Independent home inspectors will go over a house from stem to stern, looking for problems from the roof to the basement. But if the inspector doesn't also check for meth, an unsuspecting buyer could be in for a world of hurt.

Meth is short for methamphetamine, a highly dangerous, illegal and addictive synthetic drug that can affect the brain and central nervous system. The drug can be made from easily obtainable household goods, and, as this column pointed out last week, if it has been manufactured in the house you are considering -- or even just smoked there -- the entire place could be contaminated.

Fortunately, there are a number of ways to spot a so-called "meth house":

-- Check with law enforcement. The U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (dea.gov) operates the National Clandestine Laboratory Register, a database of addresses that include properties where meth labs have been found.

Don't stop there, however: As the register points out, the federal list is far from complete. So check with your state and local law enforcement authorities and health departments, too. Many have similar databases that list houses within their borders where illegal drug activities have been found. West Virginia, for example, has a state registry listing the addresses of nearly 1,000 properties with clandestine drug pasts.

In Oklahoma, where lab seizures have increased every year, local law enforcement agencies can confirm that a chemical seizure took place and provide the name of the hazardous material contractor who did the cleanup. The contractor should have a list of what chemicals were present.

If the property isn't on any list, however, "that doesn't mean it doesn't have a problem," according to Joseph Mazzuca of Meth Lab Cleanup of Athol, Idaho. Based on his company's own internal statistics and those from law enforcement agencies he works with throughout the country, Mazzuca estimates that "millions of properties are potentially contaminated."

According to a 2013 report by the Government Accountability Office, the number of "lab incidents" peaked in 2000 at 24,000 nationwide, then declined sharply to about 7,000 by 2007. But as of 2010, the number was back up to more than 15,000. Even so, Mazzuca says thousands are not reported, especially in states like Georgia, where there are no regulations on the books.

-- Talk to the neighbors. The folks next door, or even down the block, are likely to know what kind of shenanigans have taken place in the house. About seven in 10 cases Meth Lab Cleanup handles come from tips from neighbors.

Even if they don't know exactly what was going on, neighbors can often tell you about any unusual comings and goings, loud noises late at night, or frequent fights among occupants or visitors -- all pretty good signs that something was amiss. Ask specifically if the police have often been called to the house.

-- Look for telltale signs. Chances are, the house has been cleaned up for resale. According to Mazzuca, though, only 23 states regulate the decontamination of meth houses. And even in some of those that do, "nobody is enforcing the laws." In Arkansas, for example, local police are supposed to put stickers on the door and notify the state authorities, "but that doesn't always happen."

Even if the walls have been painted and the carpet changed, that's not enough to get rid of the contamination. And there are still red flags that should set your antennae to wiggling.

Odors are one warning sign. If the place smells of urine or unusual chemical aromas such as ether, ammonia or acetone, it could be contaminated. Ditto if your eyes or throat burn when you enter the place. Also beware if there is an overwhelming smell of air freshener.

Other indications of contamination include chemical stains on toilets and bathtubs, propane tanks with fittings that have turned blue, and trash with a large amount of household products such as paint thinner, lighter fluid, drain cleaners and cold tablet containers.

-- Beware troubled properties. Foreclosures tend to have a higher incidence of contamination from illicit drugs. Mazzuca says about 70 percent of the 1,500 sites his company handles every year are bank-owned homes.

If the house is being sold "as-is" -- as many foreclosures are -- look for signs of neglect. Users are more likely to put their money into drugs than upkeep, says Garth Haslem, aka "The Home Medic," a Utah-certified meth contamination specialist.

One red flag is heavy staining on the carpet, walls or ceilings. Another is doors and doorframes that have been abused and damaged. "Meth users can gain superhuman strength, and with that comes superhuman anger," according to Haslem. "The meth habit often shows physical clues on the bedroom doors, the front door or the door to the garage."

-- Testing. Haslem also warns that just because the house doesn't exhibit any of these signs doesn't mean it is free of problems. So if any of the above causes concern, or if you simply want to be certain there is no contamination, you can purchase an easy-to-use meth testing kit from your local hardware store for about $50. "When in doubt, do the test," he advises.

The tests provide lab-verified results. If meth is present, either walk away or hire a certified meth decontamination specialist to determine the level of contamination and what it would cost to rectify. You can usually find such professionals under the term "environmental" in the phone book and online, or your state may maintain a list.

"I'm sick, my kids are sick and my dog died." -- typical homeowner's complaint

Evelyn Johnson felt something was off from the get-go. For starters, the Elkhart, Indiana, real estate agent tried to schedule an appointment three times before she and her clients were actually able to get inside the house listed for sale.

But that wasn't all. The place "had a big handmade sign in the yard listing five or six people's names, saying to stay off the property or they would be prosecuted," Johnson recalls. Turns out, they were the names of the ex-wife and children, who "had repeatedly broken in and taken things that did not belong to them."

Still, her buyers loved the place and wrote an offer that was above the asking price. But the seller refused to respond. So a few weeks later, Johnson and the listing agent went to the owners' divorce proceedings, where the judge ordered the sale as part of the couple's breakup.

There were other clues that something wasn't right. At the hearing, Johnson says, the husband was visibly shaking. "There was no part of him that was still. His head, his arms, his voice. Everything." Then there was a conversation with a neighbor, who reported that the wife and her kids were into drugs. "They were very bad children," Johnson was told. The neighbor said they were "always in trouble" and had been to "kid-prison."

