rationally implemented. Recently the state licensing requirement put a lot of inspectors out of business for a long time at significant expense while the went to Bellingham(the only place available for training.
The way Washington handled the "helping home owners in foreclosure" was abominable. I'm sure we'll get through this too. It's time for another "big thing" to keep the public guessing what's really going on in Olympia.
Ken,
The thing to remember is that home inspectors are not mold inspectors. If we have toi become mold inspectors, look for prices to go up as well.
Glenn,
Actually there are many options for training. Bellingham is only one of anywhere from six to maybe ten options in the state.
We will inform folks if there is (what appears to be) fungal activity. However; I am not going to certify that a dwelling is "mold free"...
Helping you help others live their American dream...
The only way I can be certain that a house is mold free is by running tests which have to be analyzed be a lab. It requires additional education on the part of the inspector, adds to the costs of the inspection, and creates a delay as the samples must be analyzed by a lab and the results returned to the inspector. Seems a little over board to me.
A major problem here is that mold grows in places that cannot be tested or seen, without causing extensive damage to the property. How can you see or test for mold between walls? And what happens when mold grows explosively after the home/mold inspection is done, yet before closing? Does the inspector's insurance take a major hit for not finding something that wasn't there, or was so hidden it couldn't have been found? How can you prove that they just didn't see it?
Our legislation has a habit of passing a lot of bad laws with good intentions. Let's hope they've learned some valuable lessons over the last couple of years and decide to involve the input of those who this law will impact, before they put it into effect. There were a few 'Oops' moments generated by some of the Legislature's more recent bone-headed laws that could have been avoided.