home inspection news
Compliments of A Buyer’s Choice Home Inspections
Vol 1/ No 1 • Winter 2013
Why Have a Pre-sale Inspection? Add confidence to your listing
GFCI’s How they can save your life
Are You Winter Ready? Winter Curb Appeal
Compliments of A Buyer’s Choice Home Inspections
Mike Smith
Email: mike.smith@abuyerschoice.com Website: www.abuyerschoice.com Phone: 416-986-4321
Regional Owner Central and Eastern Ontario
Published by InGenius Publishing • ingenius@ripnet.com • all rights reserved
home inspection news
Compliments of A Buyer’s Choice Home Inspections
Vol 1/ No 1 • Winter 2013
Canada’s Largest Home Inspection Company is available 7 days a week to Assist, Comfort and Protect
Canada’s Largest Home Inspection company - A Buyer’s Choice Home Inspections started in Atlantic Canada in 2005 to meet the growing need for more professionalism in the Home Inspection industry and since then we have had tremendous growth in our company and continuous demand for our complete line of Home Inspection services. The company currently has over 120 franchises operating in Canada with home inspectors in every Province and we have recently expanded into the US market and have just announced Master franchises being sold in the CzechRepublic/Slovakia, Chile and New Zealand totaling over 160 franchises Worldwide all in just 5 years! With A Buyer’s Choice Home Inspections we give you the ‘peace of mind’ that comes from dealing with an International company. Our 220 point electronic inspection reports are concise, easy to understand and having lots of pictures they provide value and clarity to our client’s decision process. At A Buyer’s Choice Home Inspections we help our clients by doing three simple things: We assist, we comfort and we protect. • We assist Realtors by giving a true condition of the property to clients, therefore helping the transaction go through smoothly • We comfort the home buyer by inviting them along on the inspection so they can see the process and ask questions • We protect everybody through our mandatory errors and omissions and liability insurance.
It all adds up to seamless transactions, happy clients, great referrals and ‘peace of mind’. And to make it convenient for our clients all of our inspectors are available 7 days a week!
A Buyer’s Choice Home Inspection Services Include:
All our Inspectors are Certified and Insured. Pre-Purchase and Pre-Sale inspections. New Home Warranty, Home Maintenance and Renovation Deficiency Inspections. WETT Inspections. Commercial Inspections. Radon Testing and Thermal Imaging Inspections are all available on request. Brookfield Registered for Military Inspections.
How GFCI’s Can Save Your Life
One of the most common deficiencies we find during home inspections, in fact, is the lack of GFCI receptacles where they’re required. If you don’t know what a GFCI receptacle is, it’s the variety with the “Test” and “Reset” buttons. If functioning properly, these devices should protect people from serious shock or electrocution. GFCI stands for ground-fault circuit interrupter. A ground fault occurs when a current-carrying wire comes in contact with ground. This can occur in a faulty appliance, such as if a loose interior wire touches the metal case and that case is grounded. If you touch an appliance in this scenario, and you are also grounded - by standing barefoot on the floor, for example, or by also touching a grounded surface - you’ll get zapped. You can be injured by even relatively small levels of current running through your body. It takes from 100 to 200 milliamps to kill you. A GFCI will trip at 4 to 6 milliamps, it offers tremendous protection. You might still get hurt, but you’re not likely to be electrocuted. GFCI receptacles work by measuring the current on the hot wire with current returning on the neutral wire. Under normal circumstances, the current is equal on both. When a ground-fault occurs, the current goes to ground via an alternate route and thus the current on the hot and neutral wires is no longer equal. GFCIs detect this and stop power to the receptacle and the appliance.
Protection is also required in all laundry, utility and wet bar sink receptacles located within six feet of the outside edge of a laundry, utility or wet bar sink. Luckily, the devices are affordable and electricians can quickly install them. They can also install GFCI breakers in your electrical subpanel. These breakers protect all receptacles, switches and fixtures on a particular circuit. In this scenario, you don’t need to replace each receptacle. We inspect a great many homes in which the original two-wire system is in place. As opposed to new threewire systems - which have a hot, neutral and ground wire - two-wire systems do not include a ground wire. If your home’s receptacles are two-pronged, it’s likely a two-wire system. GFCIs still work in a two-wire system. They don’t need a ground wire to function. As noted, they measure current on the hot and neutral wires. It is recommended you test your GFCI receptacles to ensure they’re working OK. Simply plug a lamp into the receptacle, and push the “Test” button. You should hear a click and the lamp’s light should turn off. Push “Reset” and the light should turn back on. If both don’t happen, call your electrician. GFCI’s are cheap insurance for you, your family or your renters and there is simply no good excuse to live without them
Today, GFCI protection is required for all receptacles: • • • •
In bathrooms On kitchen countertops In garages Outdoors
Published by InGenius Publishing • ingenius@ripnet.com • all rights reserved
Why have a Pre-sale Home Inspection? “Home inspections aren’t just for home buyers. Home sellers also gain peace of mind by investing in a thorough certified home inspection prior to putting a house up for sale.”
