Expert: Russel Ray - 11/15/2010

Question
I live in California Central Valley.  I would like to know if a buyer home inspection includes checking underneath the house and how much through is that inspection.  Do all houses have to have a place for entering the underneath of the house?  If we do not find any place for entering the underneath, can we open one?

Also, about the roof, do the buyer inspector check the condition of the rafters and joists? and if so, how much
reliable would the check be.  On my house there was an opening in a closet ceiling for accesing the attic, but in a paint job they closed it.  Can a buyer open an attic hole in order to check rafters and joists?

Also am I right in thinking that the wall framing rarely gets damaged  and that a buyer home inspection does not include information about the internal wood wall framing?

And are there another major inspection concern before buying a foreclosed home?  

I would appreciate answers.  Respectfully,  Andres R.

Answer
Hey, Andres.

Under optimum conditions, a home inspector would be expected to crawl under the house to look inspect the foundation and utilities such as plumbing. Things that could prevent that include inadequate clearance, dangerous conditions, no access, wildlife living in the crawl space, etc. It's completely up to the home inspector to determine if clearance is inadequate or conditions are dangerous, so be sure to read the full home inspection report to see what the inspector could and could not do due to conditions beyond his/her control.

Houses on raised foundations should have a way to get under them, but I have found remodeled houses where the owners "never got under there" so s/he decided that no one else needed to get under there either, and sealed the opening. Sometimes owners seal the openings to prevent their pets and inquisitive children from getting under there. After all, it is a dangerous area.

If you don't find a way to get under the house, you can't make one until you own the property, but you can certainly ask the owners to make one so that your home inspector can get under there.

Inspectors would be expected to get up into the attic to check the rafters and joists, but this again comes down to inaccessibility and dangerous conditions, both left up to the inspector. Again, read that inspection report to see what the inspector could and could not do due to conditions beyond his/her control. If the inspector was able to get into the attic, I see no reason why his evaluation would not be reliable, as long as you hired the best inspector you could find.

Since the property is not yours yet, you should not do anything that could possibly cause damage, and neither should your inspector, such as trying to unseal an attic hole that has been sealed shut with paint, which occurs way too often. Instead, have the seller unseal it. Then, if they cause damage and you decide not to buy, it's their damage. If they cause damage and you DO decide to buy, the damage should be in the inspection report and you can request that they repair that damage.

Your thinking about the wall framing is correct. However, the best home inspector knows the clues to look for that can help determine if there are any internal framing problems.

Buying a foreclosed home really is not any different from buying any other home. Just make sure you get that best inspector to help you. S/he'll be worth every penny you pay him or her.