I bought a property with 2 small homes on it. It is in a historic district and I began to renovate. My contractor went into the attic and found that there was/is more than 50% fire damage. This was not ever made known to me. My report does say that the inspector does not attempt to go into attics that have less than 36inches of headroom,are restricted by ducts,or in which the insulation obscures the joists. My attic has no insulation, I have had 3 men standing in there at one time. The ducts are not restrictive.This is costing me a small fortune to repair, I am already deep into this project. Is there any advice anyone can give me to help me recoup some of this loss? I would not have bought this property, had I known. I have already ordered air conditioning, and insulation. I am told the air conditioner cannot go on the roof without replacing the charred joists and bringing all off this up to code. Thanks, Cindy

Depending on how long ago you bought your home, contact your home inspector and ask him to review his report and the conditions at the property. Without reading his actual report and knowing the conditions at the time of the inspection, it's difficult for me to go beyond that recommendation at this time.

I had an instance several years ago that was somewhat similar but didn't involve fire damage. I simply couldn't get into the attic because the access was in the laundry closet. The washer and dryer installation prevented me from setting up a ladder, and that wasn't half of it. I don't think the washer and dryer had been used in several years because the closet was full of everything. I barely even saw the attic access. Nonetheless, when my Clients called to complain about the conditions in the attic, I referred them to Item 4 and Figure 1 in the report, which told them that I didn't get into the attic and that they should have the attic inspected before close of escrow. Even offered to do it (at a cost, of course--I charge for my services). No one ever did anything, so I didn't think I could be held responsible for advice not taken.