Selling your home can be very stressful, whether you list it privately or through an agent. There are simple steps to preparing your home and yourself for the process from renovating to staging. Many times you go through the entire process to be stopped in your tracks by a few missed repairs. The buyer's perception of a hair-line crack in the ceiling can amount to thousands off the asking price or may cause the buyer to simply walk away from the deal. In today's market it's considered fool-hardy to buy a home without an inspection - Putting your home on the market without a pre-sale inspection can quite simply cost you money. Home inspections aren’t just for home buyers. Home sellers also gain peace of mind by investing in a thorough certified home inspection prior to putting a house up for sale. The last minute discovery of problems by a prospective buyer can lead to time delays, added expenses and can even derail a deal altogether. Your best solution as a home seller is to have a thorough certified inspection done prior to putting the house on the market. This allows you to take care of issues with the building before they become a problem in negotiating a deal. Look at what a certified home inspection from A Buyer’s Choice can do for you:
• • • • • • • • •
Facilitate a faster sale for more money. Eliminate last minute fall troughs or 11th hour re-negotiations. Be aware of existing issues, giving you the chance to address them now with competitive pricing. Protect yourself from over-inflated buyer procured estimates. We work with you on the final report if there are items you wish to repair. We provide 50 copies of our summary page for your open house handouts. Reduce your liability with full disclosure Provides purchasers the comfort of an unbiased 3rd party opinion. You can assist the inspector during the inspection, unlike the purchaser's inspection
Investing in a pre-sale inspection before placing your home on the market means everyone wins.
A Buyer’s Choice Home Inspections • Winter 2013
Tips for Maintaining a Healthy and Happy Home During the course of our busy everyday lives we can often overlook some very important things. This is never more true than with general household maintenance. Aside from being the place where you hang your hat, a home is also a very valuable investment. Failure to maintain it properly can damage your home and downgrade its value. The health of a home is a lot like our own personal health. In order to reduce the risk of unexpected problems and expensive repairs you should regularly check your home’s interior and exterior. Below is a recommended schedule of items you should check monthly, every three months and every six months. If you find any issues it’s
important to have them addressed as soon as possible to avoid costly repairs. A home maintenance inspection by A Buyer’s Choice will identify for you those areas and aspects of your home that need attention. Our inspection will provide you with three complete lists: Required Items (problems that require immediate attention) Deferred Items (things that should be dealt with soon) Future Maintenance Items (things that should be noted, but are not urgent) Be proactive and ensure peace of mind.
Items to be checked
Monthly
Every 3 months
Every 6 months
Exterior Roof: Visually check shingles from ground. Watch for missing shingles or broken pieces. Check gutters and downspouts.
Gutters and downspouts: Check and remove any debris to assure unobstructed water flow away from foundation. Veneer or siding: With brick, watch for deteriorating bricks or masonry. For siding, watch for warping or rot. Check all painted surfaces. Windows and doors: Check caulking around doors and windows, glazing around window panes. Lawn and garden: Watch for accumulation of tree limbs, branches, debris that can attract wood eating insects.
Asphalt Driveways: Check for cracks or deterioration. Reseal if necessary. Heating and cooling: Make sure outside unit is unobstructed. Clean unit with garden hose.
Interior
Attic: Examine for evidence of any leaks Baths: Check for evidence of any leaks, especially around toilets and under sinks (vinyl tile will usually discolour if water is getting underneath it). Check grout on any ceramic tile. Kitchen: Check for leaks under sink and around dishwasher. Check burner operation on stove. Check grout on any ceramic tile.
Kitchen: Clean dust from refrigerator condenser (rear of unit). Heating System: Change filter, check coils for build-up Water Heater: Check for signs of leaks. Water Heater: Drain to remove any sediment. In areas with hard water, drain every 3 months. Smoke Detectors: Check operation. Smoke Detectors: Change batteries. Basement or crawl space: Check for cracks or any sign of dampness or leaks. Check for any evidence of termites or wood eating insects.
