On the Horizon: Contractor Networking Night

Hey SoCal Contractors! We organize a contractor networking night every year and this years event will be at Burbank Bar & Grille on May 23rd. $10 covers your admission and a drink ticket. This is a public event so please feel free to share it with anyone you know in the construction industry. We’ll be doing speed networking, sharing tips on marketing your contracting business, exchanging ideas, and getting to know one another! The idea is to meet new people and build strong referral relationships. Hope to see you there!

You can contact April for more info or to confirm: april@specialtyinspect.com or (818) 433-3660.

 

We Now Have DocuSign!

In this day and age with technology taking over, we are continuing to be more efficient and ever improving our services. We now have DocuSign to help speed up the process of signing contracts and even paying with a credit card.

When scheduling your inspection you can mention to the scheduler that when sending your confirmation you would also like our forms via DocuSign. We will send your contract(s) and a credit card authorization via DocuSign when requested.

 

Article in BHGLAAR REALTOR® News for May 2013

Each month BHGLAAR REALTOR® News releases articles and news regarding the real estate industry. For the May issue, we have an article titled “Out of Sight, Out of Mind” regarding sewer lines that has some really good info. You can check out the full issue and article here: http://www.foleypub.com/epapers/bhglaarmay/files/14.html

 

Let’s Yap About yelping… is it Harming or Helping?

Yelp.com can be a great tool for a business, but it can also harm their reputation. It can be hard to remedy a negative review, especially without the full name of the person who wrote it. It can be hard to figure out who a job was for - are they even your client? How long ago the job was done? Many factors play a part in each scenario. I recently read a negative review about a home inspection that was not written by our client (the buyer) but rather by the party selling the building. They were not happy about some of the issues that came to light on the inspection, and if I was selling the building I may have felt the same way. However it is the home inspectors job to call attention to these issues, and being the bearer of bad news is never a fun position to be in. In this case, our client – the buyer - was happy that they had hired us as they found out a number of factors about the building that affected their buying decision. But they were not the ones who took to the internet to write a review. Not everyone takes the time to write about a positive experience but many folks out there write critical, and sometimes exaggerated negative reviews as a way to vent their anger somehow or try to inflict hurt on the company that they are upset with. That might make sense if you get poor service but that’s not always the cause of negative reviews.

That being said, there are still people who take the time to pen a thoughtful positive review post. I was pleased as punch to run across this review today on our Yelp.com business profile from yelper James C. in West Hollywood,

“I am a real estate agent that works in Los Angeles. I work a lot with buyers. I have used LaRocca inspections for about two years. I can honestly say that they are the most professional inspection company operating in LA. Since they have 12 really good inspectors ( I have had inspections with most of them at least once) you can always get an inspection date within a few days so they don’t book up like smaller companies do. The scheduling department that answers the phone is very responsive and have excellent customer service. The inspectors are professional and spend at least an hour and a half for condos and two hours or more for homes inspecting the property. They always go on the roof and underneath the crawl space. The inspectors are good with talking to clients if your buyer chooses to be present to explain each item they are going to point out in their report. The report they create is well organized and easy to understand and very detailed. Almost every real estate agent has used LaRocca Inspections at one time, or use them as their main company so when they get a LaRocca report- they know that it is credible. LaRocca has a great reputation in the real estate community. Biggest doesn’t always translate into the best, but LaRocca delivers an outstanding service time after time.”

Thank you James C! We’re so glad that you enjoy our services, are grateful for your loyal business, and appreciate you taking the time to write up such a glowing review about us! We’d love to hear about anyone else’s review experiences, be they good, bad, or neutral.

 

Homebuyer FAQs

We recently ran across this older article on homebuyer FAQs. There’s some great tips in it so we’d thought we’d share!

Whether someone is getting a completely updated house or a fixer, what are the most important things to have in good shape, when buying a home?

The major systems are the most important items. The major systems are the plumbing, electrical, roofing, foundation & the heating/cooling systems. These are the basic components and the most important parts of a house. They are also the big-ticket items if you have to repair or replace them and are a gauge of your future costs in maintaining the property. Look at the “guts” of the house. If you were buying a used car and it had a new paint job, that would be nice, but you would really want to find out about the engine, brakes and transmission. It’s the same with a house – find out about the five major systems and see if they were upgraded along with the rest of the house.

When considering a house, what are some items a buyer should look at that are red flags?

1) Moisture stains on the ceilings, walls or flooring. Moisture is the number one enemy of any structure. It not only causes damage and deterioration to the property but can lead to mold growth and other issues. It’s a big red flag for potential bigger issues.

