Kerfin Inspections Inc

Will never Hire Again - They are not fully competent and/or willing to perform the full extent of home inspection services as other companies do and state "it's not my job" or tell you to hire another expert to finish the inspection. Completely unprofessional and push you on their other company services as well.

I actually loved using these guys. I used them 3 times in my home buying process and 3rd time was the charm. All three reports were very detailed and the gentlemen who did the inspection was great. My realtor was the one who recommended we use them.

Well but report wasnt great. I'm glad I was there during the inspection.

This is going to be a long post, but people who are buying or selling their homes need to know about how home inspection is supposed to work. First, though, some information about me. I was the seller of a home in Naperville, and Kerfin Inspections did the inspection for a buyer. Also, I happen to know a lot about home inspection because I was married for 10 years to someone who owns a residential/business inspection company in Miami (BIS). Kerfin Inspections is a terrible company to hire for your home inspection. Home inspectors are like a lot of other businesses: they use a pre-made form for every job, and often they will copy and paste the same text into the same areas over and over because it's usually the same for every job. This holds true for home inspectors. If anyone wants a copy of the report I'm about to discuss, please contact me through Angie's List and I will be happy to email it to you. The entire point of getting your home inspected is to protect your investment. Buying a home is one of the biggest investments in your life. Kerfin Inspection's started off right away with a shoddy description of my basement which offered zero value to their client. Here's the description: "Recommend install a code compliant egress window in the basement for fire safety.NO inspection performed on the finished basement concrete foundation. I cannot determine if any defects exist or if leaking cracks exist. Also, I cannot determine if any flooding or moisture penetration will occur. I recommend you look at the sellers disclosures if any water penetration exists. Please read this: I cannot guarantee that your basement or crawl space will never take in water, flood, leak, or if cracks will start leaking. Also, I recommend you get the current sellers disclosures to see if any mention of leaks or flooding exists or occurred. The basement flooding is at your own risk and Kerfin Inspections does not warranty leaks or flooding will not occur. Please read this: I cannot determine if window wells will fill with water and enter the house, also, I cannot determine if drains exist and or if they are covered. I recommend install drains in all window wells and divert to a drain tile system. If a drain tile system does not exist in the house I recommend you install one. Also, I recommend install rigid window well covers for safety. Recommend install a properly sized egress window in the basement for fire safety. I cannot determine when the basement will leak." Sounds like a disclaimer, right? Looks like it could be copy and paste, right? That's because it is. My home has two basement egresses with window well covers. My basement has no cracks. Moreover, and this is really the point of the entire review: What's the point of hiring and paying for a home inspector if they can't even determine if the basement in a house is good or not? It gets better. As near as I can tell, this is the only actual custom text the inspector actually entered into his report: "Appears to be a termite trap in the ground in front of the garage. Divert gutters and sump away from the house." There's a picture of the "termite trap" in front of the garage in the report. And I'm sorry, but this was ridiculous: IT WAS A PICTURE OF THE UNDERGROUND DRAIN COVER FOR THE GUTTER, WHICH WAS DIVERTED AWAY FROM THE HOUSE. Building inspectors are supposed to get certified to perform termite inspections. This guy can't tell the difference between a termite trap and an underground drain cover. "The microwave exhaust does not vent to the exterior. Recommend you test all appliances on your final walk through for proper operation, also, please know that Kerfin Inspections is not a warranty company and recommend you get a home warranty." Thanks. You're a home inspector and you can't even check the major appliances to see if they're working? "Please read this: I cannot determine if any plumbing leaks in walls, ceilings, if mold exists behind wall paper, or if bathroom vents vent to the exterior or if current leaks exist in cabinets where they are filled with current owners belongings. The water heater is older and expect to replace it at any time." Any good building inspector should be able to tell you if there's mold in your home. It literally costs between $5-$15 to swab for mold and send it out to a company to check for mold. And building inspectors LOVE talking about mold and leaks, because it's where they're seen as most valuable to people who don't know better. It's important to know if there's mold in your home, even though only 1% of all mold is actually deadly to humans, and the other 99% is just a nuisance that goes away as soon as you take care of the source of moisture. Also, my water heater was new. Anyway, don't use this service. Nuts.

