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~ Do you need to hire your own inspector for a new construction/total renovation? (Someone said that, because of the CO's the builder has to get at every stage of the process, the house already gets inspected at every point before they'd issue another CO.)
~ Are there different inspectors if you're buying a $1.5M house versus a $400K house? A brand new versus old house?
~ Are inspectators and structural engineers synonomous in this situation?
ALWAYS hire your own engineer. Generally the terms engineer and inspector are used interchangably. Even if it is new construction you should have the home inspected. Just because it is built to code does not mean that it is of great quality. Rembember "code" is just the minimum standard allowed so that a house can be occupied.
www.criterium-tauschercronacher (broken link) dot com
I was told 10 years ago, and last year that these guys are THE ONE. They inspected when we bought, were there for 3 hours, huge report and when we resold last year our Agent said "well if TC passed you 10 years ago, I have no worries about this inspection" I am told agents tremor a little when they hear TC is inspecting!
APNY, I will PM you the name of the extremely qualified and well-respected in the field home inspector who I have used for the past 10 years.
If you suspect any foundation issues, I have also included the name of an excellent engineer/inspector who specializes in this very critical area particularly.
Bought a home with foundation problems and saw your post below. Do you still have the name of the engineer you referred to below?
Thanks my email address is cloud9plus@yahoo.com
Quote:
Originally Posted by 4StanleyCups
APNY, I will PM you the name of the extremely qualified and well-respected in the field home inspector who I have used for the past 10 years.
If you suspect any foundation issues, I have also included the name of an excellent engineer/inspector who specializes in this very critical area particularly.
www.criterium-tauschercronacher (broken link) dot com
I was told 10 years ago, and last year that these guys are THE ONE. They inspected when we bought, were there for 3 hours, huge report and when we resold last year our Agent said "well if TC passed you 10 years ago, I have no worries about this inspection" I am told agents tremor a little when they hear TC is inspecting!
Good luck and CONGRATS
Is this a local company? When I buy my next house, I want that kind of quality also. Too many inspectors just push the sale through to get more referrals.
~ Do you need to hire your own inspector for a new construction/total renovation? (Someone said that, because of the CO's the builder has to get at every stage of the process, the house already gets inspected at every point before they'd issue another CO.)
~ Are there different inspectors if you're buying a $1.5M house versus a $400K house? A brand new versus old house?
~ Are inspectators and structural engineers synonomous in this situation?
No has answered your questions yet.
If you're buying a home you plan to demolish and start completely from scratch with a total new construction (i.e. brand new foundation, too), then bringing in an inspector is a waste of $$ since your plan is to just knock it all down anyway. If you are buying the house and you plan to completely knock it down (usually the house is sold 'as is' but check with your lawyer), oftentimes the village you are in will only make you get an asbestos inspection (totally different type of inspector) prior to demolition for obvious reasons, but that's it.
If you are completely gutting the house (total renovation) but keeping the foundation and any of the original structure then yes you should bring in inspectors and/or a structural engineer to check for damage to the foundation and the structure because you will be adding to what's already there and you want to make sure it's ok to build around.
Don't confuse the independent home/structural inspections before you're buying a house with the inspections that the village or town building inspector will perform as the construction progresses prior to getting a CO. The building inspector for the village/town will be very closely monitoring your construction project and has to perform many specific inspections along the way before they grant you a CO (e.g. when framing is done, when plumbing is complete, electrical, etc).
To my knowledge, an inspector is an inspector regardless of the price of the house, but they definitely vary in terms of quality. The building code in your village/town will not be different for a cheap versus expensive house.
Some inspectors are also structural engineers that specialize in foundations as well, but not all, so make sure you ask what the inspection includes. Expect to pay more for one that is also a structural engineer.
If you're buying a home you plan to demolish and start completely from scratch with a total new construction (i.e. brand new foundation, too), then bringing in an inspector is a waste of $$ since your plan is to just knock it all down anyway. If you are buying the house and you plan to completely knock it down (usually the house is sold 'as is' but check with your lawyer), oftentimes the village you are in will only make you get an asbestos inspection (totally different type of inspector) prior to demolition for obvious reasons, but that's it.
If you are completely gutting the house (total renovation) but keeping the foundation and any of the original structure then yes you should bring in inspectors and/or a structural engineer to check for damage to the foundation and the structure because you will be adding to what's already there and you want to make sure it's ok to build around.
Don't confuse the independent home/structural inspections before you're buying a house with the inspections that the village or town building inspector will perform as the construction progresses prior to getting a CO. The building inspector for the village/town will be very closely monitoring your construction project and has to perform many specific inspections along the way before they grant you a CO (e.g. when framing is done, when plumbing is complete, electrical, etc).
To my knowledge, an inspector is an inspector regardless of the price of the house, but they definitely vary in terms of quality. The building code in your village/town will not be different for a cheap versus expensive house.
Some inspectors are also structural engineers that specialize in foundations as well, but not all, so make sure you ask what the inspection includes. Expect to pay more for one that is also a structural engineer.
Thank you, a well thought out reply. Finding a quality inspector that isn't relying on a realtor for their business is the challenge. We got taken on this condo and learned the hard way but want to make it better the next time around.
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What did I get myself into
