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A Must Know for All Those Buying New Apartment In Rehovot or Elsewhere in Israel
"A couple that purchased a new four-room apartment in Rehovot could not believe their eyes. During an examination of the soundness of their apartment and its plumbing and electrical systems, the inspector knocked on the ceiling with a broom handle. The couple was astounded by the actions of this professional whom they had invited into their home, and asked for an explanation. He said he was checking the quality of the plaster on the ceiling, but the standard test for this obviously calls for the use of more sophisticated equipment.
A similar lack of professionalism was encountered by a couple from Hadera. It turns out that many engineers with insufficient training, whose knowledge is limited to certain fields, are conducting apartment inspections. Thus, for example, one engineer used a spirit level to check whether a wall was straight, instead of the special device dictated by the regulations for this purpose, while another engineer wet his finger and ran it along a wall to test the quality of the whitewash.
Some 80 building engineers and home inspection companies currently operate in Israel. The companies are supposed to provide home inspection services, to check for construction defects, to examine the property's technical specifications and to present a reliable report that will be admissible in a court if necessary.
Housing industry sources say that such inspections are essential today in light of the large number of suits due to construction defects. Data collected by the Bedek Bayit house inspection company indicates that some 4,000 suits are filed annually relating to 5,000 apartments (some suits are filed jointly), and the average suit is for NIS 120,000.
The safety factor. Industry officials fear that an apartment owner who hires an engineer or a company that is neither skilled nor professional is liable to lose out on substantial sums, due to both the erroneous assessment of the damage and the refuting of the "expert's" claims in court. There is, of course, also a safety aspect to the inspections, and construction defects have often resulted in injuries.
"Today, many new housing projects are flooded with flyers distributed by engineers who promise to find any defects and assist with a financial suit against the building contractor," says Harel Bar, CEO of Isotest, which also has a laboratory for housing and road construction testing.
Bar notes that most of the inspectors do not charge a set fee for their services, but rather collect a share of the compensation, if such is awarded to the apartment owner by the court.
"Some of those engineers are experts," says Bar, "while others are assessors who have been approved by the courts to work as inspectors. They usually arrive without the proper equipment and provide incorrect opinions of the building defects or estimates of the damage."
Part of Isotest's work, when representing contractors who have been sued, includes the videotaping of various inspectors who had been sent to apartments by their owners or by the courts. Bar relates that the tapes showed that many of the inspectors are unprofessional, do not use the proper equipment and do not work according to the regulations.
In one case that was filmed, the expert checked the gaps between floor tiles using a 10-agorot coin and a supermarket customer club card, while the regulations demand that such measurements be made using proper measuring devices. Another expert checked the dampness in a plaster wall with a device designed for measuring dampness in wood, while a third inspector checked the construction of a floor by stamping on the tiles to check for a hollow sound. Although regulations call for examining flooring to ensure the presence of correct materials, such as sand and concrete, such examination is to be done using a special device that recognizes the sound of empty space, and if the sound obtained indicates a problem, the floor must be dismantled.
Do your homework. To prevent these and other problems, the advice offered by the real professionals is to simply do one's homework. Stanislav Golod, head of engineering at Bedek Bayit, stresses that homeowners need to verify the reliability of professionals before ordering tests.
"Check whether they have an engineer's diploma, appear in the registry of engineers and architects, and if their license is valid," says Golod, adding that it is important that the engineer's expertise is in building defects, and that he has a good record of court appearances in which he has won cases. It is also essential to check which large projects have employed his services, and to examine previous reports he has written to see if he is proficient in the relevant laws and if he uses the proper equipment.
The inspections are very important when purchasing an apartment from the contractor, as he is obligated to fix any defects. Engineers and other experts note that the tests recommended upon the purchase of a new apartment are intended to examine the nature and quality of the construction. Golod explains that the tests are supposed to uncover any building defects that harm the structure's various systems, such as water, electricity and drainage - and thereby prevent future expenses and frustration.
When buying a second-hand apartment, the soundness tests are more relevant to setting the apartment's price and should closely examine all the apartment's systems, particularly if it is quite old and some of the systems could be worn out.
When buying an apartment from longtime owners, it also is important to check out the neighbors, including any complaints or disputes, how well the house committee functions, the relationship between the neighbors, any noise pollution in the surrounding area and any other environmental or health hazards. Amateur inspectors are liable to miss many negative factors, which may result in buyers paying more than they should for an apartment."
