Wanted: Home Inspector Recommendations (Safety Harbor: real estate, 2013, house)

[wsamon]

Just as the title says.

I'm looking at homes in Pinellas, and found one that I'm seriously considering putting an offer in on. As such, I'm starting to look at the next steps of the process, including the home inspection. I know that I shouldn't necessarily go with the inspector that my real estate agent recommends (conflict of interest), and many people say how important it is to have a good quality, independent inspector. How do I find one? We have no family in the area, no coworkers to ask (I work from home for a company based out of DC, and my girlfriend recently graduated), and no friends in the area that have purchased a home in the last decade. I can use Yelp and Google I suppose, but I have serious doubts about the validity of those reviews, and most places only have a handful anyway.

So I'm turning to my fellow CDers for recommendations. Previous threads have brought up Florida Building Inspection Group, and Young Home Inspectors as possibilities. Any others anyone wants to recommend, or steer me away from?

PS. Please no rants about the merits or lack-there-of of home inspectors or realtors. I know my current situation and that I require one. This is my first home purchase and I really do not have the skillset yet to know what to look for, let alone how to evaluate it.

[SeaSpur]

I may have been the one that mentioned Florida Building Inspection Group, but if not- I highly recommend Tom. The guy is knowledgeable and takes his time...many of my friends have had the "30 minute" inspections and while nothing major has come from them, I have a LOT of details on my property from the large report he gave me that I wasn't aware of initially. It's helped me make a lot of small repairs over time.

[druthb00]

On the Gulf Home Inspection, out of Safety Harbor.

"Inspector Bob" is what I dubbed him, and he was awesome. He put together a 71 page inspection report, complete with pictures and it's served as a great reference tool in the last 2 years. He did what he said he would, when he said he would, and was really just an all around great guy. The inspection lasted about 4 hours, and then he spent at least an hour walking the property with us going over everything.

[MortonR]

Young Home Inspections, you can find their website here. ASHI certified, very highly recommended both in word of mouth and Angie's List.

I have used him twice and he saved me money in both instances.

RM

[lavender]

I dont agree with your comment about conflict of interest. I have a guy I work often with and always recommend with the proviso that clients should always seek out at least two other inspectors before making a decision on such an important purchase. This company has often made it necessary for my buyers to decline on a purchase and we have had to move on which means of course they have to pay for yet another inspection when the right home comes along. This is preferable to a disaster down the line though. I stress over every inspection, hoping all will be well for my clients and the deal, but I like to use the guy because he is honest and knowledgeable and we have no 'arrangements'

I like National Property Inspections and you can DM me if you want to have details if you can't find Tony Marino (ASHI) online and his reports are very long and he goes over the report with buyers afterward.

[wsamon]

Originally Posted by MortonR

Young Home Inspections, you can find their website here. ASHI certified, very highly recommended both in word of mouth and Angie's List.

I have used him twice and he saved me money in both instances.

RM

You say "used him." Who did you have? I read the Angies List reviews and there seem to be a lot of people that do inspections for that company.

Also, when did you have the inspections done? I noticed that its under new ownership as of mid-2013. The new owner runs a construction business at the same time. I can't decide if that's good, bad (conflict of interest again), or indifferent... Reviews remain good.

[MortonR]

"Them" should have been the proper term, I guess.

Both inspections were performed by Mike Tomlinson and were done in 2011. At the time Jim Fahs was the owner, as I spoke to him personally when the second inspection was performed.

I have recommended them several times since then and have friends who have used them as recently as this year. Their experiences were similar to mine.

I don't know anything about their owning another business, but I don't see how that matters as long as they aren't the ones who built the house or building you need inspected.

RM

[SeaSpur]

Originally Posted by wsamon

You say "used him." Who did you have? I read the Angies List reviews and there seem to be a lot of people that do inspections for that company.

Also, when did you have the inspections done? I noticed that its under new ownership as of mid-2013. The new owner runs a construction business at the same time. I can't decide if that's good, bad (conflict of interest again), or indifferent... Reviews remain good.

This is pretty common for inspectors from what I found and personally...I would much rather it. Instead of passing a test they can study for to inspect homes, you are dealing with someone who *really* knows the in and outs of homebuilding and structural expertise. The extra advice they could provide is certainly worth it.

The guy I recommended above with FBI also has a construction company on the side (general contracting- meaning, he oversees all aspects of a job).