Is Your Listing Winter Ready? When selling your home the first impression is the curb appeal. During the colder months it can be more difficult to showcase your home’s exterior with empty flower beds, brown lawns and gray skies. Here are some ways to improve your curb appeal during the winter months. A quick clean up is a great start. – Throw away your rusty garden tools that may have piled up against the garage, and clean up the recycle boxes on the front porch. Put away the garden hose and the children’s outside toys. You should showcase the garage by actually using it for your car so if extra storage is needed consider a shed in the backyard. The Lawn – Although your grass won’t be green, you can create a manicured look by cleaning up the yard. Rake up any remaining leaves and remove any garbage that’s blown into your yard. The Landscaping – Be sure to clean all the debris and dead plants from your gardens and trim back any bushes or trees that have become overgrown. You might even consider a few potted evergreens with twinkling lights, they can add color to a dreary exterior. Add some winter colour – A little color can take away the winter blahs and make the front of your home stand out. A nice colorful wreath on the door and or potted evergreens with twinkling lights will make your home cheery and welcoming. Good lighting and safety –Days are shorter and good lighting is important, so replace any burned out light bulbs outside. Make sure your sidewalks and any other walking paths are clear. You don’t want anyone slipping and falling. If you hang exterior holiday lights to brighten your home, make sure to use lights and extension cords that are rated for outside use. It’s not difficult to increase your home’s curb appeal, it takes a little planning and a few hours of hard work.
A Buyer’s Choice Home Inspections • Winter 2013
10
Quick Fix Tips to Eliminate M inor Problems on H ome Inspection Reports
1. Vacuum out ba throom fans (m onthly). 2. Change filter in
furnace and va cuum it out (m onthly in winte r 3. Clean gas firep laces and vacu um out undern eliminate dust eath unit to and spider web s. 4. Repair and or replace caulking around tubs, si and backsplash nks, showers es. 5. Ensure dryer ve nts are metal fle x (not plastic fle for dryers. x) heat rated 6. Inspect and re place weather stripping where 7. Optional -Ens needed. ure GFCI outlet s are installed ou bathrooms and tdoors and in kitchens and te st to ensure th working order. ey are in good 8. Ensure downs pout leaders ar e attached and least 6 feet aw directing water ay from founda at ti on . 9. Ensure all light switches and re ceptacles have plates installed. proper cover 10. Clean leaves and other debr is out of all gu tters. months).
An Inspection with
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Here’s What Our Clients Are Saying About Us ‘After many years with another inspection company we decided to try Ritchie at A Buyer’s Choice Home Inspections. We have found Ritchie to be extremely professional and very accommodating on short notice inspections. Our clients were treated with the utmost care and were very informed throughout the entire inspection process. We even used Ritchie to have our own home Pre-inspected. We would not hesitate to recommend A Buyer’s Choice’ … Realtor (Newmarket) ‘Buying a house is such a big decision and I did not want the added stress of finding that I needed to do more than I had planned for once I moved in. Anthony from A Buyer’s Choice was referred to me by a friend and it was truly appreciated to have that stress lifted off me during my closing. He was very thorough and explained everything to me at the time we went through the house. The detail in the inspection report was concise and easy to understand and I would recommend A Buyer’s Choice to anyone’ Ken (Client) ‘Thank you very much for coming up North to check out my cottage for moisture and mold. You were very thorough and you made a lot of suggestions for fixing the musty smell in my cottage and the many suggestions for keeping the water away from the cottage foundation. I will definitely use A Buyer’s Choice in the future.’ Scott (Client) ‘Brian, thank you very much for inspecting our new home. We were very impressed with your knowledge, maintenance tips and detail but easy to understand inspection report. We are so happy that you took the time to explain and teach us about the condition of the house. You dismissed no question that we asked and you addressed things on a level that we could clearly understand. We learned so much and we would gladly recommend you and your A Buyer’s Choice services.’ Manjit (Client) ‘Thank you for coming over to my new home and doing an excellent New Home Warranty inspection for me. You were very professional and thorough and you took the time to explain all the various details that needed to get fixed by the builder. I was very impressed with how easy your report was to understand and that Thermal Imaging camera provided some very useful information. Thanks also for helping me fill out the Tarion Warranty report. I would certainly recommend A Buyer’s Choice’ Mike (Client) ‘Excellent service and reliable and one of the best reports I ever had. This is the 3rd house we bought and it is the first time someone actually took the time to ensure we understood everything. The report with all the pictures was amazing and really easy to understand. If I buy another house I’ll be using A Buyer’s Choice again; Pakeerathan (Client) ‘Buying your first house can be very overwhelming and to go through it with a professional is very comforting. This is exactly what we got from A Buyer’s Choice. We got our questions answered and an excellent report. Thanks to A Buyer’s Choice Home Inspections for helping us in our first home purchase’ Lena & Jonathan (Clients) You can find our Certified & Insured A Buyer’s Choice Home Inspectors all across Ontario 7 days a week... In Central & Eastern Ontario go to: www.torontoeasternontario.abuyerschoice.com
In South West Ontario go to: www.swontario.abuyerschoice.com
In Northern Ontario go to: www.northernontario.abuyerschoice.com
To find our inspectors across Canada, the USA and Internationally go to: www.abuyerschoice.com
You can also find information on our Franchise Opportunities at these same web sites