Point-of-sale inspection is invaluable

Alan Rapoport’s opinion piece in the March Heights Observer, “Point-of-sale inspection is obsolete,” suggests waiving city point-of-sale (POS) inspection when there is a private inspection. However, his proposed alternative to current practice is incomplete, and his opinion is full of the tired arguments impatient realtors use against anything that slows down a sale.

I hope we agree it’s necessary to maintain the condition of Cleveland Heights’ housing stock. The city’s housing standards keep residents safe and neighborhoods attractive. When sellers haven’t made needed repairs, POS inspection prevents housing-standards violations from passing to a buyer who is unaware or doesn’t care. Escrowed funds assure enough repair money is available to the buyer, who is responsible for the repairs. Release of escrowed funds is tied to the repair progress—a carrot which motivates the buyer to actually complete the work.  

Rapoport suggests eliminating escrow, writing, “The parties can and should agree who financially is responsible for any repairs. And the city could consider advising them to provide for a rebate to the buyer from seller proceeds to cover the costs of repairs.” Should agree? Could consider advising? Pretty loosey-goosey. Let’s just trust people to do what they should, right? Taking repair money from seller proceeds and handing it directly to buyers is a bad idea. It can and will be misspent on other things; then the repairs don’t happen. Eliminating escrow removes the carrot and leaves only the stick.

Speaking of the stick (court), Rapoport complains that POS inspection “keeps the municipal court much too busy. It needlessly turns many new residents of our community into instant ‘criminals.’” Wrong! The Housing Department does 15,000 inspections per year (POS, rental, commercial, and systematic exterior); only about 300 (2%) are [sent] to court. Of these, many are dismissed before the court date. The Housing Department strives to provide many forms of assistance and forbearance to cited residents; you must really work at it to be convicted in housing court. This is not a significant problem, and those few who do manage to be convicted richly deserve it. The city endeavors to assist residents, not punish them.

Private inspections are more in-depth and probably protect buyers better than the city’s $200 POS inspections, but they cost around $500. The current requirement for a city POS could be waived when there is a private inspection (saving residents $200 and minor inconvenience), but only if private inspections:

• Are performed by certified inspectors who are also registered with the city,
• Cover everything in the city’s POS,
• Are handed off to the city in a format that makes it easy for the city to follow up on repair completion.
  
  

POS inspections and, particularly, escrow are contentious issues. Although no one is happy when it’s their turn, everyone benefits when these tools are administered fairly, consistently and efficiently. They do slow down sales, but the improvement in housing conditions is invaluable to the community. There is always room for improvement, but Cleveland Heights' housing stock is in much better shape thanks largely to 35-plus years of POS and escrow.