Detached home inspection in Richmond
Ted is an extremely thorough inspector. In the past, we have used other inspectors who use a binder checklist. Not Ted! He went through every aspect of the house with the us, taking as much time as needed to answer all our questions and explain to our satisfaction what he found. It was definitely an eye opening and learning experience for us. Even after the inspection, Ted was happy to answer any questions we had (even months later when we finally moved in and had more questions!). Ted takes his time to do a complete and meticulous job, pays attention to detail, and puts his clients first. His report contains pictures with captions and labels, and detailed not only aspects of the house, but also provided other sources of information and links that were relevant to the property (e.g. when discussing the hot water tank, he linked information regarding tankless systems because we had discussed it during inspection). Thank you Ted , for doing such an amazing job!
- Approximate cost of services:
- $1,350.00
- Company Response
Hi Holly,
There is a trend in the last 5 to 10 yrs where homebuyers are looking for a bargain home inspection or you might say a”good deal”. In the last 10 yrs houses have almost doubled in price and buyers are looking for a cheap, fast inspection? It doesn't make a lot of sense to me so I assume salespeople are somehow convincing people they do not need to do their due diligence because the market is so hot. (There should be legislation to give every homebuyer a legal right to do their due diligence but there is a very strong lobby against this novel idea) From my experience it doesn't matter how hot the market is, you still want to do your due diligence. You mentioned previous home inspectors you've used who utilized a binder checklist system. Nowadays the same home inspectors have purchased computer software that has the equivalents of a checklist style home inspection except you can add photos. These programs are so slick that using a tablet computer they can walk through the house and take pictures that are immediately inserted into the report template with the corresponding boilerplate description/advice. The previous standard model was 2-3hr inspections using checklists. Now it's 3 to 4hrs for a complete inspection turnaround, yes that includes the report which is generated after all the obvious, generalized and superficial tasks on the computer program have been completed. Had you gone with another inspector you would never have known the depth of the inspection or the actual utility of the report for negotiating but also to maintain your home. You don't know how sorry I am to say that in my opinion and experience, real estate agents have gained such a hold over 95% of the home inspectors. Home inspectors are more than willing to go along to get along. And that means generalized fast inspections. The reporting systems have come a long way from the scratchy paper checklists to the now photo enhanced boilerplate. If you were to get a 2nd inspection on another house and done by another inspector using the same computer generated report system you would find very little difference between the 2 houses.
When I started doing inspections 20 yrs ago I worked for another company who used an industry leading checklist system. It didn't take me long to realize these checklist systems simply did not have the categories or clarity of the written word and they certainly didn't have photos. I was embarrassed to handover these flimsy pieces of paper as representing the depth of my investigation. There simply wasn't the language to describe or to assist the homebuyer in taking the next step towards ownership and that's exactly what the sales industry was looking for. After 2 months of working for this company I struck out on my own and never looked back. I simply was not able to sell my clients a bill of goods, after all, their potential future hinges on my inspection and communication clarity. Back then, as today, home inspectors are simply used to rubberstamp a buyer's attempt of due diligence. How should homebuyers know when this was/is the industry state-of-the-art and their trusted agent doesn't betray the scam. I call it a scam because in my opinion home inspectors are not professional they are simply agents of the sales community, they are team players. Home inspectors are dependent on real estate agent referrals, anyone who bucks the system is blackballed by everyone involved. Nobody wants some Maverick shining a light on their nepotism or “professional” incompetence. Home inspectors have simply lost perspective with the task they are entrusted to perform. An inspector's true client is the realtor.
Holly thank you for writing this account of my services, my clients are my one and only client and source of future work from referrals by satisfied clients, and not (necessarily) satisfied real estate agents.
Happy trails...
Ted Gilmour