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Have you gone under the house to have a look? Or, perhaps more importantly, has your realtor? Most homes in the triangle are going to have harmless mold in the crawlspace. The important questions are whether if the mold in your crawlspace is affecting the livability of the house, and if it is an indication of a moisture problem. It doesn't sound like your buyers are completely freaked out by the discovery, so doing some remediation (showing the mold is not hazardous, putting in better vapor barrier) is worthwhile, but all the contingencies they are laying out may be opening a can of worms for you that isn't worth it.
It sounds like you probably may have gotten screwed by the inspector (check to see if he also has a mold remediation business, we had a run in with an inspector who had one, and apparently has a history of generating business for his mold remediation business through doing home inspections). If the mold is harmless, you'll have to weigh the costs of remediation against putting the house back on the market.
Have you gone under the house to have a look? Or, perhaps more importantly, has your realtor? Most homes in the triangle are going to have harmless mold in the crawlspace. The important questions are whether if the mold in your crawlspace is affecting the livability of the house, and if it is an indication of a moisture problem. It doesn't sound like your buyers are completely freaked out by the discovery, so doing some remediation (showing the mold is not hazardous, putting in better vapor barrier) is worthwhile, but all the contingencies they are laying out may be opening a can of worms for you that isn't worth it.
It sounds like you probably may have gotten screwed by the inspector (check to see if he also has a mold remediation business, we had a run in with an inspector who had one, and apparently has a history of generating business for his mold remediation business through doing home inspections). If the mold is harmless, you'll have to weigh the costs of remediation against putting the house back on the market.
I agree with you saying that you should weigh the costs of remediation versus putting the house back on the market. Another thing to consider is that you, as the seller, will now need to disclose this information.
I don't agree that the Inspector "screwed" anyone. Its his job to assist the buyer and point out any issues that may need a "specialist" to give a better indication of whether or not this is something that requires further investigation.
Again, there are many ways to handle this.
You can go ahead and do what the buyer asks or you can "negotiate" who gets the estimate, etc. I'm not sure if the inspections are free estimates anymore or if someone has to pay for those estimates. If the estimates are free, I'd call more than one company and then take it from there.
And another thing I disagree with you on, toot68, SENDING A REALTOR INTO A CRAWL SPACE!!! I disclose to my clients...I don't do crawl spaces!!!
Ok, kidding aside...as a Realtor, I really can't distinguish between good mold and bad mold. Hopefully, the inspector took photos!!!
I don't agree that the Inspector "screwed" anyone. Its his job to assist the buyer and point out any issues that may need a "specialist" to give a better indication of whether or not this is something that requires further investigation.
And another thing I disagree with you on, toot68, SENDING A REALTOR INTO A CRAWL SPACE!!! I disclose to my clients...I don't do crawl spaces!!!
Ok, kidding aside...as a Realtor, I really can't distinguish between good mold and bad mold. Hopefully, the inspector took photos!!!
Vicki
While I wouldn't expect a realtor to be able to distinguish good and bad mold, I would expect that they would have looked under alot of houses, and could give an impression if the appearance of the mold was out of the ordinary. It seems to me if you are going to sell houses, you better be willing to get under them in times like this.
And you are correct about the inspector not screwing anyone...upon a reread of the orignal post, the inspect didn't actually use the M word (he said fungi), nor did he recommend potential remediation beyond testing of the type and adding more vapor barrier if the buyer was concerned. I lumped the buyer's repair request in with his comments, and had a flashback to the experience we had. My fault.
Does anyone know of a mold inspector that does NOT have a conflict of interest? Cary Reconstruction and Remtek already came back with huge quotes on remediation of a property's crawlspace that I am buying. I'd like to find an inspector who knows about mold in the Chapel Hill area. The home inspector we used admittedly did not have extensive knowledge on the subject. I am trying to be nice to the sellers and have them take care of the problem without charging them $2500. Any references would be appreciated.
That is minimal. Cure the moisture problem(close foundation vents, 100% vapor barrier, $150 dehudifier if necessary assuming it is not from a plummbing leak), scrub it with a little bleach water if you even feel the need (I wouldnt, mold goes dormant with no consistent moisture)
Mold is ...to borrow a line from Seinfeld...the biggest scam purpatrated on the american public since 1 hour Martinizing. although alot of politicians/lawyers are working very hard to come up with new ones daily lol.
Does anyone know of a mold inspector that does NOT have a conflict of interest? Cary Reconstruction and Remtek already came back with huge quotes on remediation of a property's crawlspace that I am buying. I'd like to find an inspector who knows about mold in the Chapel Hill area. The home inspector we used admittedly did not have extensive knowledge on the subject. I am trying to be nice to the sellers and have them take care of the problem without charging them $2500. Any references would be appreciated.
Cinder,
Sorry I missed this one earlier... Here is who I used. I would highly recommend Bruce.
MOLD INSPECTION
Bruce Hatcher www.MoldIDServices.com
Thoughts: Well, unfortunately on our home we were selling in Cary which was built in 1993 there was some mold found in our crawl space. Bruce explained everything perfectly; he was great to work with. Bruce is ONLY a Mold identifier. He does not do remediation! So he will not try and sell you any extra remediation like some of the other companies may do.
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Mold inspector with no conflict of interest?
although alot of politicians/lawyers are working very hard to come up with new ones daily lol.
