Awkward situation??

[pmassie]

When you're inspecting a home and you have your client AND the seller watching your every moves..

i feel it's a tricky situation, you dont want to say too much to your client while the seller is present ...it kinda puts you in a awkward position no??
(well my last inspection was like that questions from both parties....)

here was the situation :

We went up in the attic (me , my client and the seller) before going up i gave a mask to my client , told him that when never no what we'll find up there.

everything : sheeting , trusses and so on, had black mold on it...i mean it was everywhere...and better yet the insulation was asbestos.... then i see a kinda big homemade fan , i asked the seller :

what does this do??

he replied : this pull the air from the attic and blows it in the living area below . i built this thing to pull the humidity OUT from the attic.......great invention yes??!!

i wanted to get the hell out of there asap... but i remain calm , said : ok where are done with the attic

told my client that the repport will be done in a few hours and he should read it ...carefuly

what would you have done in my place....did i do and said the right things?.....awkward

[ADAM HANNAN]

Interesting situation on a few counts! I won't discuss the mould issue or interesting configuration here.
My first question is: Where was the realtor? Unless this was a private deal the realtor should be present and would normally ask the seller to leave during the inspection or at least help them keep their distance so that you can discuss the results in private.
Here is how I would have handled it. If an agent was involved, I would take a moment at the start of the inspection to call the agent myself and ask them to come and take care of the seller. If the agent was not accessible or this was a private deal (which btw - you should determine prior to the inspection) I would personally, and discreetly, speak to the seller and politely ask them to allow us some space. Remember, this is their house, so be gentle. If the owner refuses or ignores you, do your inspection - don't say anything and discuss the results outside the house. However, having said that, if I found something that I felt was unsafe or detrimental to ones well-being, I would discuss this with the homeowner as well.

SECONDLY, if you're going to allow a client to follow you up into an attic or roof or whatever, you are taking a liability risk. Be sure to tell the client that it is unsafe to do so and that you don't recommend it.

[Roy D. Cooke, Sr]

Originally Posted by pmassie

When you're inspecting a home and you have your client AND the seller watching your every moves..
I turn my back to the owner and ignore him
...

i feel it's a tricky situation, you dont want to say too much to your client while the seller is present
.If it gets too awarkard I say to my client I will do the inspection and then we can talk about it out side ..
...it kinda puts you in a awkward position no??
(well my last inspection was like that questions from both parties....)

here was the situation :

We went up in the attic (me , my client and the seller) before going up i gave a mask to my client , told him that when never no what we'll find up there.
.I do the attic alone seldome do I allow the client to go there
everything : sheeting , trusses and so on, had black mold on it...i mean it was everywhere...and better yet the insulation was asbestos.
.I never say that the Insulation is asbestos to be sure it must be tested ..
... then i see a kinda big homemade fan , i asked the seller :

what does this do??

he replied : this pull the air from the attic and blows it in the living area below . i built this thing to pull the humidity OUT from the attic.......great invention yes??!!
.I would say OH! nothing else..

i wanted to get the hell out of there asap... but i remain calm , said : ok where are done with the attic

told my client that the repport will be done in a few hours and he should read it ...carefuly

what would you have done in my place....did i do and said the right things?.....awkward

Call me any time if you want to talk.... Roy
.I would tell the client to call me after he reads the report and go over it with him .
My written report is about 40% of my report the verbal is about 60%..

[Wayne B. Wilson]

Yes you did as long as you pointed out all the problems i get those too, i will take the client out and talk with them outside, If the seller is close ill tell him to call me .
It saves getting into a sticky situation . Last or so i had a older couple selling they followed me every where nice couple, Many problems with the home.
The buyer wanted to discuss the inspection with the old guy right there. I said how about looking over the report and calling me or meeting with me later. After the phone they decided to move on. FPE panel, Bad roof, Cracked foundation and so on. I felt bad for the old couple also they where moving to a condo and thought they had sold the home. I heard they didn't think there was much wrong and thought we where being picky. They did try to repair the panel ,They taped the loose wires and moved the loose breakers.

[pmassie]

THX guys great advice! when i sent the repport by email i told my client to cantact me anytime if he add questions.

also, i never , ever say this is : mold , asbestos ..........i always say : "i suspect" this is mold or asbestos. further inspection required

[hlowe]

Hey Patrick !

I agree with Roy. My inspections are also 40% written, and 60% verbal. I do a 14 page written report at a nearby coffee shop, with the client, right after the inspection. This usually takes 3/4 hr.- 1 hr., but when the client goes home; all questions have been answered, and any issues dealt with. They are at peace with their purchase, and have a good understanding of what they've just seen.

[wschreiber]

I've had sellers get angry with me for pointing out defects in their home.

What I tell them is; All of this could have been avoided if you had hired me (or any one of my competitors for that matter) to do a pre-listing inspection.

You would have already known about all these problems. You then could have either fixed the problems or disclosed them to the buyers before they put in an offer.

If you had hired a home inspector ahead of time, this house would have already been sold.