What Does “At the time of the inspection” Mean?

What Does “At the time of the inspection” Mean?

There is a phrase that we use in the home inspection trade during every inspection. Home Inspectors use the phrase “at the time of the inspection” whenever we are referring to the conditions that we have encountered during the course of the home inspection.

Essentially the phrase refers to the items that we are finding during the inspection.

The reason this phrase is relevant is because sometimes we are joined on the home inspection by the seller / homeowner or the seller’s agent. FYI typically the seller is not present, and less frequently the listing agent is not present.

Inevitably in this scenario, the homeowner or seller’s agent will overhear the home inspector talking about an item that needs to be corrected or upgraded, and human nature compels the homeowner or their agent to say that the item will be corrected before the new owner takes possession of the home, or that the item is known to them, and is about to be corrected.

Regardless of the attempt at placation, the home inspector is required by their license to report what they see or have seen during the inspection.

This is a hot button issue for me personally, because I have had listing agents literally say to me, “that item will be fixed by tomorrow, so you don’t need to put that in the report.”

Au contraire my friend, I DO need to put that in my report because I just witnessed that item during the inspection, and I wouldn’t be doing my job if I didn’t include the item.

Hence the use of the phrase, at the time of the inspection, I witnessed…

Michael McCarty
NH Licensed Home Inspector # 316
Vermont Property Inspector License # 143.0134099
HUD 203k Consultant # 1939