Beware the "Remodeled" House - 1 of 3

A recent inspection started out on a high note. The Realtor met me early and showed me extensive advertising for this house, which advertising extolled it as "completely remodeled. Must see the inside!!"

I asked if there were any permits provided by the seller or listing agent. "Oh, I don't know...," she said.

The kitchen just felt wrong. I don't like that feeling. So, first thing, I pulled the stove away from the wall of the "remodeled" kitchen. This view would be one indication why there are no permits to reflect professional work.

The picture is taken while peeking over the top of the range. Upper left/center is the gas connection. The shut-off valve, which must have pre-existed this installation, is visible on the top, and inaccessible. The rest of the connection is just as frightfully incorrect!

What you cannot see is the bottom of this unprotected, flexible gas tubing. It was maybe 6' long and actually bent, curled up and stuck under the range!

There was no anti-tip device either! Well surprise, surprise, surprise!

This was a new range and has an electric spark to ignite the flames. This necessitates a proper electrical connection, preferably to a dedicated receptacle. The "remodeling professional" provided one! The range was plugged into an extension cord, visible center/right. That cord goes up the wall from there. It passes through a hole in the bathroom wall and its other end was hard wired into the light fixture connection for that bathroom. All that wiring is ungrounded and was laying on the top of the bathroom light fixture, right beside the hot lights. Had the drywall been replaced I may never have looked there to find this connection!

Thus begAnneth a very, very, very long inspection...

My recommendation: if you are going to buy homes or show your clients homes advertised as "remodeled," before you even take them by to see it, call and ask the other Realtor if he/she can show you the permits for the work. If the answer is no, don't even bother to show it! And if there are permits, make sure they were not issued South of the Border...

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Jay performs inspections Monday through Saturday, throughout Northern Virginia, from his office in Bristow to Leesburg and Centreville, to Great Falls and Vienna and everywhere in between!

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