GENERAL LIMITATIONS

1. Home Inspections done in accordance with this section are visual and are not technically exhaustive.
2. This section applies to buildings with four or fewer dwelling units, and individually owned residential units within multi-family buildings, and their attached garages or carports.

(1) Life expectancy of any component or system;

(2) The causes of the need for a repair;

(3) The methods, materials, and costs of corrections;

(4) The suitability of the property for any specialized use;

(5) Compliance or non-compliance with codes, ordinances, statutes, regulatory requirements or restrictions;

(6) The market value of the property or its marketability;

(7) The advisability or inadvisability of purchase of the property;

(8) Any component or system that was not observed;

(9) The presence or absence of pests such as wood damaging organisms, rodents, or insects; or

(10) Cosmetic items, underground items, or items not permanently installed.

(b) Home inspectors are not required to:

(1) Offer warranties or guarantees of any kind,

(2) Calculate the strength, adequacy, or efficiency of any system or component;

(3) Enter any area or perform any procedure that may damage the property or its components or be dangerous to the home inspector or other persons;

(4) Operate any system or component that is shut down or otherwise inoperable;

(5) Operate any system or component that does not respond to normal operating controls:

(6) Disturb insulation, move personal items, panels, furniture, equipment, plant life, soil, snow, ice, or debris that obstructs access or visibility;

(7) Determine the presence or absence of any suspected adverse environmental condition or hazardous substance, including but not limited to toxins, carcinogens, noise, contaminants in the building or in soil, water, and air;

(8) Determine the effectiveness of any system installed to control or remove suspected hazardous substances;

(9) Predict future condition, including but not limited to failure of components;

(10) Project operating costs of components;

(11) Evaluate acoustical characteristics of any system or component; or

(12) Observe special equipment or accessories that are not listed as components to be observed in this Section.

(c) Home inspectors shall not:

(1) Offer or perform any act or service contrary to law; or

(2) Offer or perform engineering, architectural, plumbing, electrical or any other job function requiring an occupational license in the jurisdiction where the inspection is taking place, unless the home inspector holds a valid occupational license, in which case the home inspector shall inform the client that the home inspector is so licensed, and therefore qualified to go beyond this section and perform additional inspections beyond those within the scope of the basic inspection.

(a) The Home Inspector shall observe structural components including:

(1) Foundation

(2) Floors

(3) Walls

(4) Columns or piers

(5) Ceilings 

(6) Roofs

(b) The home inspector shall describe the type of:

(1) Foundation

(2) Floor structure

(3) Wall structure

(4) Columns or piers

(5) Ceiling structure

(6) Roof structure

(c) The home inspector shall:

(1) Probe structural components where deterioration is suspected;

(2) Enter under floor crawl spaces, basements, and attic spaces except when [1] access is obstructed, [2] when entry could damage the property, or [3] when dangerous or adverse situations are suspected;

(3) Report the methods used to observe under floor crawl spaces and attics; and

(4) Report signs of abnormal or harmful water penetration into the building or signs of abnormal or harmful condensation on building components.

EXTERIOR

(a) The home inspector shall observe:

(1) Wall cladding, flashings, and trim;

(2) Entryway doors and a representative number of windows;

(3) Garage door operators;

(4) Decks, balconies, stoops, steps, areaways, porches and applicable railings;

(5) Eaves, soffits, and fascias; and

(6) Vegetation, grading, drainage, driveways, patios', walkways, and retaining walls with respect to their effect on the condition of the building.

(b) The home inspector shall:

(1) Describe wall cladding materials;

(2) Operate all entryway doors and a representative number of windows;

(3) Operate garage doors manually or by using permanently installed controls for any garage door operator;

(4) Report whether or not any garage door operator will automatically reverse or stop when meeting reasonable resistance during closing; and

(5) Probe exterior wood components where deterioration is suspected.

