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Now onto the blog: Nashville Home Inspection - Damaged Tree - What's Wrong With This Picture? 5/19/10
HINT: What is going on with this tree? Should this crack be included in a Home Inspection Report?
ANSWER: To the first question, Nothing good. To the second question, YES! This tree is approximatley 80 feet high and the trunk is approximately 16" in diameter at 2' above the ground. Plenty of weight and plenty of trouble if this tree goes down and hits a house. Which is exactly what is about to happen if the right wind comes along. This tree has been attached by insects, including termites, at the base. See the closeup below.
And below is the crack up close. The crack runs about 3 feet in total length and is about 1" wide at the greatest opening.
So what do you do? What do you advise the Client to do? Cut it down? YES! And that is exactly what we did. And when we got to the last cut you can see that the entire middle of the tree is rotted out. The tree was only being held up by the outer roots. See the photo below.
So should this crack in the tree be in the Home Inspection Report? Absolutely. If not, the Client is at risk personally and the house that is only 70' from this tree is also at risk. Remember, the tree is 80' high. And, it costs about $1000 to cut this size tree down, remove the stump and haul the remnants away. Not a minor expense.
Thank you,
Richard Acree
Comments in this blog posting are the copyrighted intellectual property of Richard Acree, President, HABITEC Home and Building Inspections, LLC, and contributing members of the Active Rain Real Estate network, and are intended to educate and otherwise assist home owners, sellers and buyers, building owners, sellers and buyers, realtors, real estate investors, property managers, and lenders in the process of owning, buying or selling homes or commercial buildings. HABITEC is a residential (home) and commercial building inspection company serving Middle Tennessee including Nashville, Brentwood, Franklin, Murfreesboro, Smyrna, Mt. Juliet, Hendersonville, Dickson, Belle Meade, Columbia, Spring Hill and more! In addition to building inspections HABITEC offers Environmental Services for mold assessments, radon testing and water quality analysis. Additional information about HABITEC can be found on our website at http://habitecinspections.com, or call 615-376-2753.
Richard Acree is the author of the HABITEC Home and Building Inspections Blog and founder of the ActiveRain Group Tennessee Home and Building Inspectors. All are welcome to join and see more blogs like this one.
All 3 homes have been completely refinished with new hardwood flooring, new carpet (high grade), new appliances, new fixtures, and new paint throughout! You have to see them for yourselves. 
