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I recently paid $350 for a home inspection and received a 40 page report containing 39 pages of internet sourced home maintenance info and one page with the following text in which the inspector describes his findings. I'm kind of shocked because both yelp and homeadvisor give this inspection company very high marks. Following are the entirety of inspector's comments on the $350 home inspection. Is this acceptable? Thank you.
Exterior Summary
Home is a bungalow reported as being built in 1954. Original home is wood frame construction built on pier and beam over a crawlspace. There is a wood frame addition on the left side. The left side wall was built with concrete block. At one time there was a fireplace. It has been since been removed. Wood siding and trim has old moisture/termite damage above the front entry
area. Trim along the front is not secure to the house. Just needs to be nailed in and caulked/painted along the top edge. Aluminum chase for A/C lines (on right side) needs to sealed up at bottom. Septic tank cover on right side of house is not secure. This is a serious safety issue. Flood light fixtures at back of house are hanging down. Wiring is not inside conduit. Caulking needed around window on right side. It is not well sealed. "Grease Trap" on right side of house has a flimsy cover. If stepped on someone can easily fall into it. Safety issue. Wiring conduit on right side of house needs to be secured to the house with clamps. Railing along front porch is not safe. Needs to be secured better or just removed.
Roof
Pitched roof covered with 3 tab shingle. It is in good condition. Permit on file dated: 07-12-10. Shingles not flashed correctly along gable end at front of house. There is no metal flashing visible at all. Flat roof has 3 different layers of roofing material. A very old layer of rolled material which, was covered by a layer of plywood and then 2 layers of metal roofing material which, was put on at different times. The edges were never sealed. Moisture can still penetrate all 3 layers of roof. The amount of layers may be a code violation. Whether it is or not, it still needs to be sealed. Consulting with licensed roofing contractor about these issues is recommended. Wood fascia damaged on left side of house. Needs repair/replace.
Electrical
Main wires connections at service head are only temporary. One of the live connections is exposed. Permanent connections needed. Normally the utility company does this once the panel has been upgraded.
Plumbing
Water pressure and flow satisfactory at all fixtures. Plumbing under sinks all plastic. CPVC and PVC. Visibility under the house is very poor but, there still appears to be some metal supplies and drains. upgrading these to plastic is recommended. Water heater missing temperature pressure relief valve extension.
Kitchen
Kitchen and bathroom satisfactory. Washing machine drain just dumps water on top of ground. This is a code violation. Drain pipe connections under bathroom sink are not proper. Incorrect pieces used. Totally unprofessional work here. Actually quite ridiculous. See pictures at end!!!
HVAC
HVAC operated with satisfactory temperatures in both heating and cooling modes. Having system serviced and cleaned is recommended.
Interior Summary
Moisture stains on ceiling room with flat roof. There have been ongoing roof leaks for a long time. (according to complaints on county website). Moisture stains are heavy at top of wall. The edge of the roof is still not sealed. Work complete was not professional. Ongoing moisture problems still likely. Electrical junction box in attic not secure and does not have a cover. This
is right at the access panel. Floors uneven in some locations. This is common with older homes. Broken window latch in back bedroom. Adding more insulation in attic will increase the homes efficiency. Consult with TECO for free energy audit.
I recently paid $350 for a home inspection and received a 40 page report containing 39 pages of internet sourced home maintenance info and one page with the following text in which the inspector describes his findings. I'm kind of shocked because both yelp and homeadvisor give this inspection company very high marks. Following are the entirety of inspector's comments on the $350 home inspection. Is this acceptable? Thank you.
Why are you shocked? Were you thinking the inspectors findings would be spread across add't pages? It sounds like what you described is a typical summary page (which in my experience, is separate from a room by room breakdown of the same findings)..
Were any photos taken/included in the report? Were you present for the inspection?
The summary is brief but it the description seems to mostly indicate the sorts of problems that often are called out in homes that are less than great condition. It is pretty clear that there are some areas where corners have been cut / maintenance deferred regarding major things like roof, plumbing and electric.
I would expect those things to be documented with photos as well as sort of checklist that might say what else has been checked and is NOT a concern, things like proper GCFI, non-recalled circuit breaker panel, appliance age, etc. Other than such lists and maybe a lengthy report that could be "copied from the internet" describing the "right way" to fix these things I don't know what the OP would expect...
I just got a prospective home inspected myself. Granted, I spent more--$400--but I got a detailed report of 25 pages of pictures and commentary on the house. That includes a 5-page detailed "summary."
