Whether or not a detached garage is required to be included in a standard home inspection depends of which Standards of Practice the home inspector uses. The State of Florida’s Department of Business and Professional Regulation (DBPR 61-30.810(3)(d)) standards for Florida-licensed home inspectors, effective October 22, 2013, states that home inspectors are not required to inspect outbuildings. 

    But the Standards of Practice of the American Society of Home Inspectors (ASHI) is slightly different: home inspectors are not required to inspect “outbuildings other than garages and carports.”  The International Association of Certified Home Inspectors (InterNACHI) does not address the issue directly; but, by stating that their standards apply to “properties with four or fewer residential units and their attached garages and carports,” they appear to also exclude outbuildings. 

    So only ASHI inspectors are mandated to examine detached garages. Some inspectors will inspect a detached garage and other outbuildings on a property, usually for an extra fee, and some won’t. It is not unusual for a detached garage to be quite large for classic car, RV, or car facing enthusiasts. Plus, some detached garages also have a small apartment within them, including kitchen and bathroom, which constitutes a separate living unit.

    If the property you are buying has a detached garage and/or other outbuildings, you should tell the inspector about them when scheduling the inspection and confirm whether they will be included in the report and if there will be an additional fee.

    Also, see our blog posts What makes a house fail the home inspection and Are there any minimum inspection standards that a Florida licensed home inspector must meet? 

    Click on any of the links below to read other articles about what is required to be included, or not, in a home inspection:

AFCI •• Air conditioner •• Ants •• Appliance recalls •• Appliance testing •• Attic •• Awnings •• Barns and ag blgs. •• Bathroom exhaust fan •• Bonding •• Carpet •• Ceiling fans •• Central vacuum •• Chimneys •• Chinese drywall •• Clothes dryer •• Dryer exhaust •• CO alarms •• Code violations •• Condemn a house •• Crawl space •• Detached carport •• Detached garage •• Dishwasher •• Docks •• Doors •• Electrical •• Electrical panel •• Electromagnetic radiation •• Fences •• Fireplaces  Furnace •• Garbage disposal •• Generator •• GFCIs •• Gutters •• Ice maker •• Inspect in the rain •• Insulation •• Insurance •• Interior Finishes •• Grading & drainage •• Lead paint •• Level of thoroughness •• Lift carpet •• Low voltage wiring •• Microwave •• Mold •• Move things •• Help negotiate •• Not allowed •• Outbuildings •• Paint •• Permits •• Pilot lights •• Plumbing •• Plumbing under slab •• Pools •• Questions won't answer •• Radon •• Range/cooktop •• Receptacle outlet •• Refrigerator •• Reinspection •• Remove panel cover •• Repairs •• Repair estimates •• Retaining walls •• Roaches •• Rodents •• Roof •• Screens •• Seawalls •• Septic loading dye test •• Septic tank •• Sewer lines •• Shower pan leak test •• Shutters •• Sinkholes •• Smoke alarms •• Solar panels •• Specify repairs •• Sprinklers •• Termites •• Toilets •• Trees •• Troubleshooting •• Wall air conditioners •• Walk roof •• Washing machine •• Water heater •• Water pressure •• Water shut-offs •• Main water shut-off •• Water softener •• Water treatment systems •• Well •• Windows •• Window/wall air conditioners •• Window blinds •• Wiring 

• • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 

Here’s links to some of our other our blog posts about "DOES A HOME INSPECTOR…?":

• Does a home inspector give cost estimates for repairs?

• Can a home inspector do repairs to a house after doing the inspection? 

• Does a home inspector lift up the carpet to look for cracks in the floor? 

• What are the questions a home inspector won't (or shouldn't) answer?

• Does a home inspector make sure the house is up to code? 

• How thorough is a home inspector required to be when inspecting a house?

• Does a home inspector check for permits? 

• Is a home inspector allowed to open an electrical panel?

• Does a home inspector go into the crawl space under the house?

• Does a home inspector walk on the roof? 

• Does a home inspector go in the attic? 

• Does a home inspector specify repairs? 

• Does a home inspector reinspect to verify repairs after an inspection? 

    Visit our HOME INSPECTION  and “DOES A HOME INSPECTOR…?” pages for other related blog posts on this subject, or go to the INDEX for a complete listing of all our articles.