4 Point Inspection in Sarasota and Manatee County

Which four things is the insurer actually asking about in your house?

If you own an older home in Sarasota or Manatee County, sooner or later a letter or a call from your agent will use the words 4 point inspection. It is one of the most common requests in Florida home insurance, and one of the least explained.

The four points are the roof, the electrical system, the plumbing and the heating and cooling system. These are the parts of a house most likely to cause a large loss when they fail, which is why insurers want a written record of their condition before they agree to cover an older home. The report is a snapshot: what is there, how old it is and what condition it is in on the day someone looked.

On this page I go through each of the four systems one at a time, explain what is checked, what tends to worry reviewers and what you can look at yourself ahead of time. I also explain who completes the form and where I fit in. I am not the insurer and I cannot tell you what a company will decide. What I can do is help you know your house before it is described on paper. To talk about yours, use the contact page.

What is a 4 point inspection, and who asks for one?

A 4 point inspection is a short report on the condition of four systems, recorded on a standard form that insurers use. It is not a full home inspection. It does not look at the walls, the foundation, the windows or the appliances in general. The home inspection page describes the wider kind of review. The 4 point form looks only at the four systems and records their age, material and condition.

Insurers tend to ask for it when a house is older, where the age cutoff is set by each company and can change. It may be requested when you apply for a new policy, when you buy an older house, when a policy renews or when a company reviews its book of business. The report is usually valid for a limited period, again set by the insurer, so an old one may not satisfy a new request.

Each form states who is permitted to complete and sign it. This matters, so read that line before you book anything. Ask your agent which version of the form is wanted and who may sign it. I will tell you plainly what I can help with and what has to be completed by someone else. A report signed by the wrong person is a report you pay for twice.

What is looked at on the roof?

The roof comes first because roof failure is the most expensive thing that can happen to a house in this climate. The form asks for the covering material, the approximate age, the remaining useful life as the signer sees it, the general condition and any visible damage or leaks.

• Covering type: asphalt shingle, tile, metal, flat membrane or something else.
• Age: the year the roof was installed. If you have the permit or the invoice, this is a plain fact. If you do not, it is estimated from the look of the surface.
• Condition: curling, cracking, granule loss, missing or slipped pieces, rust, patched areas.
• Signs of water: stains on the ceilings below, discoloration in the attic, soft decking.
• Remaining life: a judgment on how long the roof is likely to perform.

Roof age is the number that tends to cause the most worry. A roof near the end of its expected life may lead to a request for repair, replacement or a letter from a qualified person saying it has years left. Know your roof's age before the report is written. If the roof is in question, a roof inspection ahead of time tells you where you stand, and the roof repair and roof replacement pages describe what follows.

What is looked at in the electrical system?

Electrical problems cause fires, which is why this section is read carefully. The signer looks at the main service panel, the type of wiring, the grounding and the general condition.

The panel. The brand and model, the amperage, the age and whether it shows signs of heat, rust or water. Some older panel brands have a history of problems and are viewed with caution. Open the door of your panel with dry hands and look for scorch marks, corrosion or a burnt smell. If you see any, stop and call a qualified electrician.

The wiring. Whether the house has modern copper cable, and whether any older types are present. Aluminum branch wiring and very old wiring types raise questions. Hidden behind walls, they are hard to see, but the panel, the outlets and the attic often give hints.

Breakers and connections. Two wires under a breaker built for one, breakers that are warm to the touch, mismatched breakers and open knockouts in the panel cover are all things a signer notes.

Protection devices. Ground fault protection near water, in kitchens, baths, garages and outdoors, and arc fault protection where it is required. Test the buttons on your outlets and breakers. A button that does nothing is a finding.

Grounding and bonding. Whether the system is properly tied to ground. Two-prong outlets in an older house are a clue.

Electrical corrections are done by people qualified for that work, and I coordinate rather than perform them. What I can do is help you find what is likely to be flagged, so you can book the right person before the report is written.

What is looked at in the plumbing?

Water damage is the loss insurers see most, so the plumbing section is thorough. It looks at the pipes you can see, the fixtures, the water heater and the signs of past leaks.

You can do much of this check yourself. Open the cabinet under each sink with a flashlight and look for water stains, damp wood, mineral crust on fittings and swollen particleboard. Check around each toilet for movement and moisture on the floor. Read the data plate on your water heater for its manufacture date. Look at the ceiling beneath every upstairs bathroom.

Fixing a slow drip before the report is written changes what is recorded. A leak left in place is written down as a leak.

What is looked at in the heating and cooling system?

In Florida the air conditioner works for most of the year, so its condition matters. The section records the type of system, its age, whether it operates and any visible problems.

The signer checks that the equipment runs and produces cooling, as best a visual and basic operational check can tell. They look at the age on the data plate, the condition of the indoor and outdoor units, evidence of leaks or rust, the condensate line and drain pan, and the state of the ductwork where it is visible. A unit that does not run, or that is well past the age at which equipment tends to fail, is noted.

