By Melanie Furlong- Contributing Writer
House inspections are not mandatory and house inspectors are not regulated anywhere in Canada except British Columbia. Why should you have a house inspected before you buy? Doug Wheatley, of HouseMaster Halifax, says there are several reasons.
“The number one reason is for the comfort of clients,” says Wheatley. “We encourage clients to be present so we can point out maintenance issues and we give you as true a picture of the condition of the home as can be ascertained visually.”
Most times people are honest, but Wheatley says you can’t rely on a seller disclosure statement. The seller could be lying or legitimately not know about a problem. It doesn’t matter. With an inspection, homebuyers find the true story.
After a thorough inspection, either the client is satisfied that the home measures up to what their expectations are or there are shortcomings that can be negotiated on. In the worst case scenario, there can be a failure to negotiate and, if there are many sub-standard aspects of the home, the clients may choose to move on to another property.
“After the inspection reveals any sub-standard issues, the buyer can have professional contractors look at things to get an idea of how much renovations will cost. If they didn’t have an inspection and were only marginally aware of the problems, they could get a nasty sticker shock when it’s too late.”
Although home inspectors in Nova Scotia are not regulated, Wheatley is a member of a voluntary organization called the Canadian Association of Home and Property Inspectors (CAHPI).
“This association sprang up because people recognized that we didn’t want under-qualified people doing this job who have no education or training. They established standards of practice in the absence of anything telling what should be inspected and reported on and how it should be reported on.”
Homebuyers can get some assurance that a CAHPI member has yearly education credits and testing.
“Anyone who can buy a ladder, flashlight and business cards can go into business as a home inspector.”
There are under-qualified individuals performing substandard inspections in Halifax according to Wheatley, but it’s a much bigger problem in other areas of the country like Toronto and Vancouver.