(c) The home inspector is not required to observe:

(1) Storm windows, storm doors, screening, shutters, awnings, and similar seasonal accessories;

(2) Fences,

(3) Presence of safety glazing in doors and windows;

(4) Garage door operator remote control transmitters;

(5) Geological conditions;

(6) Soil conditions;

(7) Recreational facilities (including spas, saunas, steam baths, swimming pools, tennis courts, playground equipment, and other exercise, entertainment, or athletic facilities);

(8) Detached buildings or structures; or

(9) Presence or condition of buried fuel storage tanks.

(a) The home inspector shall observe:

(1) Roof coverings;

(2) Roof drainage systems;

(3) Flashings;

(4) Skylights, chimneys, and roof penetrations; and

(5) Signs of leaks or abnormal condensation on building components.

(b) The home inspector shall:

(1) Describe the type of roof covering materials; and

(2) Report the methods used to observe the roofing. 

(c) The home inspector is not required to:

(1) Walk on the roofing; or

(2) Observe attached accessories including but not limited to solar systems, antennae, and lightning arrestors.

(a) The home inspector shall observe:

(1) Interior water supply and distribution system, including: piping materials, supports, and insulation; fixtures and faucets; functional flow; leaks; and cross connections;

(2) Interior drain, waste, and vent system, including: traps; drain, waste, and vent piping; piping supports and pipe insulation; leaks; and functional drainage;

(3) Hot water systems including; water heating equipment; normal operating controls; automatic safety controls; and chimneys, flues, and vents;

(4) Fuel storage and distribution systems including: interior fuel storage equipment, supply piping, venting, and supports; leaks; and

(5) Sump pumps.

(b) The home inspector shall describe:

(1) Water supply and distribution piping materials;

(2) Drain, waste, and vent piping materials;

(3) Water heating equipment and location of main water supply shutoff device. 

(c) The home inspector shall:

(1) Operate all plumbing fixtures, including their faucets and all exterior faucets attached to the house, except where the flow end of the faucet is connected to an appliance.

(d) The home inspector is not required to;

(1) State the effectiveness of anti-siphon devices;

(2) Determine whether water supply and waste disposal systems are public or private;

(3) Operate automatic safety controls;

(4) Operate any valve except water closet flush valves, fixture faucets, and hose faucets;

(5) Observe the system for proper sizing, design, or use of proper materials.

(6) Observe

(A) Water conditioning systems;

(B) Fire and lawn sprinkler systems;

(C) On-site water supply quantity and quality;

(D) On-site waste disposal systems;

(E) Foundation irrigation systems;

(F) Spas, except as to functional flow and functional drainage;

(G) Swimming pools;

(H) Solar water heating equipment

(a) The home inspector shall observe:

(1) Service entrance conductors;

(2) Service equipment, grounding equipment, main overcurrent device, and main and distribution panels;

(3) Amperage and voltage ratings of the service;

(4) Branch circuit conductors, their overcurrent devices, and the compatibility of their ampacities and voltages~

(5) The operation of a representative number of installed ceiling fans, lighting fixtures, switches and receptacles located inside the house, garage, and on the dwelling's exterior walls;

(6) The polarity and grounding of all receptacles within six feet of interior plumbing fixtures, and all receptacles in the garage or carport, and on the exterior of inspected structures;

(7) The operation of ground fault circuit interrupters; and

(8) Smoke detectors.

(b) The home inspector shall describe:

(1) Service amperage and voltage;

(2) Service entry conductor materials;

(3) Service type as being overhead or underground; and

(4) Location of main and distribution panels.

(c) The home inspector shall report any observed aluminum branch circuit wiring,

(d) The home inspector shall report on presence or absence of smoke detectors, and operate their test function, if accessible, except when detectors are part of a central system.

(1) Insert any tool, probe, or testing device inside the panels;

(2) Test or operate any overcurrent device except ground fault circuit interrupters;

(3) Dismantle any electrical device or control other than to remove the covers of the main and auxiliary distribution panels-, or

(4) Observe

(A) Low voltage systems;

(B) Security system devices, heat detectors, or carbon monoxide detectors;

(C) Telephone, security, cable TV, intercoms, or other ancillary wiring that is not a part of the primary electrical distribution system; or

(D) Built-in vacuum equipment.

