I don't know why we failed!

[LillFilly]

The boyfriend and I rent a house from his mother. We do all the upkeep on the property, as she doesn't charge us much rent. As a rental, it has to have a safety inspection every 2 years, but it seems they focus more on cosmetic issues rather than safety. Yes they made sure we had the correct number of working smoke and CO2 alarms, but we were (off the record) criticized about our gardens and landscaping. The rules recently changed that a set of stairs with more than 4 steps needed a hand rail. We were also told to re-paint the peak of the house as it was flaking. We not only re-did the gardens, but added, painted the peak and the garage door (it was dirty), and built the new handrail. We were given until the end of the year, but had it done by thanksgiving so asked to make an appointment with the inspector. He instead showed-up 9am unexpected a few days later as I was getting ready for work; maybe spent 5-min looking at the front of the house. It was the same inspector that criticized everything the last time. This time he said everything looked great, the handrail was perfect, he loved the garden and wished us a happy holiday. I let my boyfriends mother know the news and to probably expect the report. She even called the town office to make sure that everything was up to code now.

What did we get in the mail just before xmas? Paperwork stating that we FAILED the most recent inspection, citing the painting and the handrail that he had complemented us on! I'm worried and I don't understand and we can't get any information until after the holidays. I'm hoping that they just forgot to file the new inspection and just resent the old one by accident, but the date on the paper was the date of the 2nd inspection, and also states the inspection took 15min, so I just don't understand. Our house is in the upper half in terms of upkeep for our area I would say. I don't want his mom to get fined and I don't want to get kicked out.

[iradney]

Did the town office confirm telephonically that everything was up to code? If they said it was, then you and she need to contact them stating that the inspection took less than 10 minutes, and the inspector (insert name here) advised everything was up to scratch. BF's mom then called the town office and spoke with (name) who also confirmed everything was up to scratch. Which is why you are confused about this report that says the exact opposite. Please explain. (I would also include photos of the painting and handrail, along with anything that shows the date of when it was done, like receipts or invoices).

[MoonCat]

Definitely look into this. These people can make mistakes. A couple of years ago I was told that I was missing a downspout and had to fix it. I have a downspout on both sides of the house and nothing was any different than it was when I bought the house. I called them and said I didn't know what they were talking about because the downspout is clearly there, you can't miss it. All I can think is they might have gotten my house mixed up with another one. Maybe they did that with yours?

[Andara Bledin]

My guess would be that they have the wrong report. Somebody transposed a digit somewhere or the like.

Definitely call and get it sorted; it's easier to get it sorted on their end before they try to fine you than after.

^-.-^

[LillFilly]

Finally got a call back. The office apologized; they meant to change it to a 'pass.' I'm going to recommend to boyfriend's mom to get them to send her an updated copy of the form stating pass, so she has the proof in case they try and dispute it later.

[Andara Bledin]

Glad to hear it was a clerical error, and absolutely get a copy of the "pass" notice in case it continues to be a clerical error.

^-.-^