We understand how stressful purchasing a home can be. With all of the moving parts associated with the process, it can be a pain in the posterior. I hope your Realtor was able to alleviate as much of your stress as possible. You’ve looked at several houses, made an offer, had it accepted, and now it’s time for inspections. We believe that you should not blindly follow the recommendations of your Realtor, particularly when it comes to the Home Inspector. You should conduct research in this area. Although it may appear to be convenient and sensible to go with the home

inspector your real estate agent suggests, as you trust your agent (ideally) and they may have seen it all when it comes to home inspections, it is important to

remember to do your own independent research. The truth is that the Realtor will almost always recommend one of the following inspectors: 1) It is the cheapest, 2) It is not thorough enough, which means they do a poor job or 3) possibly provides a kickback to that particular Realtor. I’ll go over each of these inspector types.

The Cheapest- This type of Home Inspector is frequently included in the second type. This is usually why they are the most affordable. When it comes to Home Inspectors, you usually get what you pay for. Remember that buying a home is a HUGE investment. You are not helping yourself by hiring a low-cost home inspector. You wouldn’t put the cheapest gas in your Ferrari, would you?

Look Around Inspector– Typically, this inspector will only walk around the house for about an hour and then leave. Some may not enter the attic or crawl space areas or perhaps get inforamation from another party on what they saw in the crawl space! And after he’s gone, what are you left with? A report of about 15 pages in length.

If you think a thorough home inspection will only take 15 pages, you are mistaken. Some home inspectors spend more time on telling you what works rather than what will cost you to repair or budget for in the near future! Keep in mind that the inspection is a thorough examination of the entire house at the time of the inspection.

I’ll say it again: the report describes the state of almost every aspect of the house. Before meeting with anyone, regardless of who referred you, always request a sample of the report.

Tip: If the inspector refuses or fails to send clients a sample report, this is a major red flag.

Not All Home Inspectors Are The Same, Just Like Realtor Professionals

Real estate agents may attempt to control the home inspector selection process by using a variety of tactics. These can range from making discouraging comments about certain inspectors, to claiming that

inspections costs are always around $250-$300, to praising a preferred inspector. Agents can also give buyers a short list of inspectors who the agent has determined will not “kill the deal”. By providing this short list, the agent can avoid liability for the inspector referral and ensure the buyer’s “choice” is limited to inspectors who will not disrupt the sale.

What is the best way to safeguard yourself?

Conduct your own research, speak with multiple inspectors, and request a sample report. In short, a Home Inspector functions similarly to any other type of contractor. Don’t be afraid to spend more, and more importantly, never use a Home Inspector who is difficult to reach or won’t send you a sample of his work.