An easy habit that helps: have the system serviced before the report. A clean coil, a flushed condensate line and fresh filters make equipment run properly and show well. Look for water stains around the air handler in the closet or attic, a rusty drain pan or a damp ceiling beneath. A clogged condensate line is a common cause of ceiling damage in Florida homes.

Cooling work is done by people qualified for it, and I do not take that over. I can tell you what I see and help you decide whether to book service before the visit.

How do you prepare, system by system?

1. Find out what is wanted. Ask your agent for the exact form and who may sign it.
2. Gather records. Permits, receipts, warranties and photos for the roof, panel, plumbing and cooling equipment. Documents that prove the date of work are valuable.
3. Do the walkthrough. Under the sinks, behind the toilets, around the water heater, at the panel and in the attic, using a flashlight.
4. Fix the small things. A weeping valve, a missing panel cover knockout seal, a stained drain pan, a cracked vent boot. Document each repair with photos and receipts.
5. Clear access. The panel, the water heater, the air handler and the attic hatch should all be reachable.
6. Be there or send a contact. Questions will come up on the visit, and someone who knows the house should answer them.

If you would like a second set of eyes before the formal visit, I will walk through the house with you and tell you plainly what I would expect to see flagged. That conversation is not a report, and I do not present it as one. It lets you choose what to fix, in what order, without spending money in the wrong place.

Does the age of your house change what is likely to be flagged?

It does, and thinking about your house's decade helps you aim your own walkthrough. These are patterns, not rules, and every house has had repairs that scramble them.

Homes from the mid-twentieth century. Concrete block construction is common. Original wiring, small panels and cloth-insulated cable may remain behind plastered walls. Galvanized supply lines and cast iron drains may still be in service. The air conditioning may have been added later, perhaps with ducts run in a hurry.

Homes from the 1970s and 1980s. Panels from certain makers with a poor record turn up. Aluminum branch wiring appears in some houses from this era. Some plumbing from the period used plastic piping that has since earned a poor reputation. Original roofs have long since been replaced, often more than once, so the dates and permits matter.

Homes from the 1990s and 2000s. Fewer exotic materials, but equipment has reached the end of its service life. Original water heaters and air handlers are old. Roofs installed at the time are at or beyond their expected lifespan.

Newer homes. Usually not asked for a 4 point report, but a house that was renovated in sections may carry mixed materials and mixed ages.

What your house is made of tells you where to look first. Which of these decades sounds like yours?

What does the attic tell you before anyone writes anything down?

The attic is the best single place to learn about a house. It shows the roof from beneath, the wiring that runs above the ceilings, the ducts, the air handler in many homes and sometimes the water heater. A flashlight and ten careful minutes can tell you a good deal.

• Look at the underside of the roof deck for dark stains, rust on nail tips and daylight where there should be none. These are signs of leaks and failing seals.
• Check the insulation for compression, dampness or discoloration below penetrations.
• Follow the electrical cables. Look for splices outside junction boxes, scorched insulation, cables chewed by animals and cable run loose across the floor joists.
• Look at the ducts for tears, crushed sections and loose connections. A disconnected duct dumps cooled air into the attic and drives up the humidity in the house.
• If the air handler is up there, look at the drain pan and the overflow pan for water and rust.
• Notice droppings, nests and gnawed material. Animals damage wiring and insulation.

Stay on the joists, never step on the drywall between them, and avoid the attic in the heat of the afternoon. Florida attics get dangerously hot. If you do not want to go up or cannot do so safely, say so, and I will look for you.

What you find there does not need to be perfect. It needs to be known. A problem you have noticed and planned for is a very different thing on paper from a problem someone else finds on the day.

What happens if something fails the review?

Failing is rarely the end of the matter. It usually means the form recorded an item the insurer wants corrected or explained. The path is to understand exactly what was written, find out what the insurer needs in response and make a plan.

Some items are small. A relief valve pipe, a missing breaker cover or a cracked vent boot can be fixed in a visit. Some are larger, such as an old panel that has to be replaced or a roof near the end of its life. For larger items, you may choose to spend now or to plan the work over time, depending on what the insurer will accept.

I help by explaining the findings in plain words, ranking them by urgency, and doing the parts of the work that fall within what I do, such as roof repairs, flashing, carpentry and sealing. For the parts that belong to other trades, I tell you what kind of specialist you need and what to ask them.

I do not promise how an insurer will respond or what a policy will cost. Those decisions are theirs. I do promise to give you a straight account of the condition of your house.

How do you get started?

Use the contact page. Tell me the age of the house if you know it, what your agent or insurer asked for, the date it is due, and anything you already suspect, such as an old roof or an old panel. I call you, ask a few questions and explain what I can help with.

If the request mentions wind-resistant features as well, the wind mitigation inspection and report page explains that separate form, and the citizen inspection page covers what applies when the policy is with Florida's state-backed insurer. Often a homeowner needs more than one.

Which credentials do I hold?

These are the credentials I hold, listed as issued. They are Florida credentials, listed as facts about me and not as a statement about any other state.

• Florida Home Inspector, HI4878

Ask me what any of them covers and I will tell you plainly.

Common questions