Need dependable Homeinspector contacts for new home building inspection (Dallas: 2015, home builder)

[Newhome2015]

Hello

I just signed a contract with a home builder in Mckinney and am looking for contacts for new home inspection. Appreciate if anyone could provide some references.

As per Builder , they are not bound to meet the requirements or gaps identified by the home inspector and that the builder has to meet only the state inspection requirements and suggested that I hire a home inspector after i move into the home and before the 1 year warranty expires.

But lately I have seen many hiring home inspector to inspect the new home builds as well.

Any suggestions are appreciated.

Thanks again for your time to respond.

[GRNDHOG]

Originally Posted by Newhome2015

Hello

I just signed a contract with a home builder in Mckinney and am looking for contacts for new home inspection. Appreciate if anyone could provide some references.

As per Builder , they are not bound to meet the requirements or gaps identified by the home inspector and that the builder has to meet only the state inspection requirements and suggested that I hire a home inspector after i move into the home and before the 1 year warranty expires.

But lately I have seen many hiring home inspector to inspect the new home builds as well.

Any suggestions are appreciated.

Thanks again for your time to respond.

Yikes...so your homebuilder basically said they build to code and that's it? Codes are the BARE MINIMUM for safety. Nothing like a builder claiming to do the bare minimum!

I'd start reviewing the contract to see what it says about a warranty. Make sure whatever the inspector finds during warranty is going to be fixed.

(note: I worked for a national Homebuilder in their Warranty Dept for nearly 10 years in my past life. I find it crazy they said they're only bound by the state inspection requirements; which is true though.)

[escanlan]

Originally Posted by Newhome2015

Hello

I just signed a contract with a home builder in Mckinney and am looking for contacts for new home inspection. Appreciate if anyone could provide some references.

As per Builder , they are not bound to meet the requirements or gaps identified by the home inspector and that the builder has to meet only the state inspection requirements and suggested that I hire a home inspector after i move into the home and before the 1 year warranty expires.

But lately I have seen many hiring home inspector to inspect the new home builds as well.

Any suggestions are appreciated.

Thanks again for your time to respond.

Yes I would recommend that you do hire your own independent Inspector for phase inspections. First off the builder is required to follow the local jurisdictions building requirements. If you are in the City of McKinney the building Inspections Department WEB site can be found here McKinney, TX - Official Website - Building Inspections . On the left is a link called "2012 Code Adoption" which lists the relevant building codes that the builder is required to follow. At this time it would be the 2012 Cycle of the International Residential code set, the 2011 National Electrical Code, the McKinney amendments to these codes as well as the North Central Texas Council Of Governments amendments to these codes. As an FYI these codes do defer to both the engineered design of the home as well as the requirements that manufacturers of materials used to build the home have specified. So there are more than just the "state inspection requirements".

In the event that you do have issues with a builder not correcting issues that your third party Inspector has identified you do have avenues to address this. The first is to go above the local Construction Manager's head to their Supervisor or the builder's regional representative. I do suggest you obtain that information to include name, phone number, and email for those people so you can act quickly if needed.

Another avenue is to speak with the City of McKinney Building Inspections Department and ask they re-inspect and/or make a ruling as to what your Inspector finds. Because of the large amount of construction occurring the Building Inspections Departments just do not have the manpower to perform the level of inspection your own third party Inspector should be doing. Many of these departments rely on the builder's own third party inspections and very quick and cursory spot inspections. If you provide them with the information on the issue found that helps them a great deal to save time and makes the process a little smoother. In any event it is important that you do take these steps if for no other reason than to document what was found if needed for later.

When you look for an inspector to perform your inspections do vet them carefully. One thing that you want is an Inspector that will quote the relevant building codes, standards, manufacturer requirements, etc., for the issue found when it is applicable. That is the reference you will need when bringing the issue to the attention of the builder. Always obtain a sample report from Inspectors so you can compare with other Inspectors you are considering. Also hold onto that sample as an example of what they are promising to do.

One of the biggest things that buyers of new construction homes need to realize though is that there are only three people/groups that have any control over the builder. One is the local building inspections department as they can easily red tag the build until deficiencies are corrected. The other is the builder themselves. The quality of your build is going to depend on the Building Supervisor and how dedicated they are to providing you a well built home. The last is the buyer since they have the contract with the builder who is obligated to perform to specific standards. Anyone outside of those three can only provide information to you and hopefully the information is relevant and sound.

[Newhome2015]

Thank you for the replies. Are you aware of any home inspectors in Mckinney, TX area that I could reach out to, to gather the quotes on new home inspection

[SouthernBelleInUtah]

Do not name on forum, send DM

[GRNDHOG]

Originally Posted by Newhome2015

Thank you for the replies. Are you aware of any home inspectors in Mckinney, TX area that I could reach out to, to gather the quotes on new home inspection

I'll PM you my recommendation.

But I'll tell you this guy is VERY helpful with a lot of information. You may have read his posts somewhere recently. And, no, it isn't me!

[Newhome2015]

Thanks much everyone for the DM's.

[dallas_cowboy]

Originally Posted by Newhome2015

Thank you for the replies. Are you aware of any home inspectors in Mckinney, TX area that I could reach out to, to gather the quotes on new home inspection

I wouldn't just believe on inspectors suggested thru DM's without doing your own research on their reputation. Since you are making the biggest investment of your life, I think you should buy Angie's List membership if you have not done already. Check Home Inspectors there..... I hired one inspector who lives in Fort Worth based on tons of positive detailed reviews about what people like about the inspector. He comes to Frisco, McKinney almost everyday and absolutely loved his work at a very reasonable price.

Final Home inspection typically costs around $300 to $500 for houses in the range of 2500 to 4000 Sq Ft. Any inspector asking below or above this price is someone whom you should ask the reason for their low or high price and make sure the price is really worth extra or less money.

Builder must fix things which are either not following the city code OR deviates substantially from your expectation.

[texasinspector]

Read:

New Construction Inspection - Home Insepction Service in Dallas Fort Worth area