Provinces should develop a minimum standard for home inspections,
Provinces joining move to regulate and set standards
I ’ve been saying it for years. The home inspection industry is like the Wild West — a lot of cowboys but not a lot of sheriffs. Throughout most of Canada, the industry is selfregulated by different associations with different sets of standards. No one’s playing by the same set of rules and it’s caused some really bad outcomes. But this is starting to change.
More and more provinces are setting standards that will help make sure homeowners get what they pay for. Until recently, Alberta and British Columbia were the only provinces that required home inspectors to be licensed. But now Ontario is starting to set minimum industry standards and I’m proud to be working with the provincial government to help push this forward. It’s definitely a step in the right direction.
(In Quebec, one needs only to be “certified,” not licensed as an inspector. Membership in the Quebec Association of building inspectors is not mandatory.)
As part of its consumer protection initiative the Ontario government is beginning to set minimum qualifications for all home inspectors operating in the province.
The rest of Canada needs to get behind this so we’re all on the same page moving forward.
I don’t care where you live — Nova Scotia, Manitoba, Nunavut or Saskatchewan — every Canadian should be getting a qualified and full assessment of their home every time they get a home inspec- tion. There needs to be consistency between all home inspections performed in Canada no matter where you live. Every home inspection should be good and protect the huge investment homeowners are making.
Too many homeowners have ended up in bad situations because a home inspection didn’t turn up major issues. Believe me, I’ve met them! These are problems that should have been caught before homeowners buy their home. Things like dangerous electrical, mould, bad structure, asbestos, undersized HVAC — you name it, I’ve found it. And this is after the homeowners have had a home inspection.
It’s bad enough that homeowners are wasting their money — some home inspec- tion reports aren’t worth the paper they’re written on. But the real danger here is all the problems homeowners are forced to face just because a home inspection didn’t do its job, which is to protect the homeowner. I’m talking about thousands of dollars worth in repairs. Do you think many homeowners who just bought a house will have that kind of money?
In most cases, homeowners — and their families — will live in a home that needs major repairs for years. Why? Because they bought a house that turned out to be a can of worms and they can’t afford to repair it.
Sometimes these conditions are bad for their health. If we’re talking about something like dangerous electrical, it can be life threatening. Not to mention all the emotional stress these families are put through.
The argument goes something like this: Home inspectors can only comment on what they can see. So if they miss things like mould, faulty wiring or improper ventilation they can’t be held accountable. Home inspectors can’t go moving furniture, poking holes in drywall or ripping up floors. I get that. But I’ve seen plenty of homes where the clues on the surface tell me there are huge problems brewing underneath.
Every home inspector in the country should know where to look, what to look for and what it all means. For example, everyone thinks icicles on the roof during winter are nice. But icicles tell me that there are prob- lems with the roof and insulation in the attic — and every home inspector should know this, too.
I’ve heard of home inspectors who will do an inspection in the evening after they finish their day job, and I don’t know how well you can examine a roof properly in the dark.
Without a doubt, there are good home inspectors working in the industry. But we need to take the necessary measures that will make sure there are only good inspectors working in the industry. We can’t afford not too.
We need more home inspectors who have a complete understanding of all of the components in a home and how they work together. Home inspectors who can see if a supporting wall has been removed or structure compromised. Home inspectors that are proud of their work and care about the people it affects. These are the good guys and there needs to be more of them.
I think a lot of us want the same thing. I know homeowners do. And I know good home inspectors understand that by raising standards across the board we’re honouring their skills, strengthening their industry and improving Canadian housing. It’s a win-win, folks.