Inspection series had both good, bad
The series on home inspections provided by the Daily Herald and WLS-TV raises many concerns and questions that new and used home buyers should be concerned with when making their purchase.
At the same time, I question the content of the series starting with Monday's editorial. Hot water going to a toilet in Cindy McCammack's Addison home was not the fault of the builder. Rather it was a mistake by a plumber, a licensed Illinois plumber. Plumbing inspections are performed by licensed Illinois plumber inspectors, but it was an honest mistake that can happen.
A quick plumbing inspection in the "rough" inspection phase would not catch the mistake. A more thorough but time consuming tracing of the routes of the water supply pipes would have. But the builder did not make the mistake.
Hiring an independent home inspector for the purchase of a used home makes sense, but when it comes to building codes, current accepted code requirements may not be applicable on existing housing stock.
For example, some of the current code requirements concerning balluster spacing on railing systems, window egress size, plumbing and electrical applications are costly and infeasible to apply to older housing stock.
Experienced private home inspectors know well enough not to apply code changes that have evolved over the years unless mandated by law, for example, the inclusion of carbon monoxide detectors.
Many homebuilders offer their buyers opportunity to view and inspect the home while under construction in the rough and finish stages prior to closing. Some take the time to show the plans or "blueprints" to their customers prior to excavating the first shovel of dirt from the site.
It makes sense and good practice that if a home buyer is not familiar or experienced with the technical side of construction, they should consult with a state licensed independent home inspection service. Peace of mind is worth the expense involved.
With the slowing of the housing economy, there should be less pressure on municipalities and their inspection departments to perform under the gun.
They now have the opportunity to be more thorough in their work and pay more attention to ensuring that what's being built is in conformance with the plans as approved by plans examiners and that quality work is being performed in a workmanlike and professional manner.
I have over 30 years experience in the home building industry as a residential construction project manager and have served state of Illinois Plumbing Code Advisory Council and the former State of Illinois Building Commission.
Gary A. Lichthardt
Elgin