I really try to approach my day to day life in a calm and logical fashion...seeing that over the years I've actually given up on trying to plan what my tomorrow will look like, quietly succumbing to reality....and that old saying "you never know what tomorrow will bring".

Heck, years ago, the act of buying and selling a house was relatively simple. 6 copies of an offer done on legal sized paper containing a finance condition and signatures and Voilà! you had a deal!

I would say that it was about 10 years ago that the Home Inspection gang started to sell the benefits of a thorough Home Inspection to both Realtors and Buyers. Certainly seemed like the whole thing had merit. For me though, I started to question this practice right from the start and unfortunately I continue to question it. There was a stretch of many months when every single furnace inspected was getting the plug pulled on it. This started to create a bit of paranoia with me and I would break out in a sweat when various home inspectors would start to make ohhhssss and awwwwsss while peering into the furnace cavity. That would result in a informing the Sellers and their Agent that the furnace was shot and a replacement would be necessary prior to closing...or no deal!

Then, one day I received a phone call from the furnace company installing a new furnace and the guy asked me why the furnace was coming out. I told him what the home inspector had said...and he laughed. The furnace, even though it was old, was an excellent unit and just needed a small part. There was no reason for it to be replaced! After that episode, I never trusted an inspector to cast judgment upon a furnace again. Instead, if the furnace is old, I ask that it be serviced and reported on by the professional furnace people. Most of the time the price of the house is reflective of the age of it's components and it's general condition...so old windows, furnace, electrical etc etc are usually pretty visible; the Buyer and Agent can clearly see them prior to putting in an offer.

I've had Inspectors make very poor calls on a lot of issues. Here's just a handful...

1) "All of the plumbing running through this crawl space is galvanized and will have to be replaced immediately!"....Seeing that it was an uninsulated space, it just didn't sit logically with me that the water pipes would have survived decades of minus 20 winters. I got down on my hands and knees and pointed out to him that they were the gas lines!

2) "The house is full of UFFI"...I was actually waiting for this one...he thought the plug holes in the top part of the house automatically meant UFFI...actually, cellulose was blown in using holes as well, and the holes were the wrong size for UFFI.

3) "REVERSE POLARITY"...this one was funny because the home inspector was actually shouting it out in an alarming fashion as he tested the plugs on the main floor of an east end home. All the home owner had to do is switch the wires...he had wired the outlet back-wards and it was very easy to fix.

4) Live Knob and Tube- the homeowners were shocked, because they had paid thousands for new wiring...however, it was discovered that the inspectors circuit tester was picking up the current from the nearby new wiring.

5) Ground Fault Interrupter in kitchen- the inspector had called for the replacement of the receptacles stating that they were not code. Upon calling in a licensed electrician, the homeowner was informed that she had "split circuit" receptacles which were code when the unit was built and that a GFI would produce nuance trips and the electrician wouldn't install them.

I could write 100 more "false alarms".

Recently, home inspectors have come under a tremendous amount of attack by the one and only Mike Holmes. Yes, some have stepped up their game, showing up to home inspections with every gizmo known to mankind. Moisture sensors, heat sensors, electrical sensors...etc, etc. I have to agree with Mr. Holmes. There are some big issues with the Home Inspection profession. They are wearing way too many hats! Jack of all trades...master of none??

On my plate today is Client X...a young single lady who bought her house off of me 2 years ago and purchased a detailed home inspection. She just sold her house conditional upon the new Buyer getting a home inspection. Apparently the electrical box has some major wiring issues. Seeing that she hasn't added or removed anything from the box since she's owned the property would mean that the stellar report  her inspector wrote 2 years ago is very suspect. The cost to repair these defects will be somewhere between 500 and 1000 dollars and I've agreed to split that with her. But now she's concerned because the same inspector that missed this issue just happens to be the inspector she used to inspect her new house. I know inspectors are not Gods...I know that they're not perfect...but they shouldn't be writing anything down in report form unless they are "experts".

Face it..there is no perfect house; from the moment it's built it starts to age and depreciate. It's about time that homeowners and agents get a grip on the whole inspection world. If Mike Holmes was to do an inspection, everyone would think that the house they were buying would only be safe if it was completely rebuilt...but that's not a real sound approach to buying a home. I personally think it's time to be logical and responsible. A house has 4 major components. The construction, the heating/cooling, the electrical and the plumbing. A home inspection should consist of a report from each of the professions.

1) a certificate from the Electrical Safety Authority

2) a service report from the Heating/Cooling company.

3) a check over by a licensed plumber

4) a thorough inspection by a licensed contractor...one who can actually point out support walls, insulation levels and the state of the roof and foundation.

It would be my guess that an inspection like this would cost the buyer between $400 and $500 but it would be well worth it...why...because it would be done right! Yes Mr. Holmes...I do agree with you!