Business TheReview Wednesday, March 7, 1990 — A21 rr “Lumber lemons of a hot market trap buyers by Valorie Lennox The Review Wheeled lemons are well docu- mented. Less so are lumber lem- ons. The hot real estate market in the south Island’ over the past year is keeping buyers from checking out their potential purchases. “People wouldn’t buy a used car. without getting it checked,” says Rick Couvelier of Sherlock Home Inspection Service Ltd. Yet house buyers dealing with the 10-fold expense of a house are forced by the market to go ahead without having the building inspected, Couvelier said. Realtor Paul Askew of NRS Peninsula Properties agreed that the market makes buyers less likely to include house inspection as a condition when making a purchase offer. “You don’t have that much time to look for a house. It’s a hot market.” £ ‘Poor real esiate will not sell in a normal marke?. But it will sell when the market is ho? -Rick Couvelier For the past one to two years, houses have sold quickly. Askew estimates a well-priced house sells within a week. A buyer who’s been searching for a house around here has likely seen several sell while he or she _ was considering the purchase. So iad buyers may make a quick offer on the next one that comes up, Cou- velier said. “Poor real estate will not sell in 4 normal market. But it will sell _ when the market is hot.” The market for sellers is so good, many will not consider offers with conditions like house inspection, Couvelier said. “In the market people feel the pressure — it’s not unusual for people to get hanged. You can really buy yourself a lemon.” Askew tells buyers a house inspection is a condition that may be attached to a purchase offer. But buyers often decide not to clutter an offer with any conditions. And they know the vendor is more likely to take an uncondi- tional offer, Askew said. “It’s a seller’s market is what it comes down to. There are lots of buyers out there.” Even when not pressured by the market, only 10 per cent of home buyers get a house inspection, Askew said. However he doesn’t think sellers are taking advantage of the market. “You can tell when you go through a house if il is in really bad repair,” he said. But Couvelier said it’s invisible problems that often trip up home buyers. One person bought an eight- year-old house just over a year ago. An inspection revealed so many deficiencies that Couvelier doubts the house had passed a building code inspection. A check of Victoria city records revealed the house did not have an occupancy permit — despite being uscd as a home for eight years The owner now has a house requiring over $20,000 in work. And it can’t be sold without a disclosure that the home has no occupancy permit. People assume a new house does not need inspection, yet Cou- velier said he often finds problems in new or near-new homes. He inspected a high-priced townhouse complex with no occu- pancy permits — although the individual units were being sold and people were moving in. Another townhouse project, five years old, had no insulation in any of the units. All of the owners had bought assuming the new or ncar- new units were insulated. Another house buyer got a declaration from the seller declar- ing urea formaldchyde was not used in the house insulation. Couvelier found the house is insulated with urea formaldehyde but the seller has since vanished in West Germany. The home owners Home buyers’ checklist When buying any home, an inspection is the best protection. However, there are some items a potential buyer can check before deciding whether to consider the home further. - Make sure the vendor will give the required declaration that the home is not insulated with urea formaldehyde, especially if you’re looking at an older home. - Determine if the home is on septic tank or sewer. If the home are experiencing respiratory prob- lems and the house cannot be sold. The most common problems are wood-boring insects, watcr pene- tration and electrical rewiring. Wood-boring insects are espe- cially prevalent on the Peninsula, because of the rural surroundings and the number of older homes. Many older homes in this cli- mate are infested with wood- boring insects, Couvelicr said. Some homeowners, coming to the Peninsula from colder climates where the insects are not a prob- lem, aren’t aware of the problem. A CLOSE INSPECTION by Rick Couvelier reveals potential water dam- age. The temperate island climate produces conditions more similar to California, where checks for insect infestation are required by law. In California, Couvelier said, the law places the onus on the seller to ensure the house is free of major defects, rather than on the buyer. The second major problem, linked to insect infestation, 1s water penctration. There may be roof Ieaks that do not show on house ccilings, plumbing Icaks, lot drainage problems, watcr secping in the crawl space or basement and permitter drain tile problems. - Wet wood Icads to rot — and to msccls. “Usually wood-boring insccts and rot go hand in hand,” Couvel- icr said. “Most of the bugs arc attracted 1o damp wood.” Fixing the leak and drying out the wood may be cnough to clear oul a minor inscct infestation. A major infestation will likcly require professional extermination, Couvelier said. Another problem, more com- mon to older homes, is the chance a handyman has done work in the house. Such work is not done under permit, or inspected, so it may be hazardous. This is especially truce of electrical work, Couvelier said. The homcowner who did the work, perhaps an extra plug added five years carlicr, may forget to mention the work to a buyer. “The bugs, the water and the electrical are probably three of the most major problems. In most cases, they re hidden situations.” Finding such hidden situations can save the buyer from a home purchase that later turns sour. “People make a lot of assump- tions when they’re buying a home and those assumptions may not be truce,” Couvelier said. “You may be able to afford buying a car which is a lemon, but if you’ve got a Iemon of a housc it can cost you thousands.” Getting the most for STRAIGHT TALK | ABOUT YOUR MONEY. Buea 1 2 a 2 5 Ofoone YEAR RATE your investment dollar is as easy as talking to the right people. For security, and straight talk call Gurney Smith [lees fen fea tac fn bar boy po [Se a higher rate of return & Asssociates today. GURNEY SMITH & ASSOCIATES LTD. FINANCIAL CONSULTANTS ~ LIFE UNDERWRITERS SUITE 6 - 9843 2nd St, SIDNEY (In Marina Court) 656-2411 1205 C Verdier Ave, (Brentwood Bay Shopping Centre) 652-1482 on will estate SCIrvICCs. is on septic tank, try to find out if the tank and field are adequate for the home. This is especially important if an in-law suite has been added or the home expanded since the original construction. The company that last cleaned the septic tank and the regional health department can give information on the tank and ficld capacity, - Check with the building inspection department with jurisdic- tion over the home to ensure an occupancy permit has been issued. This is more relevant for buyers of newer homes; some older homes may have been built before the municipality was incorpor- ated so no permit exists. - Check for water penetration, especially untreated woodwork in contact with moisture. Water-soaked wood rots and attracts wood-boring insects. - From the vendor, find out the type of roof and date of installation. Then check with a roofing company to learn the average economic life for that type of roof. * Watch out for airtight wood stoves and fireplace inserts, which have strict safety requirements. An airtight insert for a fireplace changes the safety criteria for the fireplace. Local fire departments will often inspect these installations for safety. If the unit is not properly installed and a fire results, the home insurance may not be valid. > Look for possible home renovations, then check with the owner and the local building inspection department to ensure renovations were done under permit. L. 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