Over the last six months, my business has seen an increase of buyers going after foreclosures. In this down housing market, people  are looking everywhere for a bargain. In most cases, these foreclosed homes have been winterized to prevent damage during its vacancy. And from my experience, I've noticed that when an inspector has taken care of this step, the home is left in safe condition. But without the involvement of someone who has been trained in inspections, it's a different story. The last couple of foreclosed properties that I inspected had some fun surprises in stored for me.

Electrocution anyone?
Knowing that I was coming to inspect the home, the power had been restored. During my visit I found several appliances and fixtures had been removed. While these items were going to be replaced, the connecting electrical wires were left unsecured and exposed for anyone to fiddle with. I'm always worried about kids touring these homes with their parents, and I can just imagine them playing with those wires. I've also seen adults fidgeting around with loose wires, trying to determine their use.

Gas attack
The home that I inspected this past weekend had the gas turned off at the main valve. The valves inside the house had been left in the open position. I received a call from my client that they will be turning the gas back on today. I'm sure glad I shut those valves off before I left, otherwise you're looking at a major accident ready to happen.

Here comes the flood
Three of the homes I recently inspected had problems with plumbing, which meant that turning on the water could cause damage. An outside hose bib had its supply pipe broken off inside the wall. I was told not to worry about checking the plumbing, because the water was not on, but I'm nosy and I looked into it anyway. The hose bib had been put back into position, but unless it was inspected, you wouldn't have noticed that the pipe was busted. A toilet had a loose tank, so it had a steady leak, which damaged the new tile. A faucet for a shower needed a new seal, so when the water came on, it was spraying out into the bathroom.

As a certified inspector, I will always recommend an inspection before a home is shown, but unfortunately, I know that this doesn't happen in every case. If you are a buyer who is foregoing an inspector's service, you may want to go over to the home on the day that the utilities are restored to double check for glitches and assure the home is secure for visitors.

During my recent inspections, I knew one of the homes had a contractor winterize it before it was shown, but I would recommend that the owners of these homes have the repairs made before the winterization is done. And as a buyer, you should be careful when touring homes that have been vacant for an extended time. It's always good to ask the showing agent if the home has been inspected before your visit.

Frank Schulte-Ladbeck, Professional Real Estate Inspector