Source: Tzally Grinberg. Experts on whitewashing. Haaretz.com (20 June 2005) [FullText]
A similar lack of professionalism was encountered by a couple from Hadera. It turns out that many engineers with insufficient training, whose knowledge is limited to certain fields, are conducting apartment inspections. Thus, for example, one engineer used a spirit level to check whether a wall was straight, instead of the special device dictated by the regulations for this purpose, while another engineer wet his finger and ran it along a wall to test the quality of the whitewash.
Some 80 building engineers and home inspection companies currently operate in Israel. The companies are supposed to provide home inspection services, to check for construction defects, to examine the property's technical specifications and to present a reliable report that will be admissible in a court if necessary.
Housing industry sources say that such inspections are essential today in light of the large number of suits due to construction defects. Data collected by the Bedek Bayit house inspection company indicates that some 4,000 suits are filed annually relating to 5,000 apartments (some suits are filed jointly), and the average suit is for NIS 120,000.
The safety factor. Industry officials fear that an apartment owner who hires an engineer or a company that is neither skilled nor professional is liable to lose out on substantial sums, due to both the erroneous assessment of the damage and the refuting of the "expert's" claims in court. There is, of course, also a safety aspect to the inspections, and construction defects have often resulted in injuries.
"Today, many new housing projects are flooded with flyers distributed by engineers who promise to find any defects and assist with a financial suit against the building contractor," says Harel Bar, CEO of Isotest, which also has a laboratory for housing and road construction testing.
Bar notes that most of the inspectors do not charge a set fee for their services, but rather collect a share of the compensation, if such is awarded to the apartment owner by the court.
"Some of those engineers are experts," says Bar, "while others are assessors who have been approved by the courts to work as inspectors. They usually arrive without the proper equipment and provide incorrect opinions of the building defects or estimates of the damage."
Part of Isotest's work, when representing contractors who have been sued, includes the videotaping of various inspectors who had been sent to apartments by their owners or by the courts. Bar relates that the tapes showed that many of the inspectors are unprofessional, do not use the proper equipment and do not work according to the regulations.
In one case that was filmed, the expert checked the gaps between floor tiles using a 10-agorot coin and a supermarket customer club card, while the regulations demand that such measurements be made using proper measuring devices. Another expert checked the dampness in a plaster wall with a device designed for measuring dampness in wood, while a third inspector checked the construction of a floor by stamping on the tiles to check for a hollow sound. Although regulations call for examining flooring to ensure the presence of correct materials, such as sand and concrete, such examination is to be done using a special device that recognizes the sound of empty space, and if the sound obtained indicates a problem, the floor must be dismantled.
Do your homework. To prevent these and other problems, the advice offered by the real professionals is to simply do one's homework. Stanislav Golod, head of engineering at Bedek Bayit, stresses that homeowners need to verify the reliability of professionals before ordering tests.
"Check whether they have an engineer's diploma, appear in the registry of engineers and architects, and if their license is valid," says Golod, adding that it is important that the engineer's expertise is in building defects, and that he has a good record of court appearances in which he has won cases. It is also essential to check which large projects have employed his services, and to examine previous reports he has written to see if he is proficient in the relevant laws and if he uses the proper equipment.
The inspections are very important when purchasing an apartment from the contractor, as he is obligated to fix any defects. Engineers and other experts note that the tests recommended upon the purchase of a new apartment are intended to examine the nature and quality of the construction. Golod explains that the tests are supposed to uncover any building defects that harm the structure's various systems, such as water, electricity and drainage - and thereby prevent future expenses and frustration.
When buying a second-hand apartment, the soundness tests are more relevant to setting the apartment's price and should closely examine all the apartment's systems, particularly if it is quite old and some of the systems could be worn out.
When buying an apartment from longtime owners, it also is important to check out the neighbors, including any complaints or disputes, how well the house committee functions, the relationship between the neighbors, any noise pollution in the surrounding area and any other environmental or health hazards. Amateur inspectors are liable to miss many negative factors, which may result in buyers paying more than they should for an apartment."
Source: Tzally Grinberg. Experts on whitewashing. Haaretz.com (20 June 2005) [FullText]
1 Comments:
At November 10, 2005,
Anonymous said…
Those are great tips to know before getting an apartment. It came of great use to me as I am seeking to locate an apartment in houston.
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