Those thinking of taking out a Florida home mortgage for a residence in the Sunshine State are aware of the risks involed; namely, the natural disaster risks. A new program, however, aims to help owners remain safe throughout hurricane season.

My Safe Florida Home is a $250 million mitigation program to help Floridians strengthen their homes against hurricanes and to reduce property losses around the state. Owners in the local real estate market now apply for a FREE home inspection and professional recommendations on how to improve their homes’ ability to withstand a hurricane.

These individuals may also qualify for matching grants of up to $5,000 to fortify their homes.

Why offer a cost-free home inspection? The goal is “to strengthen as many homes as possible against hurricane damage,” said Jeff Takacs, spokesman with Department of Financial Services, which administers the My Safe Florida Home program.

Tom Gallagher, Florida’s chief financial officer and a gubernatorial candidate, said that as many as 50,000 Florida households will be served over the next year through this program. It should ease at least one worry you may have over applying for a Florida mortgage loan. The program will help reinforce older homes - those built prior to 2002 - which represent 85 percent of all state houses.

Moreover, these strengthened homes would be less susceptible to damage from hurricanes, making them more attractive to insurers, resulting in lower insurance premiums. It would all add up to fewer costs for hopeful owners around various counties and cities.
To apply for a free home inspection, Floridians must:

- Live in a single-family, site-built home with an insured value of $500,000 or less and have a valid homestead exemption.

Once an inspection has been done, the homeowner will receive a report within 10 days that would outline up to seven areas that could be improved to better protect the home against hurricanes. There would then be an estimate of how much each of those improvements would cost, the expected savings if the improvements were made, and a rating of the home’s current ability to withstand hurricanes.

Perhaps this information will lead many to increase their demand for Florida home loans as the year comes to a close.

So you think you’ve found the perfect house. Three bedrooms, a nice remodeled kitchen, even room for a home office. All you need to do is get a home inspection to make sure there are no major problems and you’ll be officially moved in and problem free, right?

Think again. Many buyers are discovering the hard way that what takes place in a home inspection is hardly a guarantee that the home is in great shape. When buying Florida real estate, new owners happen upon some unpleasant surprises after they move in. It is imperative that you understand what an inspection covers and what it does not, so that you do not pay the price later.

DON’T TAKE IT FOR GRANTED

Inspectors are required to reports on items that they deem to be “significantly deficient,” or near the end of their service lives. Of course, if your heating or plumbing system gives out the day after you close on the house, there is nothing you can do about it. In this case there is never a guarantee. But more importantly, Florida home inspectors - like inspectors in most states - are not required to examine anything that is not visible.

Essentially, if a problem cannot be seen, it’s not the inspector’s responsibility to find it. If a bed or dresser conceals a hole in the wall, or a faulty outlet, it may never be found until you do… after taking ownership. The inspectors are also not required to do anything dangerous - so while a roof must be inspected, the inspector will not necessarily climb up on it.

The weather can also throw off the inspection in this respect. If the roof in question is wet, the inspector may not be able to evaluate its condition. If it is unseasonably cold, the air conditioning should not be turned on, as damage to the condenser may be caused. Any heating system must be turned on, but there is no requirement to see how well its units work in any individual rooms.

Also excluded from inspection are shutters, fences, window screens, underground storage units, washers, dryers, dishwashers and other household appliances. Nor are indoor air quality or mold necessarily tested for unless covered by a separate contract. Some inspectors’ contracts state, in fine print, that only items costing more than $1,000 to fix will be reported. Others say that the accuracy of thermostats or the presence of carbon monoxide is not covered.

Yikes.

The Florida Department of Consumer Protection must license every inspector in the state, and many pages of regulations spell out the minimum standards that must be observed. The state’s several hundred licensed inspectors must do 40 hours of training and pass a state exam. Individuals may elect to offer more services, under their own contracts with buyers, than are listed above, but they are not required to.

• Prices range from $300 to about $1,000.
• An inspector is not the same as an appraiser. This unbiased professional’s job it is to determine the market value of real estate, either working directly for a mortgage lender or on behalf of the buyer.
  

So, with all these potential omissions, is it still worth getting an inspection? Absolutely. In fact, you are crazy not to. Most buyers express satisfaction with their inspector(s), and there is still a great chance that a future problem will be identified early, and thus averted, so that future investigations can be conducted and money saved.

“People need to be realistic,” said Mallory Anderson, executive director of the National Association of Home Inspectors. “There is no such thing as the perfect house, and like any group of professionals, there are good ones and bad ones. But at the very least an inspection offers an independent view of the difficulties buyers face.”

Rob Paterkiewicz, executive director of the American Society of Home Inspectors, the industry’s largest trade association, acknowledges that the process does not always run smoothly, but also stresses the importance of the process.

“What is included is far greater than what is excluded, but the inspector is not Superman. They won’t be able to see things they cannot see through. But to go without an inspection would not only be a gamble, it would be downright foolish,” he said.

MAKING YOUR INSPECTION WORTHWHILE

Some Realtors, understandably, just want to get a deal done. Therefore, your first responsibility is to make sure you use an inspector that is independent of your real estate agency, Anderson says. Ask your real estate agent for a list of names and interview them personally. Ask family, friends or colleagues if they have any recommendations, too. Follow the steps below and you should be in good shape as far as making the most out of this necessary but complicated process.

1. Get in touch with the Dept. of Consumer Protection and make sure the person is licensed and that their status is acceptable.
2. Go on the Internet and check to see if your individual is listed in any local home inspector trade groups, which may have higher standards and tougher regulations than the state mandates.
3. Talk to the person about his/her background, how many inspections he/she does over the course of a year, and ask for recent customers who live in your area. Then call those people and see how satisfied they are with the services rendered.
4. Read the contract carefully, down to the last letter of the fine print. Make sure all you want to get looked at is clearly spelled out and that and have a keen sense of what you are paying for here. And do not make the choice on price alone.
5. Be present at the inspection. Ask your agent to be present, as well, so that things can be moved, if necessary, and so that you know no corners are being cut.

Then, when it’s all over, study the report meticulously. Take note of anything that was not done due to weather or access being blocked, and get advice from other professionals. Plumbers, structural engineers, electricians and real estate lawyers should all be consulted if you have any questions at all. There is nothing to lose by contacting them, and a lot to lose by not doing so. You may be able to withhold money at the time of closing to over the cost of problems, so it is in your best interest to be as thorough and persistent as possible.