He also provided the actual numbers where applicable, such as the actual water pressure, the amp size of the electrical panel, et cetera.
FYI, what I provided is not the "summary". It is the total of the inspector's writing in the entire report. The summary is this identical text duplicated (copy/paste) at the end of the report.
My experience is similar to Ralph's. I paid more on my last inspection but it was much more detailed and much more professional. Like Ralph's, it also contained evidence of each aspect of the inspection with actual metrics/readings, etc and more descriptive observations even where there were no issues. It also described tests/inspections done - e.g. what the moisture readings were on walls - even if they were OK.
What has been observed in this report is what most people with some basic home ownership experience could pick up and describe in a similar way. There is little evidence of any expertise or thoroughness of inspection in this report. This expertise and thoroughness may or may not exist with this inspector but the report would give me very little confidence in the inspection and the inspector. Like the difference between a health report from a doctor that gives a few obvious observations vs one that describes the tests done and the results and each part of the examination and the observations good, bad and indifferent.
Also agreeing with Ralph, I would say the electrical section is extremely poor. HVAC section is laughable too. Another example is the washing machine observation. It just dumps on the ground. What does that mean? Is there a leak? Do you need a whole drain installed in that location?
He's observed 'old' termite damage and just left it at that. Wow. An inexperienced buyer could just skim right over that one. I don't understand how a professional inspector can observe evidence of termite problems and just leave it at that. Shocking really.
Also, describing aspects of the home as 'ridiculous' and using triple exclamation points in a 'professional' report undermines any sense of professionalism. That's not how professionals of any profession communicate and crap like that is not helpful to reaching a amicable resolution between buyer and seller. I.e. it can be unnecessarily inflammatory and the clownish language can undermine the credibility of the report when discussing it with the seller. Sellers are often resistant to accept that their homes have problems so this kind of thing does not help and the overall lack of professionalism of a report like this gives a seller an opening to discredit the results of your inspection.
My experience is similar to Ralph's. I paid more on my last inspection but it was much more detailed and much more professional. Like Ralph's, it also contained evidence of each aspect of the inspection with actual metrics/readings, etc and more descriptive observations even where there were no issues. It also described tests/inspections done - e.g. what the moisture readings were on walls - even if they were OK.
What has been observed in this report is what most people with some basic home ownership experience could pick up and describe in a similar way. There is little evidence of any expertise or thoroughness of inspection in this report. This expertise and thoroughness may or may not exist with this inspector but the report would give me very little confidence in the inspection and the inspector. Like the difference between a health report from a doctor that gives a few obvious observations vs one that describes the tests done and the results and each part of the examination and the observations good, bad and indifferent.
Also agreeing with Ralph, I would say the electrical section is extremely poor. HVAC section is laughable too. Another example is the washing machine observation. It just dumps on the ground. What does that mean? Is there a leak? Do you need a whole drain installed in that location?
He's observed 'old' termite damage and just left it at that. Wow. An inexperienced buyer could just skim right over that one. I don't understand how a professional inspector can observe evidence of termite problems and just leave it at that. Shocking really.
Also, describing aspects of the home as 'ridiculous' and using triple exclamation points in a 'professional' report undermines any sense of professionalism. That's not how professionals of any profession communicate and crap like that is not helpful to reaching a amicable resolution between buyer and seller. I.e. it can be unnecessarily inflammatory and the clownish language can undermine the credibility of the report when discussing it with the seller. Sellers are often resistant to accept that their homes have problems so this kind of thing does not help and the overall lack of professionalism of a report like this gives a seller an opening to discredit the results of your inspection.
Yes to all that.
Here is the actual inspector that I used, including his example report. The report he did for me was longer--he found more things wrong and we actually rejected the house:
Inspectors in this area usually charge a sliding fee based on square footage of the home, but $350 would be at the low end for an average fee here. $500 would be more expected for a mid range house.
But no matter what the price, for every finding in the report, there should be a picture, with arrows as needed explaining the deficiency. If there are issues that need to be corrected, He needs to give you concise bullet points with pictures (like the above sample report) that we can make decisions about and then present to the seller.
He references pictures... but they shouldn't just be attached without captions or explanations at the end. There are very cool software apps now for inspectors to use to include them in the report, in an easily exportable format. This guy's presentation may need some work.
Obviously the description wasn't but was the inspection thorough and did he include photos? If so probably acceptable if not excellent.
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