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April 2005
"Home-Alyze" By Julie Cosgrave Dave McGeough once found himself shimmying through the attic of a former marijuana grow-op. The tip-off to the house’s shady past? Something that people in McGeough’s business call, “a mould-like substance.” Dubious wiring and a suspicious-looking fuse box are dead giveaways too, said McGeough. They are clues that the house may have other issues that need to be looked at. Carefully. As a Home-Alyze franchise, looking carefully is what McGeough does. His home inspection business means that he is a detective of the domestic environment, someone whose workday world is the corners, nooks and crannies of other people’s homes. Is it fun? Well, yes. “It’s fun wandering around houses,” McGeough said with a laugh. Soft-spoken and serious, McGeough is quick to point out that fun isn’t snooping. He is not looking at the housekeeping and he is definitely not there to pass judgment on decorating flair or questionable taste. And he doesn’t really wander around during his three-hour inspection. An engineer by profession, he’s looking for serious stuff. Safety. Structural issues. Wiring gone wrong. Water where is shouldn’t be. Along the way, he creates a very interesting inventory- a guide to the age and health of the house in question. It’s an invaluable guide that more and more people are turning to when they purchase a house. About 60 percent of Canadian real estate transactions will now involve a home inspection, said McGeough, and it is often required for mortgages. He’s hit own boss, he’s in an area where real estate sales are booming and the Home-Alyze franchise is a supportive one. The real bonus with his Home-Alyze business, however, is the independence. We rendezvous in Kelowna, B.C., Tim Hortons on an unusually sunny November afternoon when the sky is wide and blue and the surrounding hills seem lie from within. Since I cannot quite picture following McGeough up ladders or through crawl spaces on a damp or chilly day, the sunny skies seem a very good omen. Things have settled a bit as real estate sales slow with the season, McGeough explained. When house sales were really sizzling, it was not unusual for him to do three home inspections a day. Today he has just one. Like all inspectors, this once should take about three hours. It will cost the client slightly less then $300. We set out for a hillside neighbourhood where the lake and city views are fabulous and the houses are big. McGeough and today’s client have worked together already this week when McGeough inspected the house that the client is buying. That deal went through and now the client needs to sell this house. Pronto. A fastidious fellow, the client hopes a clean bill of health from a recent home inspection will act as a sales tool. Sellers account for only two per cent of the home inspection business base. The rest are purchasers hoping to avoid a nightmare in the potential home of their dreams. McGeough is ready for work, his neat SUV stocked with a telescoping ladder to access the highest attic door or roof. He’s also equipped with a step stool, a tool kit, assorted stud finders and water-flow detectors. Most importantly, he’s got a really big flashlight. “It’s the best tool of the trade,” he said. The house we’re looking at has three levels, with balconies and patios front, back and on each level. It’s a big house- bigger than most that McGeough is called on to inspect. “Generally about 2,400 square feet [216 sq. meters] is average,” he said. We head downstairs to the client’s billiards room where the fuse boxes are tucked behind a cupboard door. This is where the search often begins and ends. It’s where he sometimes finds problems- inadequate electrical systems, usually the result of a do-it-yourself renovation or hot-tub installation. If he finds something dangerous or dubious he tells the homeowner immediately. Today, everything electrical is in tip-top shape and McGeough has some nice new stickers Home-Alyze recently shipped to their franchise holders. The stickers are used to indicate the main electrical switch and the main water shut-off valve. I tell McGeough that the city of Kelowna had just suggested that homeowners learn where these things are in their home and flag them with a bright ribbon. McGeough applies the bold stickers for the client and we move on to the next item on the list. The list is an impressive workbook binder that he client will receive. McGeough carries it with him throughout the inspection. While the house is immaculate and obviously well maintained, McGeough spots a no-no as soon as we step out the back door onto the patio that houses the hot tub. “That might be a safety issue,” he tells the homeowner. The “issue” is an innocuous-looking concrete stairway leading to the lower garden. It lacks a railing and that’s not good. The transgression goes in the book. The three column system in the book allows for checkmarks indicating a pass, a point of concern or an outright problem. Next McGeough is on his hands and knees checking out the ground on the plug-in for the hot tub. It’s good to go. Then we’re on to the next job, which in this case means up in the attic. While the client holds the ladder steady, McGeough ascends and disappears. For a long time. He finally reappears covered with bits of insulation and dust and bearing just a tiny bit of bad news: He can see a little daylight up there. Obviously a shingle or two has been torn off in a wind. The homeowner is concerned. McGeough reassures him and suggests several handyman and roofing companies that can handle the problem quickly. “We don’t want to look like we’re finding work for one company,” he explained. “We only recommend.” The attic inspection indicates a good amount of insulation and safe product. Just as McGeough is about to leave the garage to head up onto the roof, he notes that the door leading into the house is not on an automatic closer. Not good. It should have a hydraulic or spring closure to ensure that auto exhaust can never flow inside the house. McGeough makes a note and the homeowner frowns and considers his options. McGeough, meanwhile is searching for a sizable piece of wood to test the actual garage door safety release. He finds the two-by-four for the job and conducts his test. The door reverses on cue. McGeough nods with satisfaction and we move on. After roaming around the roof and circling the outside of the house in search of lumps, bumps, cracks and suspicious moisture on walls, lawns or walkways, McGeough heads up the driveway and give the whole house a visual once-over, scanning for clues that something may be amiss. About an hour has passed. Inside, everything gets fired up. Fans in the kitchen and bathroom go on, the water in sinks, tubs and showers goes on and McGeough starts flipping switches and metering water pressure. He follows vents to their outtake and while everything is humming, he has a look at the water heater. Its age is noted in the binder. A random sampling of switches and appliances is to check the “operational controls that the homeowner uses on a regular basis,” he explains. He gets down on the floor with a hand-held device to check for moisture in bathroom floors and walls. “Water is the number 1 damage creator,” said McGeough. Home-Alyze, which had been in business since 1978, has the stats on his sort of thing. McGeough said the technical support and ongoing training offered by Home-Alyze are key in this business. “The exams and the intensive training course I took in Calgary, really give you something to sell,” he said. “The franchise really gives you back-up.” While there is competition from other home inspections franchises McGeough is confident. Real estate sales are booming in Kelowna and he sees potential in other market areas like pre-renovation home inspections. “When you’re about to invest in an expensive renovation it’s smart to find out whether the renovation makes economic sense,” he said. “Whether the wiring, plumbing and foundation are OK for the project in mind.” McGeough said he is a generalist whose job is to look at every house as a system. “You always try to bring up the good points,” he said thoughtfully. Obviously a man very much at home with his work.
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