Buyer Beware? Not if Home Gets Inspection

Seems simple: to check the sink plumbing for leaks, turn on the water and look for drips. Not quite, says Jack Gerwick.

“You have to turn just the hot water on and let it run. That makes the pipes expand and leaks show up right away. If you just used cold water, you might not see them,” Gerwick said as he leaned inside a cabinet to feel a drain pipe for tell-tale moisture.

Gerwick is a house sleuth for Inspector Homes, a Laguna Beach home inspection service. On this recent afternoon, he crawled, climbed, peered and prodded his way through an Irvine tract home, meticulously recording each flaw he ferreted out.

Armed with his five-page report, the people buying this house will know exactly what they’re walking into on moving day.

Real estate agents say home inspectors are indispensable for home buyers, most of whom probably think a ground fault interrupter is something that stops earthquakes.

“In real estate the main thing used to be location, location, location. Now everybody wants disclosure, disclosure, disclosure,” said Cheri Jessup, an agent with Whitewater Realty in San Clemente.

“The standard form that sellers fill out now really doesn’t tell all that much about the house. A home inspection lets the buyer see in great detail what shape the house is in. And it gives the seller much more protection down the line because there are no surprises.”

The dozens of home inspection companies in Orange County offer scrutiny of varying thoroughness at prices that range from about $115 to as much as $400.

Buyers of existing homes generally line up a home inspection company through their real estate agents. Buyers of new homes or those buying existing homes without an agent can find inspection companies in the phone directory, through recommendations from friends or neighbors or through the California Real Estate Assn. in Sacramento, a trade organization that provides standards and education for member companies.

While home inspection clients are mainly buyers of existing homes, buyers of new homes can use an inspection to head off a lot of hassles.

“If the house is not done right, it’s not right,” said Vince Von Lenhoff, co-owner with his wife, Carol of Inspector Homes.

“Why should a buyer have to fight for a year saying all the windows don’t open right. By inspecting it ahead of time, he can have it right there in the paper work from the start and have a much better chance of getting it fixed.”

Sellers also can benefit from getting the inside story on their property.

“Someone may have lived in a house for 25 years, but they can’t see some things that may be wrong,” Von Lenhoff said. “But if somebody unbiased from outside comes in, they can find the little leak under the sink or the foundation crack in the garage.”

The seller can use this information to get the house in the best condition for sale, Von Lenhoff said.

A detailed inspection of a typical three-bedroom home can take about two hours and includes a close look at the home’s construction, electrical supply, plumbing, fireplaces, insulation, heating and cooling equipment, appliances and roof. Inspectors check things as simple as whether windows open easily or whether there is enough water pressure.

Most inspection companies do not deal with solar heating and security systems, water purifiers, pool and spa construction and certain other equipment. They refer clients to firms that specialize in these areas.

As Gerwick got ready to begin his recent inspection of the Irvine home, the buyers were absent.

Buyers should insist on being present for the home inspection, Carol Von Lenhoff said.

“If you’re buying a house, you should take two hours off work and come to the inspection. That way we can explain things that are in the report. Something like ‘crack in living room ceiling’ might look bad on paper, but in person we can show that it’s just a minor effect of normal settling. We can save the buyer the aggravation, tension and worry and make the transaction go a lot more smoothly.”

Gerwick, a general contractor for 30 years before he went to work for Inspector Homes last year, began his inspection in the kitchen.

He opened drawers and windows, checked plumbing connections and tested electrical outlets to make sure they were grounded and wired properly. He switched on the garbage disposal and ran the dishwasher through an entire cycle.

A pocket door was a little tough to open. “One little shaker (earthquake) can make one of these tough to open,” Gerwick said.

As he moved from room to room, Gerwick kept careful notes.

“I try to be thorough but not nit-picky,” he said. “I base the inspection on the age of the house. Something that might be normal for a 10-year-old house--small cracks at the corners of doors or windows or drywall nails popped out after small earthquakes--might be signs of trouble in a brand new home.”

Gerwick stuck his head inside the living room fireplace to make sure there were no gaps between the firebricks, that the damper worked and that there was no dangerous build-up of flammable creosote in the flue.

He examined the ceiling in every room for evidence of water stains from roof leaks, and the walls for evidence of cracking that would indicate more than usual settling of the house.

In the bathrooms, he flushed the toilets, checked them and other plumbing for leaks, and noted that an electrical outlet was not equipped with a ground fault interrupter, a device designed to prevent accidental electrical shocks around water.

“The house was built before they were required,” Gerwick said, “but I’ll mention it anyway so the buyers are aware. It might be something they want to change.”

Occasionally, inspectors encounter homeowners who cover up problems.

“Some people throw towels over the glass door of the shower. You look underneath and find a crack in the glass. If you find one sneaky thing like that, you look harder for other problems,” Vince Von Lenhoff said.

“I inspected the attic in one house and came down and asked the owner if she’d ever had any roof leaks. She said no. I said, ‘Well, I’m not saying you’re not telling the truth but there are buckets up there.’ ”

Von Lenhoff said he once got a call from a buyer who asked why he hadn’t been told about the secret room. “The previous owners had built a hidden room and sealed it with a panel that was screwed down. We had no idea it was there. An inspector is only as good as what he can see.”

Gerwick took great pains to see as much as he could get to in his inspection of the Irvine house. He crawled into the attic through a ceiling access panel and walked about in the darkness checking wiring, insulation and roof vents with his flashlight.

In the garage, Gerwick inspected the furnace filter and gas connections. He manually turned on the heat and air conditioning to make sure they worked. He checked the water heater plumbing. He checked the electrical outlets and found one, a 220-volt outlet for a clothes dryer, that was dead.

Gerwick clicked the garage door closer and found to his dismay that the huge door did not stop its descent when he tried to block it with his body. “That’s a problem,” he said. “Should have gone back up as soon as it hit me. Don’t want kids or pets to get caught under it.” He made a notation in his report.

He took one turn around the outside of the house looking for improper drainage and foundation cracks. He found several hairline cracks but said those are normal. “I’m looking for cracks you can stick your little finger into.”

Then he headed for the last inspection: the roof.

Vince Von Lenhoff said roof checks are especially important because roof repairs are expensive and appearances can be deceiving.

“First thing I do when I come into the neighborhood is look at the roofs of the other houses. If you see a bunch of new roofs in a tract, you can suspect that the roof on the house you’re inspecting is near the end of its life expectancy.

“But you have to check even new roofs. I was on one, brand new, and found that it was laid improperly over an old wood shingle roof and someone had walked on it and cracked the new shingles. Brand new roof and it leaked.”

Gerwick completed his survey of the roof, finding a few places where shingles were missing and leaks were possible.

Back on the ground, as he maneuvered his ladder in the front yard, he stepped into a rose bush and ripped a huge hole in his pants.

He shrugged off the damage with a laugh. “That’s just part of the job of trying to give the buyer a little peace of mind.”