Country inspections

There is a difference, and buyers need to know.

by Ed Blackburn   Fed up with the problems of city life, whether real or perceived, a growing number of people are moving to close-in country property or "exurban" subdivisions located around the urban areas of Texas. Some can afford expensive, highly improved property while others may simply opt for a home and small barn.

Regardless of the situation, we, as REALTORS®, are expected to advise these new country folk on any number of issues when they buy their property. One area of concern is the property inspection.

Most likely coming from a suburban subdivision and probably having bought and sold a home or two in the past, these buyers expect to have their prospective home inspected. After all, that’s how they had done it before, right?

Little do they know that a formal inspection of a country property is relatively new in the scheme of things. Until recently, the country property buyer was usually "from the country" and knew what to look for in a country home. Or, they simply took their chances.

But, given the recent trend of urban dwellers flocking to the country to buy homes, barns, stables, corrals, water wells, and so on, we are beset by a whole group of people who, for the most part, don’t know enough to ask the right questions.

In the past, buyers might simply take the word of a knowledgeable country REALTOR®, and if things didn’t turn out the way they thought—well, that’s just the way things went. However, much has changed. These days, buyers want expert answers, they want them quickly, and they expect accountability. Anything less and you may be talking to your lawyer.

Let’s take an example of a family planning to move onto a 49-acre ranch estate you just sold them. They have just signed a contract for a wonderfully updated 6,000-square-foot rock-and-brick dwelling, swimming pool and pool house, small lake, two ponds, stables with attached hay barn, paddocks, kennels (with separate septic system), implement barn and shop, hay meadow, and a deep-water well that supplies potable water. They are paying over $1 million for their dream-come-true.

The home is 15 years old and the other improvements range from that to five years. They have a 20-day option period to have the property inspected for problems and to submit repair requests to the current owner.

Your buyers are insisting on calling the inspector who inspected their in-town home seven years ago.

"He was very thorough," they insist. "And he’s a great guy, too."

This is the point when you might want to ask a few questions of your buyers, in order that they can ask a few questions of their inspector friend or, for that matter, any other inspector they may interview.

Of course, their inspector may be very competent, but does he understand rural property?

Let’s assume he’s on top of all the issues for the dwelling, swimming pool, and pool house. What about the stables and hay barn? Does he know what to look for?

Can he verify that the septic system to the house is functional and safe? What about the septic system for the kennels? What about the fly-control system in the stables? Or the water and electricity systems to the stables or implement barn?

And then there’s the deep-water well—does he understand submersible pumps? What about the water quality itself? Does he have the capability or network to test it?

What about fuel leakage and contamination in the implement barn and shop? Could there be e-coli (or DDT) contamination in the ponds? Or even the lake? What about other surface or even groundwater contamination from a neighbor’s water runoff? What about previous owners’ landfills for their trash and garbage? Do they pose hazards?

These are only a few questions that might be asked. You, as a country-property agent or broker, know that there could be many more questions depending upon just how much the buyer wants to know and the type of property and improvements with which you are dealing.

As you might expect, rural property inspections are more expensive.

First, there’s travel time. The further out the property, the farther the inspector has to travel. Then there are the systems. The more systems, the more involved the inspector must become to ensure functionality (or not). If special tests are needed for soil or water contamination, for example, the prospective buyer should expect additional costs for those tests.

Choosing an inspector for rural property is a mite different than choosing an inspector for an in-city property. The number of qualified inspectors who can handle rural property inspections is small and, like any group, there are good ones and not-so-good ones.

It would be a good idea to assemble a list of inspectors whose competencies qualify them for making rural inspections. Call a few inspectors. Ask them to drop by your office and interview them yourself. You can then have this list handy when the question of inspections comes up in conversations with your buyers.

Also, prepare your buyers by asking them questions like the ones above. Share with your buyers the pros and cons of the inspection and ask to what depth they wish to probe, pointing out to them the corresponding expenses involved.

A rural property inspection, done well by a qualified inspector, will in the long run save money and aggravation. Your coaching will provide the guidance the buyer either wants or needs, and it’s a service that buyers, especially those moving from urban areas, expect.

Ed Blackburn has been a licensed Texas broker since 1972 and has sold and appraised farm, ranch, and investment properties in Texas and Oklahoma. A firm believer in the use of technology, he also instructs periodically on the application of technology in the practice of real estate sales and marketing. He is also a candidate for the REALTOR® Land Institute’s ALC designation.

Photo © PhotoDisc.

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