 

(a) The home inspector shall observe

(1) Central air conditioning systems including cooling and air handling equipment and normal operating controls.

(2) Distribution systems including Fans, pumps, ducts and piping, with associated supports, dampers, insulation, air filters, registers, fan-coil units; and the presence of an installed cooling source in each room.

(b) The home inspector shall describe:

(1) Energy sources and cooling equipment type.

(c) The home inspector shall operate the systems using normal operating controls.

(d) The home inspector shall open readily openable access panels provided by the manufacturer or installer for routine homeowner maintenance

(e) The home inspector is not required to:

(1) Operate cooling systems when weather conditions or other circumstances may cause equipment damage;

(2) Observe non-central air conditioners; or

(3) Observe the uniformity or adequacy of cool-air supply to the various rooms.

(a) The home inspector shall observe permanently installed heating systems including:

(1) Heating equipment;

(2) Normal operating controls;

(3) Automatic safety controls;

(4) Chimneys, flues, and vents, where readily visible;

(5) Solid fuel heating devices;

(6) Heat distribution systems including fans, pumps, ducts and piping, with supports, insulation, air filters, registers, radiators, fan coil units, convectors; and

(7) The presence of an installed heat source in each room.

(b) The home inspector shall describe:

(1) Energy source; and

(2) Heating equipment and distribution type.

(c) The home inspector shall operate the systems using normal operating controls.

(d) The home inspector shall open readily openable access panels provided by the manufacturer or installer for routine homeowner maintenance.

(e) The home inspector is not required to:

(1) Operate heating systems when weather conditions or other circumstances may cause equipment damage;

(2) Operate automatic safety controls;

(3) Ignite or extinguish solid fuel fires; or

(4) Observe:

(A) The interior of flues;

(B) Fireplace insert flue connections;

(C) Humidifiers;

(D) Electronic air filters; or

(E) The uniformity or adequacy of heat supply to the various rooms.

(a) The home inspector shall observe:

(1) Walls, ceiling, and floors;

(2) Steps, stairways, balconies, and railings;

(3) Counters and a representative number of cabinets; and

(4) A representative number of doors and windows.

(b) The home inspector shall:

(I) Operate a representative number of windows and interior doors; and

(2) Report signs of abnormal or harmful water penetration into the building or signs of abnormal or harmful condensation on building components.

(c) The home inspector is not required to observe:

(1) Paint, wallpaper, and other finish treatments on the interior walls, ceilings, and floors;

(2) Carpeting; or

(3) Draperies, blinds, or other window treatments.

(a) The home inspector shall observe:

(1) Insulation and vapor retarders in unfinished spaces,

(2) Ventilation of attics and foundation areas;

(3) Kitchen, bathroom, and laundry venting systems; and

(4) The operation of any readily accessible attic ventilation fan, and, when temperature permits, the operation of any readily accessible thermostatic control.

(b) The home inspector shall describe:

(1) Insulation in unfinished spaces; and

(2) Absence of insulation in unfinished space at conditioned surfaces.

(c) The home inspector is not required to report on:

(1) Concealed insulation and vapor retarders; or

(2) Venting equipment that is integral with household appliances.

(a) The home inspector shall observe and operate the basic functions of the following kitchen appliances:

(1) Permanently installed dishwasher, through its normal cycle;

(2) Range, cook top, and permanently installed oven;

(3) Trash compactor;

(4) Garbage disposal;

(5) Ventilation equipment or range hood; and

(6) Permanently installed microwave oven.

(b) The home inspector is not required to observe:

(1) Clocks, timers, self-cleaning oven function, or thermostats for calibration or automatic operation;

(2) Non built-in appliances; or

(3) Refrigeration units.

(1) Appliances in use; or

(2) Any appliance that is shut down or otherwise inoperable.

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About the author: John C. Williams operates his business, WNC.RE.Source, Inc. in the Asheville, NC area of western North Carolina. John is a licensed Appraiser, Home Inspector, Real Estate Broker, and General contractor who can be reached at 828.628.2727 or 2727@home.com