Home Inspector Law Now In Effect

Guest blogger and Bradenton /Sarasota Home Inspector, Claude McGavic, of Home Check Home Inspection Services, wrote the following real estate blog post: 

As of July 1, 2011, per House Bill 713,  all Florida Home Inspectors must be licensed.  Licensure is monitored and regulated by The Department of Business and Professional Regulation.

Key provisions of the law include:

• The inspector must present a copy of his or her license as well as a copy of the scope and exclusions of the inspecition to the client.

• The inspector must carry a minimum general liability insurance policy of at least $300,000.

• The inspector must prepare a written report.

• The report shall identify those components inspected that, in the opinion of the inspector, are significantly deficient or are near the end of their service life.

• The report shall tell why the component is significantly deficient if the reason is evident to the inspector.

• The report shall identify components that were present at the time of the inspection but were not inspected.

• A home inspector is not required to provide repair estimates.

• The inspector is not allowed to inspect property in which they have a financial interest.

• The inspector is not allowed to provide repair services.

To verify a license, go to:   www.myfloridalicense.com

Click on:   ‘LICENSE SEARCH’ and follow the prompts.

WHO MIGHT BENEFIT FROM A HOME INSPECTION?

• Anyone who is buying a home or investment property.   A home inspection, on a resale property, may identify major defects that could require expensive repairs in future.

• A new construction home buyer.  Even with a new home, sometimes there are oversights or issues that are missed by the builder that a licensed home inspector may reveal. An inspection, before closing on a new home, could save a lot of time, frustration, and inconvenience in the long run.

• A home owner.  If you already own a home, a home inspection can be a great idea for identifying maintenance issues before they become major headaches and costly repairs.  If you’re selling your home, an upfront home inspection, which you can share with potential buyers, could give you an edge while negotiating the sale of your home.  Being proactive and doing repairs that are needed before putting your home on the market, could potentially save you lots of money when negotiating price with respect to ‘condition’ of your home with a prospective buyer.

If you’re a first time home buyer, or if you haven’t been present for a home inspection in a while, you may want to use this VIRTUAL HOME INSPECTION TOUR TOOL to familiarize yourself with the components of a home inspection.

_____________________________________________________________________

Author of this guest post~

Claude McGavic

Home Check Home Inspection Services

http://HomeCheckfl.com

About the author:

Claude and Judi McGavic founded Home Check Home Inspection services in 1996.  Claude McGavic is a member and Past President of the National Association of Home Inspectors (NAHI) and currently serves on its Board of Directors. He is also a member and serves on the Board of Directors of the Florida Association of Building Inspectors. Claude served on the committee which prepared the nationally recognized Certified Real Estate Inspector examination and through NAHI, collaborated with the University of Minnesota to develop a national standard of practice for the home inspection profession. In his 16 years in business, he has completed more than 8,000 inspections.