Trusting a Foreclosure Inspection

There is no question today that there is a new breed of inspector out there, the foreclosure inspector! Most of these inspectors have bypassed all training, experience and even licensing requirements because they are not hired by the end user, the future homeowner, but by the banks and the property management companies who pay a minimal fee to these “inspectors” for a cursory survey of the home.

Just take a look at the latest business opportunities magazines, Google searches, and much more. From foreclosure clean outs to home inspections and preservation inspections, all state “No experience necessary!”

Even worse, many uneducated buyers are forgoing their own professional home inspection because they perceive that their new home was professionally inspected and they believe they have a report to rely on!

We are only beginning to see the result of what these homeowners have set themselves up for. Take a look at this recent article that was published in the Dallas News, Beware of the foreclosure inspector!

If the truth be known, most banks are not paying for qualified inspections, as very few, if any from our research, are being put though any type of quality assurance program on the side of the inspection management or property management company. They rely completely on the quality of the inspectors that are registered with their company and deal mostly with PDF inspection reporting techniques. Some even rely on handwritten scanned reports!

This is very scary as in most cases some of the inspection management companies have never met the inspector! But banks and prospective homeowners are relying on their data!!

It is not uncommon for us to reject reports because we do not have enough data, photographs, or additional validation comments from the inspector.

Our goal is to put validity behind the inspection component of the foreclosure inspection so that the peace of mind the future owners deserve is received and that informed investment decisions can be made. For more information on our inspection report, the Limited Visual Assessment Survey Report, Click Here.