Johnson recommended that her clients test the house for methamphetamine, or meth: an illegal, highly addictive synthetic stimulant that affects the brain and central nervous system. If it is present in a house, it can leach into practically everything. The contaminants found in meth can result in numerous health problems, including respiratory irritation, skin and eye irritation, headaches, nausea and dizziness, according to authorities in Oklahoma. The state's Department of Environmental Quality says that "high exposures, even for a short time, can cause death or severe lung damage."

When the test on the Indiana house came back positive, the offer was withdrawn.

It's a good thing the deal failed to go through, too, because cleaning up a meth-tainted house can cost thousands. Even though the drug wasn't manufactured in the house, "just" smoked in both the boys' bedrooms, the next owners will face a monumental task.

Though the preponderance of houses where meth has been manufactured or smoked are in the Midwest, they can be found everywhere. Worse, some law enforcement agents believe they only find about one in 10 labs. And even though a house may have been continually cleaned, that doesn't get rid of the contamination, which will affect every corner of the property.

Under some circumstances, the house may have to be stripped to its bones. Walls will have to be removed down to the studs, flooring will have to come up, ceilings will have to come down, the HVAC system and its vents must be cleaned, and insulation and light fixtures must go. There's also a chance that at least part of the plumbing will have to be replaced, because waste products poured down the drain or into toilets can collect in the traps and give off fumes.

Despite the devastating impact of meth contamination, only about half the states require owners and their agents to disclose known meth exposure in homes for sale.

Law or not, though, agents have a duty to disclose this information, according to Lesley Walker, an associate counsel with the National Association of Realtors. "If (agents) are aware that a property has been used for a meth lab or that marijuana has been grown in the house," Walker says, "that would be considered a material fact and they would need to disclose."

Once disclosed, moreover, it would have to be disclosed every time the house is resold. So if you buy a meth house, clean it and live in it for a few years, then go to re-sell, the presence of meth would have to be revealed to your potential buyers -- even though it had been removed and you had no problems.

But not all agents play by the rules. Nick Ratliff of the Cypress Residential Group in Lexington, Kentucky, ran into that problem recently. He represented an investor who wanted to purchase a rental property where a previous tenant had been busted for selling meth. Even though his state has rules requiring disclosure, the listing agent felt no such duty because the unit had been cleaned and the seller had never lived in the property.

Sometimes, though, the seller is the one who refuses to disclose. In that case, it's up to realty professionals to step up. Prabhjit Singh with NAAAM Real Estate in Rockville, Maryland, did just that recently, by refusing to list a meth house because the seller balked at disclosing -- even though the cops had raided the place and the seller's teenage son was arrested.

"It was very clear to me that this was a material fact, as there would be health issues for whomever would own the home," the Maryland agent says.

Next week: How to find out if the house you are considering is contaminated with methamphetamine.

In most cases, lenders will allow borrowers to come to the table with money that came to them in the form of gifts. But be careful how you accept the money and where you stash it.

Sean Young, a loan officer with FirstCal Colorado in Greenwood Village, says that if you fail to accept the gift in a "lender-friendly" way, the underwriter could just as easily not allow it.

The wrong way is to deposit the cash directly into your bank account. Rather, open a new account and follow a series of steps, keeping detailed records of each move.

Here are Young's six steps to success with down-payment gift funds:

1. Provide an acceptable gift letter signed by all parties. Typically, your loan officer will provide the proper letter. You just have to get it signed. But if not, the letter should read like this:

"I am the (relationship to recipient) of (name of recipient) and this letter serves as evidence that I am gifting (name of recipient) (amount of gift) to be used for the purchase of the home at (complete address of property). This is a gift, not a loan, and there is no expectation of repayment. Signed, (signature of gifter)"

2. Provide a bank statement from the gifter's account to show proof of funds.

3. Provide documentation of the gifter's withdrawal of funds via teller receipts in the exact amount of the gift, stamped and signed by the teller.

If the gifter is wiring you the money, provide a copy of the wire transaction. If the gift is in the form of a check or money order, provide a copy of it and then an updated statement after the check has cleared the account.

4. Provide documentation of your deposit of the funds into your new account via teller receipts in the exact amount of the gift, again stamped and signed by the teller.

Make sure that gifted funds are not commingled with other funds at the time of deposit. For example, if the gift is for $10,000, the bank's deposit slip should indicate that a $10,000 deposit was made, nothing more, nothing less. Don't add a random deposit to the transaction. So if you are depositing an additional $100, it should be in a separate deposit.

5. Provide a new bank statement showing the deposit and updated balance, making sure the statement goes back to the date of the last statement you provided the lender to cover any gaps.

6. Be certain all your statements show your name, at least the last four digits of the account number, the bank's name and balance.

Any time you get a statement from a bank teller, be sure it is stamped by the teller and dated.  If you print statements online, make sure the statement shows the URL.

Detailed? Yes. Cumbersome? You bet. But absolutely necessary, Young says.

Lenders want to make sure of two things, the Colorado loan officer explains. First, they want to make sure that the cash gift is "clean," rather than laundered, money. And second, they want to make sure the gift is really a gift, and not a loan in disguise.

The Housing Scene erred in a recent column on the VA loan program. Anywhere in the country, a veteran can borrow up to $417,000 without any money out of his or her own pocket -- much more than the $144,000 we mistakenly reported earlier. But there are 46 counties, largely on the east and west coasts, where the maximum is considerably higher. For every $4 borrowed above the max, however, the vet must put up $1.