Understanding the "Product" you sell (This information could save your clients THOUSANDS of dollars) *  URGENT NOTICE on Emergency Gas Shut-off Valves (It's the LAW) Last Minute Inspection Discount Offer   NBI is now offering new inspection services: * One Year Builder Warranty Inspections * Apartment and Commercial Building Inspections NBI's Tidbits (Snippets of life from NBI)  *A Letter to Santa A little Humor to brighten your day   * A Day of Fishing with your Son     Time to Read: 5 Minutes or Less Routinely, agents confess how little they know about the physical product they sell…(the house). At times, they are embarrassed that they can’t answer client’s questions regarding the physical aspects of the house. In each publication, you will find helpful comments and pictures to help build your knowledge base. This information is not to make you a home or termite inspector. It’s to increase your core knowledge to make you even more valuable to your client.   EMERGENCY Gas Shut Off Valves WOW! !   NBI’s phones have been ringing off the hook for the past several weeks with agents asking about the new laws regarding “emergency gas shut off valves”.    We did a lot of checking and here is what we’ve found so far.  Gas Valves:  The gas valves everyone is talking about are the “Seismic Valves” and the “Excess Flow Valves”.                             Seismic Valve                                               Excess Flow Valves   The Seismic Valve is actuated by ground movement.  When the ground moves....a steel ball will fall out of its holder and plug the gas line shutting off the gas flow.  This valve is installed directly after the gas meter so it can shut the gas off to the entire house in the event of an earthquake.  Seismic Valve installed after the gas meter     The "excess flow" valve is activated by a gas line rupture.  This valve is also installed directly after the gas meter so it can shut the gas off to the entire house in the event of an earthquake. Excess Flow Valve installed after the gas meter Both of these are installed behind the meter and are designed to shut off the gas to the entire house.     In addition to the gas valves installed at the meter, each appliance needs to be protected by an excess flow valve such as the one below.   This excess flow valve is also actuated by “higher than normal” gas flow.  It is installed after the manual shut off valves on each appliance such as a water heater and/or gas furnace.  If, for any reason the flexible gas line ruptured and a high volume of gas was pouring into the house, this valve would automatically shut of the gas supply to that appliance.  Water heater Shut-off Valve (Before excess flow valve is installed)       Excess Flow Valve installed   Who is requiring these valves be installed?  Nearly every city and county in the State has enacted some laws regarding the installation of these valves.  Nearly all of them are requiring these valves be installed:  In new construction In remodels and upgrades costing more than $15,000 In gas line modifications costing more than $5000 Los Angeles and North Hollywood were the first two cities to require these valves be installed as mentioned above PLUS.......whenever a home is sold.  Contra Costa County is the first Northern California area to enact a similar law.   Besides the three “triggers” mentioned above, the most impactive to you and your client is the fact that ALL properties closing escrow after January 2, 2006 must have these valves installed.    Click HERE to see the actual regulation.  Is this a County regulation or a City regulation?  This was harder to answer than I had expected.   Our staff called nearly every City in Contra Costa County. Some of them said they will be enforcing the new law as outlined and others said they will only be enforcing the first three requirements mentioned above.  Many others didn’t know about the County rules and were planning on investigating to determine whether they enact a similar law.  The only thing that I can say with firm conviction is that the Regulation linked above is from Contra Costa COUNTY .....however, the County issues building permits for many of the cities throughout the County and therefore the properties in these cities would be under County rule and WOULD be required to install these valves “at the close of escrow”.    The following cities are currently under the County control: Alamo Avon Bay Point Bethel Island Blackhawk Byron Canyon Clyde Crockett Diablo Discovery Bay East Richmond Heights El Sobrante Kensington Knightsen Moraga Pacheco Port Costa Rheem Valley Rodeo Rollingwood Rossmoor Saranap Tara Hills Tassajara Vine Hill  All unincorporated areas served by County If in doubt, I recommend you call the City you are in to get their latest ruling.  My personal feeling is that it’s probably a good idea to negotiate having these valves installed on all homes regardless of what city they are in.  A very minor remodel or upgrade will cost more than $15,000...requiring these valves to be installed.   These valves will offer far greater protection against fires......PLUS many insurance companies are offering annual discounts on insurance premiums that will eventually pay for their installation.    Are insurance companies requiring these valves? We are currently contacting the major CA insurers.  