The Standard in Real Estate Information

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IRC 2003
The maximum riser height for stairs shall be 7.25 inches. The greatest riser height within any flight of stairs shall not exceed the smallest by more than 3/8 inch. R311.5.3.1

Pest Control

The Case of the Clueless Client

It was one of those mornings when everything seems right in the world. The sun was shining, the birds were singing and my stack of messages from the evening before was small. However, bad things can come in small packages too. The first message had the word URGENT! Across the top and the phone number [...]

Bees In the Walls

Recently, I was performing a pre-purchase inspection on a home for a buyer, and I noticed that bees were entering and exiting the siding at one corner of the building. This is an indication that bees have built a nest inside the structure of the building. Bees nesting inside the structure create quite [...]

Cracks in Your Foundation and Bugs That Like Them

Foundation corner chips in your foundation concrete are something I am sure you never pay much attention to. You may not even have an idea of what I am referring to. I am referring to the small cracks which can often be found at the corner of homes with post-tension cable reinforced foundations with brick [...]

THE CASE OF THE RAT WHO CAME IN FROM THE COLD

It was a cold December day when I got the call from a terrified Business Administrator at the Church in the Woods School. “RATS,” she screamed, “Hundreds of them, they’re everywhere.” She began to rant and rave so I cut her off with, “Just the facts, Ma’am.” The truth was that I wasn’t surprised [...]

The Case of the Invincible Ant

I looked out the window through the horrible Houston summer heat and wondered why I wanted this time to come every year. This year was not only hot but a drought had gripped the region for the last 8 months. I got my answer as the phone rang, pulling me back to reality. The truth [...]

The Case Of Flying Royalty

It was the first warm day of spring. There had been a shower earlier and now the humidity was just about 70%, the sun was heating the soil outside and I knew what was about to happen. The ring-a-ling of the phone was like a punch in the gut, dragging me back to reality.
It was [...]

FATAL ATTRACTION

It was a beautiful spring afternoon. The sun was shining and a balmy breeze was blowing across the patio deck where I was relaxing. I looked at the large steamy platter of crawfish sitting in front of me and I knew life was good. Just as I started to dive into the crawfish, however, a [...]

The Case of the Leaking Termites

March is like a dame, running hot and cold. Just when you think old man winter is on the skids he comes roaring back. You go out and pile the firewood up and the next day is so warm your thinking of the beach. In my daydream I was just settling into my beach chair, [...]