Mold and Moisture Inspection
A mold inspection in Oregon documents moisture intrusion and visible growth, which the home inspection treats as an environmental hazard outside its scope by rule.
A mold and moisture intrusion inspection covers what OAR 812-008-0204 excludes: determining the presence of environmental hazards. The home inspector reports visible moisture evidence; the separate inspection measures and samples. Oregon licensing of mold assessors is in verification, and remediation is contractor work.
The wet-side default finding
West of the Cascades, moisture is the condition behind most findings: crawlspace humidity, attic ventilation, grading toward the house and failed flashing. The home inspection reports the visible evidence.
Determining whether growth is mold, and which, is an environmental hazard question that OAR 812-008-0204 excuses the inspector from answering. That is where the separate inspection starts.
Inspection is not remediation
The inspection measures moisture, often with infrared imaging, and may sample. Infrared finds the cold wet surface, a meter confirms it, and a sample identifies what grew. Remediation is a contractor activity with its own licensing through the Construction Contractors Board.
Keep the two engagements separate when possible. The firm selling the remediation has an interest in the finding, which is the same tension this site notes for sewer scopes. Crawlspace vapour barriers and downspout extensions are the two cheapest fixes an inspection usually turns up.
Asked and answered
If the home inspection reports moisture evidence, yes, because the inspector cannot go further by rule. OAR 812-008-0204 excuses certified inspectors from determining environmental hazards, so the report will note staining or growth without identifying it. A separate moisture inspection measures the source, which matters more than the species, since mold follows water.
Oregon rule does not assign it; the sale agreement does. Buyers usually order it during the contingency period after the home inspection reports moisture evidence. If a seller has a report, the Oregon seller property disclosure statement under ORS 105.464 asks about known material defects. What a seller learns may need to be disclosed.
Questions are taken verbatim from live Google People Also Ask results for this inspection type. Answers rest on Oregon rule text and the records cited above.