Here is what we've found so far.  Allstate Insurance will not issue new policies (in California) unless these valves are installed.  We've found other insurance agencies giving 5% - 12% annual discounts on home policies if these valves are installed.   I've been told of $85.00 - $137.00 annual discounts.  Not only do you have added protection, you will recoup your investment many times over during the life of your home. Who can install these valves?  Legally, home owners could install them; however, since you are dealing with natural gas, I strongly recommend these installations be left to licensed plumbing companies. Earthquake Plumbing Company was the only plumbing company we found that specializes in the installation of these safety valves. They were very helpful in providing some of the valuable information contained in this newsletter. You can find them at www.EQPlumbing.com or call them at (925) 933-4800 to place an order. (I found them far more knowledgeable and professional than most of the other plumbing companies we called.) Are plumbing permits required?  YES!  You are dealing in natural gas.  This is not an area to take lightly.  The County absolutely requires a plumbing permit be issued and signed off on each seismic valve installation.  Failing to get a plumbing permit could place your seller at risk should something happen after the close of escrow.   When calling plumbing companies, we found many of them “alluding” to the fact that they won’t be getting permits....such as “Well....if you want a permit, you can get one.”  Beware of that attitude....it can only get you and your client in trouble.  NOTE:  Insurance companies will want a copy of the "signed off" building permit. How much do permits cost?  Are homeowners allowed to get the permit?  Plumbing permits range from $50-$75.00.  Contra Costa County is charging $62.50 for the actual permit.   Homeowners are allowed to get their own permit by going to the building department and filling out the necessary paper work.   Some plumbing companies will charge you an hourly or flat rate to secure a plumbing permit plus the cost of the permit fee.  Does the plumbing department inspect to confirm proper installation?   YES.  The plumbing department returns to confirm the installation has been properly performed.   Since a plumbing permit is only needed for the Seismic Valve located OUTSIDE the house......they can inspect this valve any time.  If the installation was properly peformed, they will sign it off....If not, they will contact the contractor and ask them to remedy the problem. Are there different types of "meter" valves? Yes.  The State of California has published a list of approved seismic valves.  Two seismic valves and one excess flow valve are most commonly installed.  This is the "Little Firefighter" seismic valve.   This valve appears to be the industry favorite "seismic" valve because it is reasonably priced and effective.        This is the "Koso" seismic valve.   The cost of actual valve is about 3 times that of the Little Firefighter.  Since both valves can be manually reset by the homeowner and both are approved by the State, I wasn't able to find justification for the added cost. The only thing I don't like about either of these valves is that they are supposed to be "braced" and strapped to the house.  (Neither of these installations are installed to manufacturer's specifications.)  Many plumbing companies don't know about all of the requirements and therefore don't install them properly.       This is the BrassCraft excess flow valve.   This unit has a "floating" valve that only activates upon a gas line rupture.  I like this valve because it won't have any false trips.    If this valve ever does close the gas line...its because of a serious problem in the house.  Shutting off the gas before the meter automatically resets this valve.    How much do these valves cost to install?  We called nearly 40 plumbing companies in Contra Costa County and received a WIDE range of answers.    “We’ll have to come out....look at your job and give you a price.” “$395.00 for the seismic valve”    Does that include the building permit?    “No...if you want that, you have to go to the building department to get it.” “I can’t tell you a price....you’ll have to talk to one of our technicians and they are all out for the day.   You’ll have to call in between 7:30 and 8:30AM.” “$390.00 for the seismic valve”  Does that include the building permit?   "No...we charge you the permit fee and a minimum of one hour to get a permit....our hourly rate is $125.00.” “$365.00 for the seismic valve”   What do you charge for the excess flow valves?    “What are they?” “$525 for the seismic valve”    Does that include the building permit?    “Yes” At $329.00 for the seismic valve and $34.95 for the excess flow valves, I found Earthquake Plumbing to be the most knowledgeable of all the ones we called.  They charge $125.00 for a plumbing permit which includes the $62.50 permit fee. In summary... do your shopping.  Compare "apples and apples" and then pick the best company.  Remember, the best company isn't always the least expensive.  (I hope you have found this information useful.  As always, we appreciate your comments and feedback.) ___________________________________________ PLEASE, PLEASE, have your listings inspected prior to entering into a purchase contract.  