The inspection went very well. My husband and I have been in this house for about two months now and we noticed that there is some water damage that is coming in the basement. So, we're trying to get that situation straightened out. Even though there is water coming behind one wall, there is panel there and he did tell us that he wouldn't be able to remove the panel. So, you can't fault him for something that he could not do, but we still have the water issue. He was right on time.

The inspection could not have gone better. Tim was incredibly detailed in his review, identifying even the smallest items. He identified potential mold in the house, which was not in an easy place to spot. It is a large home and took 2.5 hours to complete the inspection. Throughout the process, Tim was great at explaining things we could do to prevent future damage, even if it was not something that needed immediate remediation. Finally, he provided the report very quickly, which allowed us to respond to the Seller very timely.

Kerfin inspections is way better than the previous company I used, they are well worth what I paid just in professionalism alone!

Kerfin Inspections sub-contracted to Shelter Home Inspections. EJ performed the home inspection and did an excellent job. He was very thorough, took time to explain his findings and recommendations. Provided all the information in the report as promised. I would recommend his services to anyone looking for an inspector.

First off, the good:
1) It was extremely easy to get in touch with Kerfin;
2) Everyone I dealt with was very friendly and professional;
3) The price they offered was by far the lowest I got;
4) They were very punctual and prompt in every way.

The not so good:
The inspector was very thorough when it came to what I considered minor issues, such as leaky faucets and toilet tanks; he went out of his way to call my attention to absolutely all such minor issues. However, he missed a glaring major issue, which I myself noticed and had to call his attention to, namely clear evidence of water damage all around the perimeter of the unit. Eventually I found out (again, myself) that the damage was especially extensive around the balcony door, where the wood floor had warped and creaked while standing on it. Perhaps I expect too much of a home inspection, but checking wall outlets and sinks for leaks is nowhere near important as water leakage all around the exterior walls and windows and a floor which has to be ripped out and replaced.

The second issue I had with this inspection is that the inspection report was very vague and completely missed mentioning another major safety issue that was found during the inspection.
First off, the aforementioned water damage was mentioned in a single sentence in the beginning of the document, without noting the extent of the problem or the damage; the page where that particular room was supposed to be called out made no mention of the problem at all, listing it as "clear". Never mind that the non-working fireplace was also not mentioned.
Second, the electrical dryer had started to smell like burning plastic the moment it was switched on, filling the place with heavy odor that lingered; somehow, this was not mentioned on the initial report at all.
I ended up contacting the inspector, who to his credit was very obliging in adding the water damage, non-working fireplace and burning smell dryer to the general list of issues found - but the question remains why I had to do his job for him in both finding the problems and making sure they got listed on the report? Never mind the scant level of detail and pictures of the water damage which were insufficient to say the least.

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Roland arrived on time and provided a very thorough inspection. He pointed out several items that the builder should take care of that I would not have found on my own. I would use this company in the future.

The inspection went very well. He showed up on time and got right to work. As he was going about it he discussed the reasoning behind everything, pointed out potential trouble spots. He also suggested various additional types of inspections I should look into. He was very upfront about the limitations of his inspection as well. He also, correctly, pointed out where we might run into some trouble getting VA loan approval and gave helpful suggestions to overcome these deficiencies. All in all, very thorough inspection and very reasonably priced. I would absolutely recommend him!

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Roland did an amazing and very thorough inspection of an older home we'd offered on. As a first time buyer, I was very nervous about the process but felt like I was in great hands. I was relieved he took the time to explain things clearly and sent the detailed report very quickly. Super respectful and professional. I will recommend him to others.

Tim?s recommendations were spot on.  We ventured out to buy a less than desirable
older home and every item Tim raised helped us with prioritizing improvements
to the tired home.  Kerfin?s services
come at a very competitive price and they were nice enough to accommodate us in
such short notice.  Overall, we were
happy with the inspections, the details given. 
We highly recommend.

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The experience was terrific.  The provider came by on time and was very thorough.  He went above and beyond to answer our questions.  I would use them again.

The home inspection went well with he inspector arriving on time and requested me to follow him around so that the inspection results were communicated verbally as well as in the inspection report.  The inspection appeared to be thorough (only after we move in will we know) as he looked at things I would not have considered, including getting further evaluation for a couple of problems identified .  He was ready and willing to answer questions and informed me of the limitations of the inspection.  The report followed in a timely manner and allowed us to negotiate on some of the limitations.