2) Un-permitted work. All construction work to the property is supposed to have permits from the city. Un-permitted work is not going to be done per building department standards and is generally of inferior grade. Many times it is done in an un-permitted fashion because it cannot meet building and safety standards and be passed by the city. If the un-permitted space is not on city records and included in the square footage, banks may not lend on it, and therefore the loan may be less.

3) Sloping floors and other indications of the house shifting or sinking. Older homes are going to have some settlement and be somewhat out of level due to their age, but when it gets to the point where windows and doors are not working or have been severely altered to fit this could be an indication of foundation issues. Foundation issues can be varied and include grading and drainage problems, they are expensive to fix. If the house is not square or level or it feels like you are walking downhill when going through a room, the foundation must be fully checked-out as it can be an indicator of bigger problems.

4) Poor maintenance to the property. In general as shown in things like peeling paint, worn roofing and windows that don’t work. Poor maintenance usually extends beyond the things you can see. If the owners are not fixing the visible things, they are also probably not fixing the things that you can’t see.

When a home is upgraded, what are some hidden problems that buyers should look for?

Any upgrade to a property should include the major systems. If they were not fixed then the house wasn’t fully upgraded, too often the buyer is impressed by how pretty it looks and doesn’t realize that if the basic components of the house are not changed, they are just buying the same old house with new paint on it. Hidden problems include old rusty piping in the walls, deteriorated underground sewer lines, damaged chimney structures, roofing at the end of its useful life, worn out heating systems, older cloth covered wiring in the electrical system, and older foundation systems that do not meet today’s seismic (earthquake) standards. The buyer should have professional inspectors assess the true condition of each of the critical systems.  Another factor with recently upgraded homes is that the systems may not have been in use so were not tested in real life conditions. Many times when subjected to actual living conditions, problems show up that were not evident before.

When a house is a fixer, what should a buyer beware of?

Anyone buying a fixer needs to understand the magnitude of the repairs that will be needed to bring the property to a new standard. Even experienced contractors can underestimate what it’s going to take to fully upgrade a house. It’s common to uncover hidden problems and unforeseen costs during the course of a “fixer” upgrade. Such things, like complying with new code upgrades and various job delays, add to construction and carrying costs and eat into the profit margin. Sometimes a fixer can seem like such a good deal, but keep in mind that all of the costs need to be figured in and then a contingency added on at the top. If you are tight on money, this may not be the property for you.

What are 3-5 good tips you can give a buyer?  

1) Team up with a good real estate agent. They should be looking for the right house for you, not just trying to sell a house.

2) Do a full inspection of the property. Include inspections of the sewer line and the chimney. These are hidden from view and can be expensive to fix. Any money spent on inspections will save you from unforeseen expenses later on – don’t skimp on them.

3) Go to the property you are looking at buying more than once. Go to see it at various times of day, at night or in the morning or even on weekends. Walk around the area a little when you go there. This may help you find out if there are neighbor issues (such as loud music at night) and give you different perspectives on the property.

What are the biggest mistakes most buyers make?  

1) The first mistake is buying with their heart and not their head. It’s easy to fall in love with the million-dollar view but they should also be falling in love with their major systems.

2) The next mistake is not getting sufficient inspections or hiring a discount inspector that is not a qualified professional. You should hire the best you can get to tell you about the property and you should check out all of the components of the home, including things like mold and other potential hazards, before buying. Saving a few hundred dollars on inspections may cost you thousands in repair costs later on. Real estate is a huge investment and should be treated as such.

When buying an older home (say anything over 20 years), what should a buyer know?

No home is perfect. There are going to be flaws and little issues. Don’t let them detract from your enjoyment of the house. Realize that older homes may take a little more maintenance, as things will wear out. Budget for these and maintain your house. It will make it easier for you to sell when you are ready to move.

Written by John A. LaRocca; John is a member of the California Real Estate Inspection Association (CREIA) and a licensed general contractor. For questions contact John at (818) 951-1795 or www.LaRoccaInspect.com.

 

Detect the Defect: Gas Line

See if you can spot the issue our inspector discovered before looking at the answer (the first photo below is without the answer, and the second one has the answer and how it should look).

Keep an eye on our Facebook page to play!

Answer:

 

On the Horizon: BizN.E.T. 2013

The Arcadia Associaiton of REALTORS® is hosting BizN.E.T. 2013 at the World Famous Santa Anita Park (Race Track). The event will be held on Tuesday, April 23, 2013 from 9:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m.

This year the theme will be “Through the Years.” They are planning to incorporate changes of technology through the years into this event and are encouraging all of the exhibitors to decorate their booths, according to the theme. $100, $75 & $50 gift card prizes will be awarded to the best decorated booths.

We will have a booth there, so be sure to stop by and say hi and check out our winning decorations!

For more info go to http://www.theaar.com/biznet/ or check out the video below: