Comments on: 5 Big Questions For New Home Buyers #4: How Do I Find A Good Home Inspector?

By: Mike

Mike — Wed, 26 Aug 2009 19:53:43 +0000

@Amy,

You are right that the inspector is not a contractor. Therefore it is not his place to make an estimate of the cost. The home inspection reports should only tell you what needs to be fixed and what condition the house is in (including the estimated condition/age of things like the water heater and heating/cooling system). Knowing this you can then get quotes from contractors and negotiate a lower price or negotiate that the sell remedy certain things and retain the current offer/counter-offer price already “agreed” upon. Your agent should be familiar with this process (negotiating/re-negotiating price based on home inspection).

By: Amy

Amy — Sat, 26 May 2007 18:30:16 +0000

I haven’t had an inspection done, so I don’t know whether the report would have included an estimate of the costs of repairs, but I would think that that would be an important thing to know! As long as the home inspector isn’t also a contractor, they aren’t trying to sell you something, but are pointing out potential expenses you’d need to consider before making an offer!

By: Grant

Grant — Thu, 24 May 2007 19:21:33 +0000

This is similar to Dan’s comment above. Do not use an inspector that is recommended by your real estate agent–find one on your own. The real estate agent’s motivation is just to make the transaction go through as quickly as possible and they’ll only recommend an inspector that is going to give problem-free inspection reports (for the most part).

Good article, Trent!

By: Daniel Sweet

Daniel Sweet — Fri, 19 Jan 2007 13:48:34 +0000

Whatever you do, *always* get your own inspection.

I know a guy in the business and he says that lots of folks get an inspection done by their mortgage company / builder and say, “Okay!”

The problem is that the inspection companies are beholden to the mortgage or building company because they provide so much business. And nobody there wants any delay in the home purchase.

So, the inspector will often “not notice” many things, so the deal gets closed and he gets more business.

ALWAYS get your own inspection.

Dan

By: J.D. @ Get Rich Slowly

J.D. @ Get Rich Slowly — Thu, 18 Jan 2007 22:51:46 +0000

My #1 tip for finding a home inspector is to ask your friends. This isn’t fool-proof, but it’s an excellent start. When we bought our second house three years ago, we asked our friends from recommendations. When the same guy was recommended three times, we knew we had a winner. Now we make sure to recommend him, too. I’d even link to his web site, but it seems to have been swallowed due to failure to renew. (Oops.)

By: Heather

Heather — Thu, 18 Jan 2007 18:37:19 +0000

Although architects do not fit your “must do home inspections full time” requirement, I have met some who do it on the side and have found that because they understand how buildings are constructed and the systems that go into buildings, they can do just as good a job as a “full time” inspector.