Dear forum members,
I am planning to purchase a house built in 2002. Since I have no knowledge of construction myself, I have asked a publicly appointed and sworn building inspector to check the house for possible damage and provide me with rough estimates of the costs needed to repair them. I explicitly do not want a legally binding expert report, but a personal basis for decision-making regarding the purchase.
Now my question: after the on-site inspection, how exactly does the inspector arrive at his assessment, especially regarding the cost estimates? Does he calculate everything mentally and then write down his evaluation? Or does he use specific software or reference books where he can check the typical costs for repairing certain damages?
Thank you in advance for your expert answers.
Best regards
I am planning to purchase a house built in 2002. Since I have no knowledge of construction myself, I have asked a publicly appointed and sworn building inspector to check the house for possible damage and provide me with rough estimates of the costs needed to repair them. I explicitly do not want a legally binding expert report, but a personal basis for decision-making regarding the purchase.
Now my question: after the on-site inspection, how exactly does the inspector arrive at his assessment, especially regarding the cost estimates? Does he calculate everything mentally and then write down his evaluation? Or does he use specific software or reference books where he can check the typical costs for repairing certain damages?
Thank you in advance for your expert answers.
Best regards
N
nordanney14 Jul 2019 22:23Frank82 schrieb:
My appraiser charged me for about 25 hours to prepare the report.Wow! Then you’re probably looking at 2,000–3,000 € for the appraiser. I would have estimated a daily rate, so around 800–1,000 € plus taxes.H
hampshire14 Jul 2019 22:53Yes, these things do cost money, but they are worthwhile for everyone. Converting lines to minutes is really amusing.
H
hampshire14 Jul 2019 23:27Well, maybe next time ask about the costs in advance. They are two confident but not exceptional daily rates.
Frank82 schrieb:
Thank you. This part is clear to me. What remains unclear is which methods he uses to form his assessment (see my specific question). Maybe someone here knows the background or is an expert themselves.
Good luck He relies on his professional expertise—knowledge gained through education, studies, further training, and empirical experience. At least that can be assumed. And he definitely uses estimation software.
Frank82 schrieb:
If you calculate the effort per line (one line = one defect including measures and costs) in the table, it amounts to 45 minutes. That seems way too high to me! You cannot just multiply every defect by a fixed time. An expert charges an hourly or daily fee.
Frank82 schrieb:
Sure, these services cost money. But a total of 4400€ is quite steep and hard for me to understand. Let’s see what I can do... Actually, it is understandable for a self-employed professional. For example, a daily fee might be 1200 gross plus inspection plus travel expenses...
I had discussed costs with him in advance, and he mentioned around 2000€ (about $2200). But of course, a written cost estimate is advisable; actually, I should know that better... Since I pay him on an hourly basis, I naturally want him to bill only for the hours worked. What I have seen is the document from him. From what I have heard/read, the billed effort for this seems unrealistically high. That’s all I really wanted to find out with my question. Thanks to everyone.