Russel Ray, Property Consultant

ONE INSPECTION DOES NOT FIT ALL!

LIST inspection (starting at $149)

Many sources regularly report that homes with
pre-listing inspections sell faster, for more money,
and with fewer problems in escrow. My LIST
inspection is a specialized inspection available only
to Sellers since it is a pre-listing inspection. It
includes only major defects. It does not include (1)
my free appliance package, (2) recall and safety
concern research on appliances and equipment, or
(3) cosmetic damage and “minor” defects (note
that cosmetic damage and “minor” defects are
determined solely by me and may differ from your
opinion or from the opinions of third parties).

The LIST inspection does not meet legal require-
ments or standards of practice of various trade
associations, because I note only major defects
and do not include common information or
descriptive information about the structure. For
example, type of foundation, type of roof, type of
siding, etc., is not included unless the descriptive
information in and of itself could indicate a problem,
such as cast iron drain pipes, knob & tube electrical
wiring, wood shingles, etc.

The reasoning behind this inspection is that the
sellers either know about the common or
descriptive stuff, or they don't care since they are
selling the house and the buyers will (hopefully) get
their own inspection which will tell them the
common and descriptive stuff, as well as any major
problems that occurred since the date of the LIST
inspection.

The LIST inspection meets all general requirements
for correcting or disclosing major defects
concerning the structure. Note that major defects
listed are those that were present or visible at the
time of the inspection. I cannot, and shall not, take
responsibility for something that has failed since
the inspection, for damage caused by someone
doing repairs, for the quality of repairs, or for
damage caused by those living on the property in
the course of daily life. However, I will be there
with the sellers until the house is sold in order to
address problems that the buyer's property
inspection discovered.

Keep in mind that with no licensing for, or
regulating of, property inspectors in the State of
California, there can be a significant difference
between two property inspection reports by two
separate companies. And while I hope that being a
member of a trade association will help with that
concern, there are, as of July 2008, at least seven
national trade associations for property inspectors
(NACHI, ASHI, SPREI, NAHI, AAHI, HIF, FREA), as
well as a state trade association in most states
(CREIA for California).

If you have any questions about the LIST
inspection report, or the buyer's property
inspection report, simply contact me. I'm on your
side and will be fighting for you all the way.

Next page (MAINTENANCE inspection)