Home Inspectors?

[TOAD]

Will most likely be making an offer on a home in Moultonboro. Going to be looking for an inspector if offer is accepted. Just trying to get all my loons in a line so we can move fast on the property if necessary.

I know this has been discussed before and I have read the threads but looking for some more current opinions that folks may have concerning home inspectors for the Moultonboro area. I'm looking to hear the good, the bad, and the ugly.

I have a list from the Realtor but discretion dictates that I avoid one of those. We really like our Realtor and have no complaints about her integrity but would like to get one on my own for peace of mind.

There are quite a few on the internet but of course their web pages all tout how good they are.

I want one that is thorough and will be able to test water quality, volume, appliances, furnace, water softener, air conditioner etc. I will also want to hear about someone who will be able to give an assessment of the septic system. I assume that the inspector for the septic will be different from the home inspector. We are city slickers, wanting to go country, so water from wells, softeners, septic systems are foreign to us.

The house is only 10 years old and I have been through fixing up two houses in the past so I have a discerning eye for potential problems but I am not an expert. House appears to be in excellent shape.

Thanks for any input.

[bigdog]

Not sure TOAD who to recommend, but one I'll not !
"Certified Home Inspections of NH'
Think they're out of Moultonborogh, NH

CHI basically did nothing I couldn't do myself. He didn't check 'aynything' in great detail, and said some things were OK, which later required much maint. at great cost. They also missed some issues, found later, which were not on his initial report.

Just a FYI....
Most home inspectors make you sign a waiver-disclaimer, which prevents you from sueing in case they inaccurately report something which fails, and later ends up costing the homeowner money. Basically, you have no recourse to go back and sue the home inspector for damages.

Expect to spend anywhere from $200-400 for a Home Inspection.

Just my 2 cents.....

BD

[skibum]

Hi Toad,

I would call Tom Fleichmann of Comprehensive Home Inspections out of Sandwich. His number is 603-491-8007. My sister used him, as did the owner of the company that I work for on a couple of houses that he purchased. Both were quite satisfied. Make sure that you get a complete water test (including arsenic and radon).

[songkrai]

I used Certified Home Inspections of NH and was quite happy. He was prompt and professional.

I have two friends who are retired now who both were in the home inspecton business. They checked his report and also viewed my home. They stated his report was excellent.

Now, you have to understand what a home inspector does and does not do. This is not Holmes on Homes as seen on TV. That TV show the producers hire professional electricians, plumbers, housing framers and builder BEFORE Holmes visits any house. Holmes on Homes is a TV show. Not real life.

If you want a detailed fully inspected home then hire the following:

1. House Builder
2. Licensed Plumber
3. Heating Contractor
4. Licensed Electrician
5. Licensed Septic Designer
6. Mason if any chimneys in house
7. Professional Pest Control company
8. Professional concrete foundation company
9. Roofing company
10 Certifed asbestos inspector
11. Certified lead paint inspector
12. Certified radon inspector

And the list goes on. Have each certify their finding and quarantee their finding just in case they miss something.

And no, I don't think any of the 12 listed above will guarantee anything.

[tis]

If the house is only ten years old, I would also find out who the builder was and check his reputation and see if he built any other houses in the area and if so, visit those people.

[jetskier]

We bought a house a few years back and hired an inspector to provide us with a report. As it turned out, there were a large number of issues that he did not find/report.

The HVAC system was completely mis-installed and there was actually a vent that was set up to dump exhaust into the house...this would have been extremely bad. I ended up spending over $35k to clean up that mess and the inspector had no liability in the matter; I could not go after him. In addition, there were a number of construction flaws (unreported) that we had to address. All in all, I spent over $50k to bring everything up to snuff.

IMHO, the inspectors are either not capable of providing a comprehensive analysis or they are so tied in with the brokers that they guard that relationship. I am sure there are a few good ones out there and someone will take umbrage to this...but.

If I had it to do over again I would hire the following:

• An HVAC person/plumber
• A quality builder
• An electrician

I think that this would cover the bases. I would never ever ever ever make such a critical purchase and rely on a home inspector ever again.

Jetskier

[TOAD]

Originally Posted by jetskier

We bought a house a few years back and hired an inspector to provide us with a report. As it turned out, there were a large number of issues that he did not find/report.

The HVAC system was completely mis-installed and there was actually a vent that was set up to dump exhaust into the house...this would have been extremely bad. I ended up spending over $35k to clean up that mess and the inspector had no liability in the matter; I could not go after him. In addition, there were a number of construction flaws (unreported) that we had to address. All in all, I spent over $50k to bring everything up to snuff.

IMHO, the inspectors are either not capable of providing a comprehensive analysis or they are so tied in with the brokers that they guard that relationship. I am sure there are a few good ones out there and someone will take umbrage to this...but.

If I had it to do over again I would hire the following:

• An HVAC person/plumber
• A quality builder
• An electrician

I think that this would cover the bases. I would never ever ever ever make such a critical purchase and rely on a home inspector ever again.

Jetskier

Sounds good to me....might go that route with a few phone calls.

[DickR]

Ask a home inspector you are considering if he'll do a blower door test. If he doesn't know what that is, find someone else. This has come up before. A blower door test measures the amount of air exhausted from a house needed to depressurize the house to a standard 50 pascals difference. It's a measure of how tight the house is. A leaky house could be very uncomfortable in winter and cost a small fortune to heat. Major air leaks can be identified this way, many of which are fairly easy to seal up.

[Irish mist]

To be safe I would hire an inspector from "out of the area". Perhaps Concord or Manchester.....the reason being they won't be so connected to the local real estate crowd. Jetskier had the best idea IMO. Good luck

[Winnisquamguy]

Originally Posted by Irish mist

To be safe I would hire an inspector from "out of the area". Perhaps Concord or Manchester.....the reason being they won't be so connected to the local real estate crowd. Jetskier had the best idea IMO. Good luck

Not sure if you want to go this route but this is who I used. His name is Ron and he is out of Manchester... nice guy, gives you a nice 3 ring binder filled with all your furnace filters sizes, water filters, etc, along with the inspection.

http://www.rcchomeinspections.com/

Good Luck!!

[steadyon]

Toad, you have a private message

[ApS]

Originally Posted by TOAD

The house is only 10 years old and I have been through fixing up two houses in the past so I have a discerning eye for potential problems but I am not an expert. House appears to be in excellent shape.

Thanks for any input.

Even if the house is only ten years old, I would "eyeball" the underside of the roof rafters for previous roof leaks—yourself.

There could be some issues there from excessive shading—which will produce a gray mold from trees that have grown up since the house was built. Winter ice-ups will produce water stains on rafters, a condition which should be also addressed before purchase.