Last week I reported on appraisers and their role in the scheme of things. Based on comments we received from those in the profession, their role may not be as clearly defined as we all think it is (or should be.) This week I have to share an experience a little closer to home.
For the last several months I have been building a summer home in the mountains, in which I hope to live out my days in peace. I was talking to another gentleman who is building near where I am, and he asked if we were in the county or in the city. I told him we were in the county, and he began to lament how horrible the inspectors were in the county. How all they wanted to do is make your life miserable. (I have to admit to having similar thoughts after some of their visits.) He went on to tell me how his inspector (the city inspector) never looked at anything. As long as you had doughnuts, he just came in, shot the breeze for awhile, signed off on whatever was needing a signature, and left.
That’s what you want, right? Somebody who doesn’t hassle you at every turn. Somebody who lets you build whatever you want, without giving you a hard time. You’re the builder, right? Who knows better than you how it should be done? Listening to this guy talk, I have to admit I began to get caught up in how great it would be to shoot the breeze and not have some nit-picky guy scrutinize every little ticky-tacky detail.
But then I thought, wait a minute. This isn’t a spec. I’m going to live out my days in this house. Yes, I am an expert builder. Yes, I know the rules and codes. Yes, I know what constitutes good construction. But when it’s something as important as a several hundred thousand dollar investment, that you’re going to live the rest of your life in, do you really want someone to just come in and chat or do you want a second set of expert eyes ensuring that what you’ve got is the best it can be?
When that paradigm shift occurred for me, I have to say I looked forward to the inspectors visit with a whole new anticipation. When the house was done, I knew it was right and that it was as well built as it could be. I also know I didn’t accidentally miss anything. The inspector became a consultant and an insurance policy for me that I didn’t have to pay for. I guess the result is the same whether you like the nosy inspector or not. But the stress level is way different when you use him to your advantage.
I suppose it’s that way with everything. How you choose to look at things will determine how you feel about them. As in my case with the inspector, the nature of the thing hadn’t changed in the slightest. The only thing that had changed was me. I wonder how many other things there are in life that I’ve been bruising myself against that could be just like that. You can rest assured I’ll be looking at things in a different way from now on.
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