Inspector Recommendations (attorney, home, buyer)

[kmann1]

Hello- does anyone have a good recommendation for an independent inspector? We’re not sure we want to use our agent’s. We’ve heard using inspectors part of nachi.org is best. If you know of anyone reputable, reasonable, etc., please feel free to private message me. Thanks in advance!

[ifew552]

DM sent

[Rakin]

Sad that you trust strangers on the internet more than your Agent who should be working in your best interest and want the best inspection possible.

[TeamLynn]

The problem with recommendation here or looking at someplace like YELP is most people posting have experience with 1 inspector and 1 home inspection. So they don't really have an idea of good or bad inspectors.

Your agent has probably seen 100s if not 1000s of inspections and hopefully giving you a choice of 3 or more to choose from.
Not all are alike.

Ask them for the toughest 3 they know....then call all 3....ask them if they do anything different than other inspectors. For example some are certified to check for termites and include that in the price for free, while some aren't, hire an outside WDI inspector and charge you $75 for that. Some have IFR devices to check heat/cold/water, some dont. Some will scope your drain lines for a small extra charge, some don't do that. Some take level measurements of your foundation and some don't. Ask to see sample reports. Are they 14 pages or 80 pages? Personally I like the more detailed people.

[fearthegoat]

A dear personal friend I know who has been a Realtor in DFW for over 20 years recommended we use Chris Ruten from Dragonfly Home Inspections. He’s highly regarded. We used him and were very pleased. dragonflyinspections.com

[kmann1]

Thanks so much everyone!! This is all such helpful advice and feedback.

[aaron1952]

Inspectors referred by most agents fall into three classes: 1. newbies with zero experience, 2. those who rely solely upon agent referrals for business, and 3. those who feel that helping the agent make the deal work is more important than actually doing their job.

One can try many avenues when searching, such as personal referrals, online referral services, inspector organization referrals, et al. None of these is more than rolling the dice. My advice is to find an attorney firm that is board-certified in construction defect litigation and ask them who they use.

[jpushiys]

Originally Posted by aaron1952

Inspectors referred by most agents fall into three classes: 1. newbies with zero experience, 2. those who rely solely upon agent referrals for business, and 3. those who feel that helping the agent make the deal work is more important than actually doing their job.

One can try many avenues when searching, such as personal referrals, online referral services, inspector organization referrals, et al. None of these is more than rolling the dice. My advice is to find an attorney firm that is board-certified in construction defect litigation and ask them who they use.

+1
There's another active thread in this forum that seems to indicate that an agent's interests are not always aligned 100% with the buyer/seller. There are also well-researched articles along the same lines: https://www.nber.org/digest/mar05/do...tion-advantage

So OP, just from a separation of concerns perspective, I would recommend u hire someone independently (of the realtor) to do your inspection.

[Pilsn3r]

Originally Posted by aaron1952

Inspectors referred by most agents fall into three classes: 1. newbies with zero experience, 2. those who rely solely upon agent referrals for business, and 3. those who feel that helping the agent make the deal work is more important than actually doing their job.

One can try many avenues when searching, such as personal referrals, online referral services, inspector organization referrals, et al. None of these is more than rolling the dice. My advice is to find an attorney firm that is board-certified in construction defect litigation and ask them who they use.

This. Use other sources. We have a construction/remodeler friend we ask for referrals, and research them and others on the net. Curious realtors want you to interview 3 RE agents but not talk to 3 inspectors. Sounds crazy like a Fox.