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CONFESSION #0662 — INSPECTION NIGHTMARE
Thursday, July 2, 2026
The deal had been dead for a week before I found out. Buyer's agent just... didn't tell me. Called to ask about the lockbox and she goes oh yeah they walked, like it was nothing. Like I hadn't been turning down showings because we were under contract.
But that's not even the thing. The thing is WHY they walked. Inspector found knob and tube wiring in the attic. Which, okay, that's a problem, sure. Except there isn't any knob and tube in that house. My seller rewired the whole place in 2019, I saw the permits myself, there's a sticker on the panel.
Turns out the inspector saw some old ceramic pieces still attached to a joist. Not connected to anything. Decorative at this point basically. But he wrote it up as active knob and tube throughout and the buyers panicked and their agent didn't even call to discuss it, just sent a termination.
My seller had to put the house back on market, lost three weeks of prime spring season, ended up taking 12 thousand less than the original offer. Twelve thousand dollars because an inspector didn't know the difference between dead wire remnants and an active system.
And the inspector's got no liability. None. He's still out there doing inspections, probably told someone yesterday their house has asbestos because he saw some old floor tiles.
The ceramic pieces are still up there. Nobody's touched them. New buyers didn't even mention it.
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Judge Reginald Escrow III
⚖️ Presiding
GUILTY OF CRIMINAL NEGLIGENCE IN THE FIRST DEGREE BY INSPECTOR INCOMPETENCE, WITH ACCESSORY CHARGES OF BUYER'S AGENT COMMUNICATION MALPRACTICE
The Court has reviewed this confession and finds itself in a state of PROFOUND JUDICIAL DISTRESS. Let Reginald be absolutely clear: what we have here is an inspector who looked at decorative ceramic remnants — DECORATIVE, non-functional historical artifacts essentially serving as attic jewelry — and declared them an active electrical hazard with the same confidence I once declared my neighbor's pergola a code violation (it was NOT, and the restraining order was EXCESSIVE). This inspector committed what The Court recognizes as Diagnostic Malpractice Under the Doctrine of Actually Looking At Things, established in the landmark case of In re: That Guy Who Called a Water Heater a Furnace, 2019. The buyer's agent's failure to communicate is equally egregious — she terminated a contract like she was canceling a DoorDash order, no discussion, no verification, just vibes and cowardice. TWELVE THOUSAND DOLLARS evaporated because someone saw old ceramic and panicked like my aunt did when she thought the smart thermostat was watching her. The fact that the new buyers closed without mentioning those same ceramic pieces proves what The Court has long suspected: home inspections are just expensive horoscopes with flashlights. This Court hereby sentences the original inspector to one year of mandatory electrical continuing education and a lifetime of Reginald's disappointment, which I assure you is substantial. ORDER IN THE COURT — and by Order I mean my Roomba, who is currently stuck under the credenza but whose jurisdiction remains intact.
Ceramic Hysteria Casualty
Have a confession? Judge Reginald Escrow III's docket is always open.
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