NBI's non-biased inspections will offer your clients the very best value.   We don't have a vested interest in your client's home; therefore if there are repairs to be performed, we can offer you the most practical repair methods... rather than those that are the most profitable for the repair contractor.  ___________________________________________ Call our office at (800) Go-NBI-NOW (800) 466-2466.  Place your inspection order NOW! ! Place your inspection orders on-line, 24 hours per day, 7 days per week.  To the Top       We need your help! ! Our records are showing that thousands of our emails are being swept out to Sea by overzealous spam filters that filter on graphic text and pictures.  If you feel that NBI's newsletters are informative and helpful, we would really appreciate if you would click on this LINK to request future newsletters.  To insure that all future newsletters arrive safely, please add NBIsAnswerman@goNBI.com to your approved list of email senders.   Thank You Last Minute Inspection Discount FREE Termite Inspection !!! NBI has only two things to sell....unequalled construction knowledge and “TIME”.  We understand that we will never be able to sell “TOMORROW” again.  NBI would rather give your client a GIANT discount for acting fast, than not filling an open time slot.     By ordering a “Last Minute Home Inspection”, we will include NBI's famous "Non-Biased Termite Inspection" for FREE! ! Our normal single inspection rates are: (Based upon homes under 2000 sq. ft.) (Prices may vary between market areas.) (San Francisco and Fresno County prices are slightly different.  Please call our office for exact fees.) Home (Only) Inspection: $395.00 Termite (Only) Inspection: $240.00 Combination Inspection.. $495.00 If you order a home inspection and fill a vacant time slot for the following day; your client will receive a FREE termite inspection! (Example: If you call NBI on Monday and you are able to fill an open time slot we have on Tuesday, you will receive a FREE termite inspection.) (Note 2: Our condominium Home inspection prices are $265 without crawlspace and $395 with crawlspace.) LIVE UPDATE! ! NBI has created a "Last Minute Inspection" web page so you can instantly check to see if we have any "next day" time slots in your area.  Open this web page and drag the Icon onto your desktop.  Each time you need an inspection...simply click on our web page.  It doesn't get any easier than that. Place your inspection orders on-line, 24 hours per day, 7 days per week.  Call our office at (800) Go-NBI-NOW (800) 466-2466 for complete details. For additional information about our company, please visits us at www.goNBI.com. Have you missed previous Straight Fax Newsletters?  Click HERE.  We have many posted for your review.  They contain a lot of great information. One Year Builder Warranty Inspections Apartment and Commercial Property Inspections NBI is now performing Builder Warranty Inspections plus Apartment and Commercial Property Inspections.  A warranty inspection is performed just before the builder's warranty is about to expire. This inspection is intended to uncover defects or imperfections that exist in the residence so you can present them to the builder prior to the expiration of the warranty. NBI has inspectors trained and qualified to perform home and termite inspections on 5 to 500 unit apartment complexes.  Our inspectors are being flown throughout the United States to perform commercial property inspections because the quality of NBI's inspections "are worth the extra expense".  Call our office at (800) Go-NBI-NOW (800) 466-2466 for complete details. For additional information about our company, please visit us at www.goNBI.com. To the Top (Snippets of life from NBI) "Santa, you have a lot of explaining to do"             Kiley (8) and Kayla (4) are two of my beautiful grand daughters.   Kiley recently wrote a note to Santa that I wanted to share with you.  My favorite part is her "PS comment" to Santa.             Watch out Santa.....you have some "splainin" to do.   --------------------------------------------------------- ---------------------------------------------------------     AHHHH  A day in the wilderness | Commuting with nature. | A day of fishing with your son.            Ummmmmm        On second thought......lets go have a burger at McDonalds!   !     To the Top Like NBI's Straight FAX Newsletter?   New agents each month are asking to receive our newsletter.  Encourage everyone in your office to register for this worthwhile information. Send to, Answerman@goNBI.com. What issues would you like us to discuss in future Straight Fax Newsletters?  Electrical, Plumbing....Roofs???   Proper interpretation of pest control reports???   Let us know. HAVE QUESTIONS or concerns regarding a potential home problem, ask NBI's AnswerMan at Answerman@goNBI.com  Editor Notes:  Dale J. Luger founded National Building Inspectors in 1986.  Mr. Luger has purchased; rehabilitated and sold over 1000 residential units in his career.  His credentials as a General Contractor, Roofing Contractor (1976), CA Real Estate Broker (1982), Pest Control Operator (1987) make him uniquely qualified and knowledgeable of all aspects of real estate transactions.